9 MONTHS

Ya, this time around he wouldn't look at the camera OR smile. 

LOVES: blueberries, tomatoes, cheese, RAISINS & anything mom and dad are eating; his wooden blocks, showering versus bathing, going for tricycle rides around the neighborhood, swimming in his little pool, and being with mom 24/7.

DISLIKES: clothes, diapers, being force fed (he does not want help eating. He wants to pick it up himself). Also, being held by anyone but mom.

MILESTONES: He army crawled for the first time ever yesterday! He cried the whole time but he still did it ;)  He says mama, dada, yeah, and bubba. He pulls himself up on things that are within his reach. He FINALLY sleeps through the night!!! I can honestly say he just wasn't ready until now which is fine. I actually miss him when he goes down for the night now LOL. He has started mimicking us when we clap and wave. He has the wave down!

FUN MOMENTS 

+ He really eats anything and everything we give him right now. He even ate a mushroom the other day.

+He has been sleeping in anywhere from 8:30-10:00am. It.Is.Amazing.

+ He is having extreme separation anxiety. If he can see me, he has to be with me or he gets upset. He doesn't even like Mike ;) It is stressful though because I can't always be holding him!

+ He is really into reading books right now! It is so fun to see him interested in the pages.

+He doesn't like baby food anymore.

+ His favorite thing to do is point to EVERYTHING he sees. He loves to touch pointer fingers with other people haha. He is in to tapping his finger on stuff too.

We love you Henry!

XOXO, Ally

7 MONTHS

 haha! He was mad Dad took away his sticker

 his favorite fish

 kissing himself!

         

LOVES: prunes, sweet potatoes, & pears, his tonka trucks, his stuffed elephant (George) when he is sleeping, still likes to be swaddled with one arm in, a yellow and green striped fish he plays with in the bathtub, he LOVES his auntie and grandma - he lights up as soon as they come in the room and gets grumpy if he gets handed back to me haha. His loves his grandpa too, but is scared of uncle Austin ;)

DISLIKES: do not touch his face ha! he does not want his mouth or nose to be wiped or for you to brush something off his face.

MILESTONES: just today I had my arm stretched out next to him and he grabbed it and stood right up! Eeek! I told him he is growing up way too fast. He can say dada now too! We have been working on it for a couple of weeks and he has gotten the hang of it pretty well. He basically just blabbers on from the moment he wakes up - he will be one of those kids who never stops talking! No crawling or even wanting to be on his stomach. He is a pretty good eater because we give him a lot of whatever we are eating for breakfast/dinner so I am happy about that.

FUN MOMENTS 

+ He gives us kisses now! Usually it is a huge open mouth slobberfest instead of a kiss on the lips though ;)

+He will only cuddle in the morning right after he wakes up. And it is only for a minute at a time - he has to get up and looks around after that

+He is starting to sleep better yay! Has been sleeping through the night recently but most nights he wakes up at least once or twice.

+ He is an expert fake cougher. He does it alllll the time! Especially when he wants something out of reach. He also barks like a seal in the middle of the night when he wakes up and that aint so cute.

+ Henry is a very social baby. When we are out he wants to be looking at everyone and wants them to pay attention to him! He always smiles at anyone who might make eye contact haha

+ He likes to scratch his bum while he is nursing HA!

+ The other day he kissed himself in the mirror! It was the cutest thing! He always laughs and thinks it is the funnest thing ever when he is in front of a mirror.

+ We leave for Mexico soon and I am excited to see how he does with the sand at the beach. He already loves splashing in the pool/bath so I think it will go swimmingly ;)

Every stage just keeps getting better and we are loving it! He is more interactive every day and we are having so much fun.

We love you Henry!

XOXO, Ally

6 MONTHS

 Always more interested in eating it :)

LOVES: baby oatmeal cereal, Face Timing with grandma and grandpa, slamming his hands down on his high chair, playing with his wooden tool box (his favorite toys from the box are the wooden screw and the hammer), and scratching everything he can get his hands on.

DISLIKES: having to put on/take off clothes, his crib, sleeping

MILESTONES: he has TWO teeth now! Don't put your hand anywhere near his mouth or he WILL bite you :) as soon as he gets a hold of my hand he loves to bite it. He is dang fast too so you gotta be quick haha. He has been sitting up by himself for about a month or more now. He has started eating food now too! He hates being on his stomach and immediately rolls on his back so I don't know if he will crawl anytime soon...or ever.

FUN MOMENTS 

+ Since we have started baby food, he has quickly let us know his preferences. He likes sweet potatoes, carrots, squash, bananas, pears, and some of the other fruit ones. He hates green veggies :) he gobbles up the cereal, which I didn't really want to feed him, but he loves it. 

+ He has learned to spit which he conveniently only does while we are trying to feed him

+ Since getting his teeth, he does this funny grin where he scrunches up his nose, leans his head back, and smiles so you can see his teeth. It is the cutest thing!

+ He loves to scream and yell

+ He is a BIG flirt! Whenever we go out he loves to smile and laugh at all the ladies. 

+ He has had really bad acid reflux since he was born so he would only sleep in either the bassinet or the swing so of course we let him so WE could get some sleep. Well now 6 months down the road we are trying to transition him to the crib and he ain't havin it. Oh the things you learn as a first time parent. We have already have a list going of things we will do differently next time around haha.

+ Nicknames: Hen, Henny, Budda 

+ He knows when you are Face Timing and he gets a huge grin on his face when he looks at himself in the camera. It is so funny.

+ He is the most expert fake cougher! He coughs up a storm when he is hungry and you aren't feeding him fast enough. 

Every stage just keeps getting better and we are loving it!

We love you Henry!

XOXO, Ally

5 MONTHS

 

WAY more interested in the chair than taking pictures 

what do you want? why are you taking more pictures mom? 

LOVES: being swaddled, having his head rubbed while he is falling asleep, sitting up so he can splash in the bathtub, grabbing everything mommy has in her hands or in front of her, watching dad play the guitar (he screams in delight the whole time!), and putting anything in sight in his mouth

DISLIKES: having his nose wiped or snot sucked out (ew), not being allowed to watch tv when it is on haha!

MILESTONES: he sits up like the biggest boy now! he still tips over but can sit alone for awhile without any help. He likes to sit up and play with his toys. oh ya, HE HAS A TOOTH! I was trying to get a picture of it, but he just licks my finger and drools everywhere and it's not pretty haha. It is so dang sharp - he tries to bite your hand every chance he gets. I can't believe he already has a tooth!

FUN MOMENTS 

+ I think he is finally becoming a better(not perfect) sleeper. We started to do the Baby Whisperer techniques, but he got sick and then when he was on the mend he sprouted a tooth, and then he got sick AGAIN and currently has a crazy runny nose and nasty cough. However, in between it all he has randomly decided he will take nice long naps and only wake up twice a night. OK DUDE.

+ We used to do nurse then bath then bed, but he screamed so much after getting out of the bath that he just got way too worked up. He wouldn't go down easily and he woke up a ton for like 2-3 hours after bedtime. SO we decided to do bath time during the day and it has made all the difference! He doesn't scream after getting out (??) and goes down so much easier at bedtime. Only took us 5 months to figure it out! Haha. There is definitely no instruction manual for babies. 

+ he is going on an airplane next week for the first time and i'm freaking out! I have no idea how it is going to go. I just hope we don't all lose our marbles. (I hope he is not sick still either)

+ he loves his binky. It is so funny to me because he hated it when he was first born. It comforts him so much now!

+ i am really excited to start giving him some food next month! we give him small tastes here and there of what we are eating and he LOVES it. I think he is ready.

+ he is just so much fun right now. I am loving this stage! I am sure I will say that about every stage but it is true!

We love you Henry!

XOXO, Ally

4 MONTHS

LOVES: seeing mommy or daddy right after he wakes up (we get the best smiles from him then!), sitting in his high chair and playing with toys (his wooden zebra is his favorite), putting everything in his mouth which also makes him drool 24/7, splashing in the bath, and now he likes his binky at nap and bed times. 

DISLIKES: currently, breastfeeding which is incredibly frustrating. He dislikes putting on pajamas after his bath and pretty much all sleeping in general. Also does not like being held in the normal "cradle" position - he must be upright at all times (pretty sure this is because of his acid reflux).

MILESTONES: he reaches for everything in sight - books, toys, your nose, your glasses, my hair which is the worst; he can now bring his toes to his mouth so during bath time or when we change his diaper he loves to suck on his toes; he can almost sit up independently; he laughs much more these days.

FUN MOMENTS 

+ he always toots when he is breastfeeding and I think it is the funniest thing.

+ he just had his four month shots and he did significantly better than the first time. He of course cried when it happened but didn't scream, and as soon as Mike picked him up he was fine - only a few whimpers after that.

+ you absolutely cannot talk or be talked to while he is breastfeeding. Once he is distracted, he will not eat any further no matter if he just started or not. He is so picky!

+ his pediatrician was surprised when we told him Henry has never had a diaper rash thus far!

+ he honestly is not a good sleeper and we are beyond sleep deprived. Two nights ago he woke up every hour...ya. It ain't "four month sleep regression" either. I'm currently trying to get through the textbook that is the Baby Whisperer.

+ he likes to clench one fist around his index finger on the other hand and just chill like that haha 

+ sometimes instead of using his hands to grab a toy and bring it to his mouth, he will just lean over and try to suck on it which usually makes him fall over haha 

+ there are so many other cute moments but mom brain is making me forget!

We love you Henry!

XOXO, Ally

3 MONTHS

look how much he has grown!!!

LOVES: bath time, his play mat with a piano that he can kick to play music, sitting upright and being able to look around, reading books, sucking on his hands and slobbering like crazzzzzy, his swing

DISLIKES: a binky, being laid on his back or side (he wants to sit up and look around!), anyone talking while he is nursing, his carseat recently!

MILESTONES: he has very strong neck muscles and can definitely hold it up for a long period of time, grabs his toes, is starting to laugh, talks and coos a LOT especially when reading books

+ he pooped in the bath for the first time the day before he turned 3 months! eek!

+ he got a high chair a few days ago (ikea woot woot!) and he looooves sitting in it and playing with his toys

+ he talks and laughs the most for daddy! 

+ his sleep schedule is all over the place - he usually goes down around 8pm and some nights he gets up once and some times he gets up 4 times. ugh. One day at a time right? 

+ he must have his hand draped over his face whilst nursing. Even if you move it away he will move it right back. so weird! 

+ our primary kids are obsessed with him and can't wait to hold him every Sunday. they affectionately call him Mike JR.

We love you Henry!

XOXO, Ally