My Handsome Posing Son

Nothing like my handsome, amazing, hilarious little boy to add sunshine to my home and life.  Here he is.  It was an impromptu photo shoot because the light was coming in just so, and he was focused enough on my phone to sit still for photos.  Sigh.  So cute.

Mommy Stuff

This post is mainly to ask a few questions of other moms.  I realize I learn best from others that I trust and love (rather than online searching) so I'm wondering about a few things.  Please feel free to respond to my post by messages at the bottom or through facebook/e-mail.  


First though, a few precious mommy moments:
1. Silas knows how to kiss now!  And by kiss, I mean, that he dives towards my mouth with a wide open, drooly, sticky wide mouth and, well, it's sooo icky and cute all at the same time.
2. Silas is still 'crawling' and now will crawl up to my feet and grab my feet to get me to pick him up.  Precious.


For the questions:
1. How did you wean your babe off breastfeeding?  Silas is 9 months, eating well and lots, but still breastfeeds 4-5 times a day.  He refuses to take formula from me instead of breastfeeding, and still doesn't drink tons of water.  He has the smallest breastfeeds (except the first one of the day and last one at night) but how do I wean him down?  I want to have him weaned by a year, so I have some time, but I'm curious how everyone else did it.  Oh, and how often did you breastfeed at this age?


2. How do y'all spend your time during the day?  Do you spend focused time reading with your little one and 'teaching', doing chores, getting out, etc.  What DO other moms do with themselves- at home all the time?


3. Anyone else try sign language?  We've been reinforcing a few words for a few months without any signing back to us.  Any tricks to help teach kids sign language- and know when they start to sign back?

4.  Ummm. I had another question.  Totally forget.  Darn it!  Mommy brain.


5. In liu of question 4, any handy/yummy foods you made for your kid at 9 months of age?  


All for now!
Thanks fellow moms!

9 Months Baby!

It just dawned on me this morning that Silas turned 9 months yesterday!  
I don't know how much you can predict about a child's personality by this point, but here is what we DO know about Silas:
he's a ham.  Loves people and is always smiling and giggling at them.  I think he's a socialite and loves being in the centre of attention.
he's a fidgety little monkey.  He cannot sit still- ever.  He can be focused sometimes if he wants to figure something out but he mainly is wiggling, jumping, and moving all over- even while being held.  (Yup, he's a Jason and Shannon baby!)
he is easily frustrated.  He still is not crawling, and he gets super frustrated when he cannot reach a toy he wants.  He puts his head in the carpet and whines.  Poor guy.  He wants to master skills and gets mad when it doesn't come easily to him.
However, in light of the above statement- he's very smart.  He finds ways around his inabilities and instead of crawling to a toy, he'll use other toys to get to it, or if the toy is on a blanket, he'll put the blanket closer so he can grab the toy.  Sneaky!
he is quite coordinated.  Whether it's splashing crazily in the tub, playing the piano with mom, sitting alone, grabbing tiny cheerios or his mommy's hair with his pincer grasp, or passing a ball back and forth with daddy, he is quite competent with the motor skills he does have.
he is a chatterbox.  He grunts, rolls his rrrr's, blows bubbles with his tongue, makes dada and mama and all kinds of funny sounds.  He's really just chatting constantly.  He wakes up chatting, goes to sleep chatting...  
he is very strong.  His kicks hurt.  A lot.  AND he has a strong will to go with it.  (this should be fun).
he is generally happy.  or, at least that's the impression most people get of him!
he has the cutest cheeks in the entire world.  I cannot help but kiss them. A lot.
and he is hysterically funny.  J and I laugh all the time.  His expressions, wookie sound effects, his curiosity, and the way he laughs about the weirdest things- are great.  We LOVE making him laugh.Here's some pictures of our favourite little 9 month old:

his new walker.  he mainly plays with it while sitting on the floor so far.

Loves leaves, pointing with his pointy-finger, going for walks in the stroller, and his soother.

I just love this picture.  This is what Silas does while I'm in the shower.

At the pumpkin patch:

Another favourite activity: playing with grass.

Silas can clap now!  He also sometimes can give a high five when prompted.

CRACKER!

Silas loves his cheerios.   Actually, he loves his food in general.  Despite packing in 4 large meals a day, a couple snacks, and 4-5 drinks of milk, he still barely gains weight!  (Just like his dad)

Silas' favourite toy: string.  Yup.  LOVES it.

Another string picture.  He loves being carried in his backpack carrier

Silas is 8 months!

I think I say this every month, but it really is hard to believe Silas is 8 months old.  What a precious little boy.  He's so cute, and easy to make laugh.  He loves being around people, being outside, is content jumping, exploring, and is already very curious.

Love him to bits.
Here's some pics of him lately:

He's got a good shocked look

Silas loves being carried in this backpack!  Although, he has a bit too close of access to my hair!

Silas was down for a 'nap' but he kept chatting and chatting, I was wondering what was going on in there....

He moves around a TON in his crib- it's hysterical finding the different positions he's in.

he's a little explorer! Can't just look at flowers- has to touch them!

he has the face of an explorer...

Silas sits really well.  So cute..

Silas says 'da-da-da' and 'ma-ma-ma' and all kinds of sounds.  He is super close to crawling- crawls almost backwards and spins around on his tummy.  He's getting a bit frustrated but he's super fun to watch trying to figure it out.  We'll post video soon.

He eats all his colours of solids- and we'll be starting some proteins soon.  He loves holding his spoon and trying to feed himself his baby mum mums.  He laughs when I play peak-a-boo, when I tickle his knees or when I dangle his soother just out of reach.  I love making him laugh...warms my heart.  He hates being dressed or undressed, loves his bath- and plays with running water, and still hasn't worn shoes cause he kicks them off right away.  He's impossible to put pants on cause he wiggles so much, does pretty well in the car, and is still only waking once a night.  He has 2 naps now instead of 3, goes to bed at 8, and wakes up early (at 8).  Silas does well at the nursery at church and doesn't seem to mind to have others look after him.  But he recognizes mom and dad and is so happy to see us when we come get him!

So fun to watch him change and grow!  Can't wait to see him crawl!

Silas at 7 months

A bit about what Silas has been up to at 7 months...
1. Making friends

Lucas and Silas at Ambleside Park

His monkey (Silas loves eating his face or tail, and squeals with delight every time his monkey is close by!)

His good friend Lorena who is trying to teach Silas to roll and how to produce teeth, but to no avail!  This was during his latest camping expedition to Cultus Lake!

2. Eating and Drinking

Cereal and peas, carrots and squash, baby crackers and applesauce.  Silas' favourites so far seem to be avocado and banana together.  He is SUPER good at making a SUPER mess for mommy to clean up!

He also enjoys eating paper.  (Btw, doesn't his hair look red in this photo?)

He hasn't quite figured out how to drink water- although he enjoys holding his cup and chewing on it!

3. Swimming

Loves his bath, splashing etc.  Although, it has to be SUPER warm.  Can't convince him to go in any lakes as of yet, or in any spray parks.  

But loves his backyard pool.  (his hair is curly in this picture!)

Wrinkly toes from being in his kiddie pool too long!

4. Enforced Tummy Time

Silas is STILL not rolling, despite repeated encouragements and persistently enforced tummy time.  He gets fed up wanting to reach things, smashes his face into the carpet, and cries.  Oh boy.  Here he is doing 'tummy time' on Grandpa!

Tummy time again mom?!

5. Other Activities and Accomplishments

• drooling
• says 'da-da-da-da' pretty well
• re-inserts his own soother!  (sometimes upside down)
• holds books and turns their pages
• naps, almost like clockwork, after every 2 hours of being awake
• sits up like a pro-star
• gets bored easily
• poops like an overachiever
• is a little bit cuddly and a bit stranger shy after he wakes up
• moves all over his crib while sleeping
• has found his boy body parts!

6. Things he finds hysterically funny

• any loud and sudden sounds including (but not limited to): sneezes, coughs, beeps, boops, 'baaahs' and any other sounds his mom can come up with
• eating the couch cushions
• stopping mid feed to put his fingers in his mommy's mouth or up her nose
• peak-a-boo, in general
• being thrown around, put upside down, or any roller-coaster-like motion
• riding on his dad's shoulders
• grabbing faces or sucking on them
• wacking tables with his hands
• kicking, flailing, fidgeting or smacking his mommy 

7. What causes him to have dramatic crying fits 

• whenever anything he wants is taken away
• when he can't have his spoon to hold and chew on at the end of feeding
• when he's bored
• when he's awakened prematurely, or moved while sleeping
• when he's overtired (that is, after his 'hyper-everything-is-hilarious-over-tired' phase)
• when I leave the room
• the vacuum cleaner
• when he is frustrated with tummy time

7 months kiddo.  Each day is getting better!

Almost 7 months?

What? I have an almost 7 month old?  How is that possible?  I find myself getting a bit sentimental these days.  I saw a friend's newborn and couldn't believe how big Silas seemed comparatively.  I have to say though, I'm enjoying this stage.  A lot.

Reasons why this is my favourite stage:
-I don't feel like I am in survival mode all the time
-I can fit pre-pregnancy pants
-I know Silas better, including all those little intuitive things that I always wondered how mom's know (such as when one cry means 'I'm tired' and another cry means 'I'm not ready for bed yet)
-Silas is sleeping most of the night (he just slept from 9:30 pm to 6:30 am and we had to wake him up to feed him)
-Did I mention, Jason and I get to sleep in the same bed again!  Oh the sacrifices...
-Silas is so interactive!  He chatters on and on, I love making him laugh, he's exploring a lot, snuggles up on my shoulder and wants mommy and daddy more than other people (sigh, loving all this)
-Like clockwork...Silas is awake for 2 hours, then goes for a nap.  He's so much easier to read now!
-I can tackle household things and actually accomplish a full task!
-I can leave Silas somewhere for a moment, and he is RIGHT THERE when I come back (I know that this won't last much longer)
-He's so cute (I guess I'll always think this?!  Or at least, until he throws tantrums...)
-On that topic, even when he's reeeally upset, I can usually laugh a little cause he's so dramatic over silly things like putting his clothes on  (I imagine when he's a toddler and crying his eyes out it will be much louder, and much less funny)
-He can almost sit on his own!
-He can feed himself baby mum mums and it's soooo cute
-I LOVE scraping nasty solid-food-poop into the toilet (okay, kidding).
-Oh, and I don't have to check on him every 5 minutes while he's sleeping (I know he's still breathing...okay, I don't NEED to, but I still do once in awhile).

Loving this stage.  I just feel more like me.  I'm still having some issues sleeping but I DO sleep every night.  Praise the Lord.  I'm almost recovered from my crazy postpartum thyroiditis.  I have to say that though the fall out was miserable from the thyroid, I don't mind having lost the extra weight faster because my metabolism was so high.

It's funny because, hypocrite that I am, I was always so flabbergasted how mom's could 'forget' those first weeks and months.  I would ask them "what were they like??"   And most, could hardly remember. "TERRIBLE MOMS, HOW CAN THEY FORGET?"  I would wonder.  Well.  It's true.  I have very little recollection about how exactly we figured things out in the beginning.  I only remember it was hard,it was survival, but now here we are at almost 7 months.  And of course, it was all worth it.  Wow.

Silas is 5 months old

It's been a busy last month for Silas!  Lots of new milestones, lots of new adventures.  Here's his latest update:

Silas loves his bathtime!  He's discovered how to splash with his hands and feet, and loves drenching his mom and dad.  It's meant to 'calm him down' but only serves to rile him up!

He's still not so sure about being on his tummy, and hasn't quite rolled over, but he LOVES being on his back and grabbing his toes.  He gets a bit mad when his mommy puts him in a cloth diaper as he doesn't have quite the same flexibility as with a disposable.

His latest trick is being able to stand up!  He never used to bear his own weight, and when held up to the standing position, his legs would crumble beneath him.  Now he can stand while we hold his hands!  He LOVES this new trick.

He's also discovered how to actually grab what he wants (such as his mommy's hair).

He has enough coordination now to get what he wants, and, of course, put what he grabs into his mouth.  He can hold onto a book now (with a bit of assistance of course), and seems to like reading books (although his attention span is certainly not long enough for us to read all the berenstein bear books that his mommy loves).

He had a number of new adventures over this past month.  He got to meet his auntie, uncle, and cousin Jacob for the first time!  Silas also went camping for the first time in Washington for a night.  He actually did much better than we thought he'd do!

He got to see the ocean on this camping trip too and sat out on the beach with us!

Silas, being true to his name (meaning man of the forest) seems to LOVE going on hikes with us.  We just strap him to his dad and off we go!  We've done a number of hikes over this past month or two including the lower falls trail in Golden Ears' park, Lighthouse park in West Vancouver:

 the Diez Vista trail in Port Moody,

and around the beach in Birch Bay, Washington:

He still loves his jolly jumper and definitely prefers to be carried around, seeing what his mom and dad are up to.  He giggles and screeches quite a lot when he's thrown up in the air or hung upside down.

He had a rough week where it seemed he wasn't happy at all.  He was drooling all over the place, not eating well, sleeping terribly and was just generally grumpy.  No teeth to show for it yet though?  But it seems he's turned a corner over the last few days and is the happy-go-lucky Silas we knew he always was!

This month he also got to go to the zoo, a place his mom and dad hadn't even gone to (quite cool actually).  He wasn't even worried being so close to lions, tigers or bears (well, okay, he slept through most of the zoo, but he seemed to enjoy it when he was awake!)

He loves when other people are around and it would appear that he is very social.  He especially loves hanging out with family (and grandpa):

He is full of new expressions and sounds.  He likes to blow bubbles and make funny faces...ex: disgust:

We tried him on rice cereal for a few days, just for fun and he seemed to like it.  However, we decided to wait a bit just cause, well, maybe we're a bit lazy and he's still not 6 months yet...

But he enjoys sitting up in his bumbo from time to time and LOVES watching his daddy eat.  When Jason holds him at the table during dinner he watches the fork go to daddy's mouth over and over again!

It's been a busy, exciting month!  He's changing a lot lately and almost able to sit up on his own.  This month will prove to be another crazy month.  We're going to take him for a longer camping trip, up to whistler for a week, and on his first flight to Ontario!  Phew.  I'm tired just thinking about it...

Love you Silas!  You are so much fun (even when you're grumpy) and you make us laugh often!  Can't wait to find out more about who you are as time goes on!