7 months old!

Kyllan Leave a comment

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Another month has flown by and Elliott is now 7 months old.  He is babbling more and more each day and seems to have a very happy disposition.  He is a very happy baby until you try to lay him down in a crib and leave him 🙂   He loves to be held and loves people to play with him.  Over the past month, he has started eating more solid foods and seems to like most things he eats.  Many times, he is just content sitting at the dinner table with us chewing on a spoon.  He has also started to sit up on his own now.  He still falls over every now and then, but can sit up unsupported for a good period of time.  One thing he does not like to do is roll.  You would think he would love the freedom, but he gets upset when you try to get him to roll over.  He is content laying on his stomach or back, but does not seem interested in rolling on his own.  I am sure that will change soon.  His only word is still “dada”.  I have tried to get him to say “mama”, but he just looks at me and smiles.

We are really looking forward to celebrating his first Christmas next week.  Laurel excitedly told him “Elliott!!….It’s your first Christmas!!”  I wish I cold have recorded it on video because she was super excited and it was so cute.  She also likes pointing out the ornament with his picture on it on the Christmas tree at their pre-school.

I have been horrible about posting updates, photos and videos, but I am sure we will get some up during and after the holiday.

Merry Christmas!

6 months old!

Kyllan 1 Comment

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Elliott is 6 months old!  He is growing so fast and I am trying to enjoy this “baby phase” while it lasts.  Laurel’s nickname at this age was “mellow yellow” because she was so laid back and easy going and Elliott is the exact same way.  Laurel is far from mellow now, so I guess we have to wait and see how long Elliott’s mellowness lasts.  He is usually in a great mood and loves to smile and “flirt” with everyone he sees.  William mentioned in the 5 month post that Elliott was babbling quite a bit and that has not changed.  Elliott babbles a lot in the morning when he wakes up and in the evenings when I pick him up from daycare.  Apparently he likes to “talk” to his teachers at school too because they comment about how much he talks and a special chair he has so he can sit right next to the teacher and talk to her while she feeds the other friends in his class.  We also have heard what sounds like his first word and you can probably guess what it is….. “dada”.  Yep, just like Laurel, Elliott has decided to say “dada” first, which is so thrilling to William.  Even Laurel acknowledges that he says “dada”.  Yesterday when Laurel, Elliott and I came in the house from school, Elliott was babbling and said “dada…dadadadada”.  Laurel looked at him and said “daddy is not home yet Elliott”, so she clearly understood his words to be referring to daddy.

His 6 month check-up is not until Thursday morning, so I don’t know his stats yet, but I think he about 18 pounds, so still quite the chunky baby.  He also seems to be pretty long.  Here is what I can tell you about his development.  He has rolled over a few times, but not consistently and is starting to gain more balance to sit up for a few seconds before falling over.  Just like Laurel at this age, he enjoys chewing on anything he can get his hands on, including his toes!  We are just starting solid foods, so I’ll have to comment on that later, but he seems to be off to a pretty good start.  He is constantly smiling and happy and loves to see his reflection in the mirror.  Bath time is becoming quite interesting because I end up with more water on the floor it seems than on him.  He kicks and splashes water everywhere, but seems to enjoy bath time.  The only thing I am having trouble with is getting him to stay asleep once he falls asleep and we lay him in his crib.  He usually startles each time someone puts him down, so I am hoping he will grow out of this phase soon and be able to self soothe on his own.

He loves playing with and watching Laurel.  She does a great job of keeping him entertained, getting toys and pacifiers for him and singing to him when he cries to help soothe him.  We still have to watch her to make sure she is not too rough, but she if often a great help.  I posted a photo below of the two of them.

Cutest. kids. ever.

I have some photos and videos I will try to post over the next week or so, but here are a couple to enjoy.

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Elliott at 5 Months

William 1 Comment

Well, Elliott never got a 4 month or 5 month post…

Elliott is still growing and growing. We refereed to his sized so much that Laurel began calling him “big boy.” We now refer to him as being a handsome boy when discussing his size. He is much more verbal in month five than he was in month four. While he is still quite baby, he has spurts of none stop babbling for 10 or 15 minutes. He has started showing a strong interest in solid food, and will likely get his first taste this weekend. He is favorite thing to do appears to be listening to people talk. He listens intently to every word Kyllan and I say. He also enjoys grabbing anything in front of him. He recently began attending the same daycare as his big sister, so the logistics of morning drop offs and evening pick ups have gotten much easier. His four and five month pictures are below. Here is a link to some random October and September photos.

4 Months
5 Months

 

3 Months

William Leave a comment

Elliott is growing up so fast. This past week he turned 3 months. In some ways it feels like he just arrived. In other ways, he has changed so much that the past few weeks seem like years. He has gone from making the occasional noise to babbling non-stop. Kyllan was spending so much time trying to get a smile out of him last month. Now it seems like he is smiling every minute. Kyllan beams with joy whenever Elliott returns one of her smiles. It is wonderful to watch. Elliott is starting to sleep longer periods at night, though he is apparently sleeping less at daycare than usual. He is enjoying tummy time more and more. In addition to his play mat, Elliott now has a jumper that he has been doing a great job in. He will be pulling himself up on to furniture and walking around in no time.

I have lots of photos form Laurel’s birthday and birthday party. I have photos from San Antonio as well. I will post these later week. They are already on my flickr page.

3 Months

 

Bath Time is full of smiles

 

Laurel is 2!

Kyllan 1 Comment

My youngest son is two months old and my oldest daughter is 2 years old!  Oh how time flies.

Laurel, just like Elliott continues to grow and her personality is starting to come out as well.  While she definitely has her terrible two moments, she is a very sweet and highly intelligent girl who loves to sing, dance and read.  She continues to amaze us and make us laugh at the things she says.

To celebrate her birthday, we are taking Laurel to the Dallas Zoo.  It will be her first trip to the Zoo, but she seems to like animals and we think she will enjoy it.  Her birthday party is not until Saturday and will be at Little Gym where the kids can flip and tumble and have a good time.  We invited her classmates and other children on our street, so it should be enjoyable for everyone.

I am sure we will have tons of picture and videos from the Zoo and party, so look for another post next week with details and photos!

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Elliott is 2 months old!

Kyllan 1 Comment

Ok, yes… I am late with my 2 month post for Elliott, but it has been a busy week.  We just returned from a quick family vacation to San Antonio last week, which was great (except for the traffic on the way back to Dallas on Sunday).  More on that in another post.

Another month has zoomed past and Elliott is already 2 months old!  His is growing by the minute it seems.  He had his two month check-up yesterday and he is 13 lbs, 12 ounces (79%ile) and 24 inches long (87%ile), so he is a very healthy boy.  I can’t believe that he is already in size 2 diapers and starting to bust out of his 3 month size clothes.  The new development this month is that he has begun to smile! 🙂  He started smiling over the 4th of July weekend and smiles a lot throughout the day, which is so rewarding when you are exhausted and just makes your heart melt!  The photo below shows him cracking a little bit of a smile.

He is sleeping a little bit better and I am occasionally getting the 3 1/2 hour stretch, so I will take the improvement from every 2 hours.  He will start daycare in a few weeks as I prepare to go back to work, so I am hoping he will have longer stretches in the near future.  I know Laurel slept better once she started daycare since she was up more during the day than when I was at home with her.

Laurel still enjoys being a big sister and seems to take her role very seriously.  She loves to help calm him down when he is crying by singing the alphabet and other songs to him.  She also likes to help give him the pacifier back when it falls out his mouth although we are trying to help her understand she does not need to wake him up and shove it back in his mouth if he has fallen asleep.  She is also still learning to be gentle with Elliott and not poke him so much, but I think he is used to it by now.

Its funny to see the similarities and differences between Elliott and Laurel.  I read the post I made when she turned two months and just like his sister at 2 months, 2 month old Elliott enjoys bath time, sucking on his fists, can easily break out his swaddle and is a loud sleeper (lots of moans, groans, and humming).

I am sad to realize that our daily bonding time is coming to an end in just a few short weeks when I return to work and I am trying to figure out how I will balance being a working mom of an infant and toddler, but I am sure I will quickly discover a routine that works.  I think it will just mean cooking meals on the weekend for the entire week and learning some crock pot recipes.  Recommendations and suggestions from you super moms and dads out there are much appreciated!

Well…. I need to wrap up this post so I can get some rest.  Tomorrow is a VERY special day… Laurel’s second birthday, so much more Codyreport news and photos to come!!!

Elliott Two Months

 

 

The countdown to Laurel’s second Birthday… one month to go!

Kyllan Leave a comment

Now that we have welcomed and celebrated Elliott’s arrival, we are now prepping to celebrate Laurel’s Birthday in exactly one month.  Ahhhh!!!  So much to do, but I think I have a plan, so we’ll see if I can pull things together.

Laurel is growing so fast and continues to amaze us.  Her vocabulary is growing every day and she is quickly learning to communicate (and boy does she have a lot to say!!).

Here is a few quick facts about Laurel at 23 months

1.  She LOVES books.  Her favorite is her “Otis” book, which is random because it is a book about a tractor, but we read Otis every night… twice… because she enjoys it so much.  Fortunately, there is a shorter “Otis Loves to Play” book in the series that she has become fond of, so William and I are thankful for the shorter story since it’s only in addition to the 3-4 other books we usually have to read at bedtime.  Of course, it is time well spent.

2. Despite the fact that she loves her Otis the tractor book, she is into girly stuff: jewelry, make-up, shopping, clothes, shoes, handbags, dolls, etc.

3. She still loves to eat and wants to eat as soon as she walks in the door from school, but has become much pickier lately about what she eats.  One day she will eat chicken and the next day, she completely dismisses it.  It’s my biggest challenge and I am sure a challenge for many toddler moms.  She enjoys her snacks most: graham cracker bunnies and goldfish, but also loves strawberries and watermelon, so we try to find a balance.

3. I think oatmeal has replaced waffles as her favorite breakfast food.

4. She loves to spend time outside on walks or in her wagon or most recently, stroller rides with Elliott 🙂

5. SHE LOVES MUSIC.  She cannot get enough music.  She usually dances to the music and demands William and I dance too!  When the song ends, the next song cannot start soon enough and she is already asking for “more music”.  I think that is the number one phrase we hear out of her mouth besides, “eat”.

6. She seems to have hit the terrible two’s about a month before Elliott was born.  She randomly began having tantrums and being much fussier when she doesn’t get what she wants, but it’s a work in progress and is slowly, but surely getting better…. I think.

7. She is on night #2 sleeping in her “big girl/big sister” bed.  We took the front rail off and put the toddler rail on.  I was panicked abut her waking up and destroying her room by pulling all her books and toys off the shelf and on the floor or that she would escape her room, but she did great last night/this morning and again tonight.  When she woke up this morning, she actually sat in her bed until I went in her room to get her ready for school.  She sat there looking tempted to explore, but is not used to the freedom yet, so we’ll see how long it lasts.

8. Elliott has a wonderful big sister!  She is still learning to be gentle and share the attention, but she enjoys singing to him and trying to help when she can.

I’ll try to get some photos of her in her big girl bed later this week.