HALF A YEAR OLD?! What? How
Yes, my friends, our little baby boy is 6 months old! And what a freaking adorable little guy he is. I will say, this month certainly came with it’s fair share of challenges, but overall, I loved watching Kaiden grow developmentally and in terms of his personality.
With that, let’s dive into how the various members of our household fared during month 6…
STATE OF KAIDEN
Where to begin!?!
We introduced Kaiden to solid foods in the form of purees. Over the past few weeks, he’s tried (and loved!) avocado, banana, apple, pear, and carrots. Sweet potatoes were his least favorite, and I still can’t figure out why. We’ll try again in a few weeks! Right now he eats one of these foods once a day, and the amount varies based on his mood. Some days he gobbles up a small bowl or two and other days he eats about half of what I prepare. I think we’re going to move to two meals a day once we’re settled back in Chicago. More to come!
The next big development came in the form of a tooth finally emerging [and our challenges starting]! Since being in Atlanta, Kaiden’s been a little off in terms of…well, everything. But in the past few days, he really wasn’t himself – fussy, loss of appetite, trouble sleeping, etc. Well, turns out he’s cutting his very first tooth (bottom left). Poor baby!
In the past week or so, Kaiden’s baby babble is starting to sound more conversational (for lack of a better word). What I mean is that you can hear things like “ba” and “da.” Whenever he switches to “talking” mode, I think about what our real conversations will be like!
Kaiden’s also blowing raspberries now! In fact, it’s his favorite thing to do aside from playing with his toes. I hear baby spit is good for the skin?! HAHA!
In terms of sitting up and rolling over, we are alllllllllmost there. He’s got the rolling to the side thing down pat and almost made it all the way a few times. I think we’ll be there by the next month. With sitting, he’s getting stronger and more stable every day. I imagine we’ll have an independently sitting baby in no time!
Personality wise, I think we have a happy old soul on our hands! Kaiden is a very calm and collected baby (most of the time!). He goes to anyone and everyone, observes everything around him with such intent and focus, and loves to be around people. He’s still a mama’s boy (which I love!) but not in a clingy way (yet). We’ve also been told more than once that he’s quite the flirt…we’ll see about that one. 🙂
Even though Vishnu and I want to hold off for as long as possible, I think a haircut/trim is in Kaiden’s not so distant future. His hair is insanely long (and thick) for a baby his age and keeps getting in his eyes. Whether we want to admit it or not, it’s probably time!
Other than that, we have a sweet, gentle baby on our hands. I think we’ll keep him! 🙂
STATE OF MAMA
Had you asked me how I was doing at the start of December, my answer would’ve likely been a little different than it is today. Overall, I’m doing great and feel very thankful for the past 6 months. However, as we approach the start of 2018, our little family is going to experience a lot of changes and because of that I think I have a bit of the post-holiday/Chicago winter blues.
For example, my dad (or any other family member for that matter) will no longer be staying with us. I know Vishnu and I can handle everything on our own, but I will miss the extra pair of hands and company.
As I shared earlier, Kaiden starts daycare in January. While I’m truly excited for him to make new friends and learn new things, I’m sure this in and of itself is going to bring it’s own set of challenges. With both me and Vishnu working full-time, I often find myself questioning how we’re going to juggle it all. And that’s precisely when I have to remind myself to take it one day at a time. Never mind the guilt I already feel about leaving him with strangers (at first). Everyone says it gets better, and I’m sure it will…but still! I hope he knows we’re doing everything we can do give him the life and future he deserves!
Now more than ever, staying organized is going to be key to my sanity. I can share more in another post, but right now I’m thinking about all the things I should do at night to have a more calm morning (prepping lunches, laying out work/workout clothes, etc.). Weekend planning is also key since Saturday and Sunday will be our main two days to spend time together as a family. While this may sound stressful to some, I love organizational type stuff. It makes me feel on top of my game (even when I’m not!) and mentally prepared for anything (even when I’m not!).
STATE OF DADDY
Vishnu’s doing well. He’s almost at the tail end of a very busy and intense rotation (yay!). His next two rotations should be much easier in terms of both mental load and time at work (double yay!).
I think V’s still trying to figure out how to squeeze life and all that comes with it around parenthood (as am I). I personally don’t think he gives himself enough credit. Balancing residency and everyday life was hard enough. Now with Kaiden, there’s more to juggle, think about, plan for, etc. And of course, he takes priority over all else. We’re figuring it out as we go. Something we discussed recently is the idea of comfort. Even with Kaiden, we want to keep trying new things and experiencing new adventures – restaurants, travel, local adventures, etc. Call it our 2018 couple’s resolution!
Because of our trip to Atlanta, Vishnu missed the last two weeks of this month. In hindsight, I don’t think another two week vacay without V is in our future. As Kaiden gets older, I want to celebrate major holidays together as a family.
Other than that, Vishnu’s doing great and is ready to embrace the next six months.
STATE OF VISHNU AND PAR
As a couple, we’re doing well. It’s fun parenting with your best friend! But I think Vishnu and I need to shake things up every now and then. Hence our focus on trying new things/going on adventures in 2018. It’ll be interesting to see how things change in the new year when we tackle this whole parenting thing on our own. Like the billions of other parents around the world, I’m sure we’ll experience a few bumps along the way, but I’m confident that regardless of what happens, we’ll be ok. 🙂
Well how’s that for a super wordy update! If you stuck around to the end…thanks!
And here we come month 7!!!
My little one seemed to do a lot better with sweet potatoes if I thinned them out extra with milk or water more so than her other purees. Something about the texture of them made her very prone to gagging otherwise!