Super Trooper

Stan said his first word tonight! We spent all this time wondering whether he would say Ma-ma or Da-da first, but it turns out that the first word was ABBA. I never knew my cleaning music would have such an impact...and i don't even know if I've listened to it more than once since he was born! He has been practicing the b sound for two or three days, and tonight during dinner he had a great time saying it back and forth with me. When I leave him to entertain himself, he lays there and says "buh....buh....aaaa-buh...bbbbbbwaaaa....buh." It's pretty cute. I'm looking foreward to him being in the stage where he'll babble and string consonant sounds together.

The other thing he did today for the first time was shake a rattle. Usually he just licks it for a minute then drops it, but today he was shaking it around. In the morning he waved it around going as far in each direction as his short arms would permit, and by evening he was shaking it more like a normal person shakes a rattle. To me this is big news because it means he's going to start playing with his toys instead of just tasting them and dropping them. Hopefully this means I'll be able to let him entertain himself for longer periods of time.

Today at naptime (2:00) I nursed him and put him in the crib, but as soon as he touched the matress his eyes opened. I put a blanket over him anyway and walked out, and just stayed in the next room to listen. He played with his crib toy for probably ten minutes, then he got a little fussy and started whimpering, but after a few minutes of that he just fell asleep. I love it when he falls asleep on his own!

scott and stan playing a fun game. 

the apple of my eye

stan's favorite baby food by far is applesauce. It's either because apple is extra tasty, or because it doesn't hurt as much as other foods when he grabs some off the spoon and grinds it into his eye with his fist. or maybe it's both.

splish splash I was takin' a bath

Today Stan discovered how to slap his hands down on the bath water and make a splash. He wasnt' doing it for fun, though. When I turned him toward me i saw that he was splashing in a concentrated effort to grab the water and get it into his mouth. So maybe it was really nothing new.

Stan's earliest night yet! 

Cherubic StanBan. 

Stanley holds his feet. 

Coming Home to Silence

Yeah, it is a record. Julie's right. I'm used to coming home and having Stanley squirming around in Julie's arms, arching his back so that he can...I don't know why he arches his back. He just wants to, and maybe that's his strongest form of complaint, short of crying.

He arches his back and then Julie hands him off to me. I love that part of the day, because he almost always smiles. It's not normal to come home this late from work, but it was nice to see Stanley already in his crib, arms forming a 't' with his body. If he sleeps through the night, we will have hit the golden super whamalama dingdong jackpot.

A new record!

It's 10:15, and i'm sitting all alone in the long room. The only sound is my own typing and some snaps clinking against the dryer. Notice anything missing? that's right! Stan has been asleep in his crib since 9:30. For those of you who may be unfamiliar with his schedule, this is a BIG DEAL. I hardly know what to do with myself. Stan hasn't gone to sleep before me and scott since, um, probably since he was born. If this happens again, just think....oh, my imagination is racing! We could play a game together...we could have people over to play Settlers, we could read or study together. I could quilt while Scott writes, we could go to bed early if we wanted to. I know it probably isn't time to get my hopes up yet, but it's hard not to. 9:30...just think of the possibilities. I think I'll go do some dishes....

the champy mamp

I don't know how it happens. Can the Law of physics explain why the poo of a baby sleeping on his side can spread all the way to the heel of one foot and up to his shoulder blade? Needless to say, Stan had a bath today.

wet and pinchy

stan is crying and crying. Its the time between when he gets really tired and when he goes to sleep. Scott is getting his blanket to swaddle him, and when he calms down, I'll see if he wants to eat. Stan's new game is to pinch the things he touches, like the arm or face of the person holding him. He has a pretty tight grip, and his nails are always sharp, no matter how often i trim them. His hands are always wet, because he is always chewing on them, and that makes the pinches worse.

the 5 month birthday

Yesterday Stan turned five months old. I have been feeding him plain rice cereal for about a week, so yesterday i made a batch of carrot baby food, and i mixed about a tablespoon in with his cereal. He seemed to like it ok, but he wasn't really in the mood to eat, so it was a little bit of work at first. He's a good eater, though, and does a good job of keeping the food in his mouth once it's in.

Making baby food is easier than anything. I just peeled four carrots, boiled them till they were soft, then pureed them with the cooking liquid, and voila! I put one tablespoon of the puree into each space in an ice cube tray and froze it, then put the cubes in a freezer bag. Now I have ten more one-serving portions in the freezer all ready to go. And it couldn't have cost more than twenty cents.

Last week he started holding his feet, so now whether he's lying on his back or someone is holding him upright, he has at least one foot in his hand. When he holds both feet, it turns him into this awesome little ball. He usually holds his left foot with his left hand. I wonder if it's a clue about what his dominant hand is going to be. He usually chews on his right fist, though, so he's probably not old enough to tell.

This is the Grand Baby, Stan, the day after he was born. 

Hi Mom, Hi Dad

Yep, I'm going to post on this blog, as well. It was a good enough idea that I have decided to invite myself without asking Julie and steal her idea. Thanks!

Hi Mom, Hi Dad

Hi Mom, Hi Dad. This blog is for me to tell you about what Stanley is doing, and to put pictures up for you to see. That's all for now.