Eric is teaching himself cause and effect, problem solving, and all about textures. The cause and effect is evident as he throws his toys and watches me pick them up; its also evident when I show him that my fingers are about to tickle him and he laughs before I touch him. His problem solving is amazing to watch. When he drops a toy, he looks around for it and tries to pick it back up. And the textures is hilarious to watch, he puts everything in his mouth now and the facial expressions he makes when he tastes a washcloth are very different from when he tastes his rattle or his own thumb - too cute!
He has also started to string together a bunch of consonant and vowel sounds, as tho he is making sentences to tell me a story! He is also starting to know his name! And its almost as tho he has just discovered his tongue, it is sticking out and he is licking things, i'm sure part of this is because he is teething like crazy all of the sudden!
This week we tried green beans and also peas. He's still the best eater I have ever seen, but I think the carrots are still his fav.
This last week we ate yellow squash, green beans, and pumpkin. He seemed to like them all, but pumpkin was his favorite of the three. I'm not sure if it's better than carrots, but it's definately number 2!
On Oct 21, Eric rolled over from back to tummy all by himself! I was able to catch it on video (ah, the joys of being a stay-at-home Moma!) The video is below, cick the triangle to watch the video. The 23rd was the first time he ever slept on his tummy, I put him on his back as usual, but he rolled right over, I was so nervous - but of course, everything was fine. A pic is below.
We also switched from a pattern schedule to a straight schedule this week. This new schedule is based much on the old one (which was dictated by Eric) but it encorporates the 'eating then playing then sleeping' theory (popularized by BabyWise) which I prefer over the 'eating then sleeping then playing' method - who likes to go to bed on a full stomach anyway, especially if he is going to continue sleeping on his tummy!?!
And of course its almost that time and I have been dreaming of the little pea-in-a-pod costume since before he was born - too cute!!! A pic is below. Happy Halloween!
And one last picture - Someone gave us a cute little outfit with a boat on it, so I just had to find the nautical flags to spell ERIC!
I cannot believe 5 months have gone by already! I feel so blessed to finally have my little guy here to complete our family and my life! I know Eric is the reason I was put on this earth and I am so thankful!
Our little miracle is getting good at rolling around on the floor and he will lay on his tummy and make swimming motions! We practice sitting up and playing with toys - this seems especially rewarding for him, I know sitting up is something he will really enjoy! He also really enjoys Scott's impression of Popeye The Sailor Man, I don't know why (Eric has never seen Popeye and has no idea who Popeye is), but for some reason it consistantly makes him laugh!
Peek-a-boo is starting to be funny and he loves for me to raise him up towards the ceiling as high as I can reach. How does he decide these things are funny and how does a sense of humor develop? I have no idea, I just love that laugh!!!
He is learning how to cough now and the first time he did it I was really concerned, so now he does it unpurpose and watches for my response. He sticks his tongue out when he coughs, its super cute!
This week we tried carrots. At first Eric looked at me like, "Um, Mom, there is something really wrong with these sweet potatoes..." then after a few spoonfuls he seemed to be looking as if to say, "Oh, I get it, these aren't sweet potatoes... Carrots you say? These are the best thing I have ever put in my mouth!!!" After the carrots and cereal were all gone, he screamed for more - just wait until he tastes applesauce! LOL! Thankfully we have a good eater on our hands, but yikes what a mess he makes!
Researchers believe that at 4 months and 1 week, babies can understand all the basic sounds that make up their native language. With all of the new noises Eric is making, I believe the research! Besides the new noises, Eric's baby womb hair is being replaced with gorgeous blonde big boy hair!
Below you can see his "Handsome" outfit, the very first outfit I bought for him right after we found out he was a boy, (thanks for shopping with me Kellie!); his stuffed animal Bailey (thank you Gran Susan & Grandpa Steve!) and Bailey jammies (thank you Gramma Linda & Grandpa Bill!) along with the new blanket from Great Great Aunt Pinky, thank you; and a pre-curser to halloween (thank you, Jonna & Dan, he is wearing the cowboy boots too but they got covered up)!
Time for shots again. :( This time we got bugs bunny band-aids! Eric is getting really good at laughing now; and we are getting really good at figuring out what makes him laugh, although it doesn't always work every time. The Dr says Eric is very flexible as he is now able to get those little piggies in his mouth - ew! The Dr also said we can start feeding Eric rice cereal mixed with breast milk. He is so ready, he watches everything Scott and I put in our mouths and opens his own mouth as we open ours to put the food in! Eric's eyes are still as blue as the day he was born and his eyelashes are still longer than his hair! His stats at this Dr visit: 13.15 pounds and 25 inches long!
Eric is drooling now, apparently it's not teething, just getting the digestive system ready to eat. He has found his toes and reaches up to grab them (while he is laying on his back) and this causes him to roll slightly to one side, soon he will get the hang of it and roll all the way over by choice! This half roll is a wonderful new sleeping position (see pic below)! With all this new interest in feet and rolling around, you can't help but think about all the sports Eric will have fun doing!
He slept in his crib for the first time on Sept 7thduring an afternoon nap!
Eric's sense of wonder is growing. He is intriged by the book, "Puppy and Friends." It's one of those touch, feel and say books, so he gets to pet the puppy's fur and nose and bed, etc. We read it in his bouncy seat and he bounces the most when we get to the page where the puppies are all eating out of different colored bowls! He also likes our book about trains and our book about counting animals... speaking of which, can you see all four monkeys in the pic below?
