7 Months Old!

7 Months Old!

Daddy's Mini Me

Rowan turned 7 months old on Sunday.  Crazy to think we're more than 1/2 way to his 1st birthday.  This time last year we were about ready to find out if we were having a boy or a girl.  Now we have a happy little boy living in our house that is FULL of personality. 

Rowan's still growing like he should.  He's passed the 16 pound mark...we think.  He seems like he's A LOT heavier.  Either that or I'm getting weaker...  Next official measurements will be at 9 months. 

He loves food!  He's had a few puffs now and does pretty well with them.  Since they're crunchy (at least until they get wet) he's not quite sure what to do with them.  His face is pretty comical when he starts chewing them.  He had his first allergic reaction to food too.  We're not sure if it's pears or the other brand of oatmeal we tried.  Who knew changing brands could cause allergic reactions?  We eliminated both of them from his diet and we'll try to reintroduce them over the next few weeks to see what caused the reaction.  It wasn't anything major, just a little rash around his mouth.  A third tooth just broke through on his upper gum.  That toothy smile just melts my heart.

I. Want. That. Paper.

Got it!

Rowan started to take his pacifier more regularly too.  He's pretty good at putting it in his mouth when he wants it.  He isn't dependent on it to go to sleep, but he'll actually suck on it for a while.  Here's hoping he only stays moderately attached so when we take it away for good it's not traumatizing for him (or us!). 

He's QUITE determined when he wants something too.  He's good at getting what he wants, even if it's 'far' away.  He hasn't quite figured out crawling yet, but he's good at rolling to where he wants to go.  He's up on his hands and knees quite a bit now, so I think crawling will happen soon-ish.  Until that happens, he's content to roll, scoot backwards, and put his head down on the ground once on his knees for a minute.  Silly little boy.

Sleeping so peacefully

He's still sleeping...a lot!  10ish hours per night is regular now.  My only complaint about that is now I no longer have a 5:30 alarm I have to wake up for.  Great on the weekends...bad during the week when I have to work. 

Other than that, we're loving seeing his different facial expressions.  He's so very expressive and happy.  We are laughing to much around him all the time.  He's really brightened our lives and we couldn't be more thankful for our sweet baby boy.

I love playing!

It's a duck!

Rowans Favorite Things

Right now Rowan's favorite things include laughing and blowing spit bubbles with his tongue.  We managed to get a video of both.  Though towards the end of the laughing at Bishop video he starts to get tired and a little less laughy and a little more fussy.  

6 months

Well, I think it's safe to say that I slacked BIG TIME in the picture department this last month.  I know there are some on the camera I just need to get uploaded, but there probably aren't that many.  Next month...we'll get some more. 

But...holyhannahbatmanrowanissixmonthsold!  I have a hard time believing that this little boy has been around for six months already.  Let's see...what has Rowan been up to.

-Rowan's 6 month check went really well.  He's 27 inches long (70th percentile) and 15lb 13oz (20th percentile) .  He's a little peanut and just super super sweet.
-He spouted his first teeth.  That's right, teeth not tooth.  The bottom two teeth came just a few days before he turned 6 months old.  Thankfully he handled teething very well.  He was a little fussy, but nothing too bad.  He loved sucking on wet wash cloths too.
-Rowan LOVES to eat food.  In addition to cereal, he's had avocado, banana, sweet potato, peas, carrots, and nectarines (mixed with banana).  He disliked carrots and peas at first...he physically gagged the first time trying them, but after trying them a few time he warmed up and eats them willingly.  I do believe green beans are next for this boy.
-Rowan has finally started to figure out naps.  He's started to take about 3 naps a day, each lasting 1-2 hours.  This is a HUGE change from the 5 or so 30 minute naps he used to take.  It's nice to know he's getting long stretches of sleep.  Helps us to get stuff done (or nap) while he's napping. Night time sleeping is still great.  He's sleeping 8-10 hours each night.  I couldn't ask for a better sleeper.
-Rowan thinks boys are hilarious.  Just about anything Ian does gets hugs laughs.  I do the same thing and I get a courtesy chuckle.  Guess laughs are going to be one of those special things Ian gets to share with Rowan more than me.  Papa got some really good laughs out of Rowan too when they came for a visit.  Nana...courtesy chuckles. 
-Rowan is  rolling machine!  He loves to roll back and forth whenever he's on the floor playing.  He's not really showing interest in crawling at this point, but man can that boy roll.  He's also starting to scoot along a little bit, so it will be interesting to see how he moves along once he decides he wants to be more mobile.
-Rowan has a temper.  He's started to throw baby tantrums when he doesn't get something he wants right away.  He can certainly scream, but he calms down fairly quick when he gets distracted by something else.  But boy oh boy, can that boy get mad.

Rowan also made his first trip back to South Dakota.  Nana and Papa came into Omaha for a few days and we decided to head up to SD so my dad could go to a doctor's appointment and Rowan could meet a few people.  It was a whirlwind trip seeing as we were in Rapid City for about 36 hours, so we certainly didn't get to see everyone we wanted to, but we got to see some very important people.  It was good to be back home even if it was for a short time.  I'm hopeful we'll get to head back later in the spring or early summer, but we'll just have to see how work is going at that point.  

Those are the big highlights.  Hopefully we'll have some more pictures to share soon.  =)

Hey mom! Did you know...

...that there are puppies in the house?!?!?!?  And they are hillarious??

Rowan recently discovered that we have dogs.  Not sure why this is a recent discovery, but it is.  He's absolutely fascinated by them and watches them whenever they are in sight.  He'll also reach out to 'pet' them and loves when Church licks his hands. 

He also randomly started laughing at Bishop last night.  He did it again tonight, and I managed to capture a video of it.  Enjoy!

5 months

 Rowan is 5 months old now!  I know babies grow and develop a lot in their first year, but man...I feel like this month has been huge for Rowan!  Where to begin...

Double ear infection, a cold, and a little smile

On the bad side of things, Rowan has had his first ear infections...and they've been back to back.  Well-I guess I can't say for sure that the ear infections have been back to back, it may have just been one long ear infection.  We took him to the doctor because he had a red spot on his eye and discovered he had an ear infection in his right ear.  Did amoxicillin for 10 days, and then had a follow up appointment a few days later.  At that follow up appointment Rowan had an ear infection in both ear.  So the pink-bubble gum medicine may not have done the trick OR he got a another ear infection.  Either way, we're on omnicef now.  Here's hoping it works.  His digestive track has been affected WAY more after 2 days of omnicef than all 10 days of amoxicillin, so I'm assuming this new antibiotic is doing more work.

Rowan is also fighting a cold.  He sounds so pathetically sweet when he's sick.  I feel bad for him now because it seems like he's hoarse.  We thought it may be croup or RSV or something, but the doctor didn't think so.  He's not coughing all that much, so that's good.  He's still liking to sleep a lot when he's not feeling so good, so that's amazing.  Sad though that the only time he takes good naps is when he's sick...

Ok, now onto the fun stuff!  Rowan. Loves. Food!  We've only tried cereal and avocados, but he loves them.  He's a little less enthralled by cereal now...but it's pretty bland so I can't say I blame him.  Avocados though...AMAZING!  We're venturing into the world of bananas, apples, and sweet potatoes shortly.  We're making baby food for him, which I have to say really isn't that hard.  Buy some fresh produce, cook it, blend it up with a little milk, and voila!  You've got 2 ingredient baby food.  It's fun to plan what we're going to feed him.  And boy does he love it. 

Tummy time isn't so bad now that I have control

Rowan's been moving around so much too.  Well...by so much I mean from back to front and front to back and in a circle.  He scoots along pretty well, but is not trying to crawl around yet.  He does love rolling from his back to tummy and back again.  There were a few days in there where he forgot how to roll from his tummy back to his back.  He remembered though, just took him a few days of fussing for a bit and then getting some assistance from Ian or I.

Tummy sleeper

Rowan is also no longer a back sleeper-officially.  When we put him in his crib, he stays on his back long enough for us to wrap him up...sometimes.  Sometimes he's rolled onto his side even before we have the blanket around him.  I was a little nervous about him sleeping on his tummy for a moment-especially when he forgot how to roll back over from his stomach to his back-but he's been doing just fine.  I figure if he put himself onto his stomach, he has the strength to either get him self back onto his back or let us know he needs to be moved.  Guess that's one thing he gets from his mama =)

Figuring out what this guy does

He continues to just be ever so happy and smiley-even when he's feeling sick.  His laughs are more frequent and a bit more predictable now.  We both love making our baby boy giggle.  Rowan does get fussy and frustrated at his toys sometimes when they aren't doing what he wants.  He's starting to realize some of them do things (like make music) and he wants to figure it out.  Sometimes they're a bit tricky for him and he doesn't like that.  But once he figures it out, he has a big happy smile on his face like he's so proud of himself.  It's great to watch him make some of these connections.

We won't have 'official' stats on his size until 6 months, but we know he's still growing.  He's still in 6 month clothes and size 2 diapers when we're using disposables.  At the last doctor's appointment (when we found the double ear infection) he was 15lbs with his clothes on.  So he's continuing to gain weight, which is good...he's just a little peanut though. 


His facial expressions are great too.  He's personality is shining through more and more each day.  I think we're going to have a little jokester and flirt on our hands...

Why so serious?

Oh...I know you!

Lemme smile for you

Nope...not in love

...with breastfeeding that is.

Now...before I go any further, I feel like I need to say that this is not a post about me whining or complaining.  This is just a place for me to express my feelings about my journey breastfeeding Rowan.  I know each mother is different and each child is different...this is just my story so far.

With that disclaimer out of the way, I am so not in love with breastfeeding.  I don't dislike it, in fact there are several things I enjoy about nursing.  I'm thankful for the medical benefits for both Rowan and I.  I'm thankful for the efficiency and convenience of not having to worry about bringing bottles and formula when we're out and about.  I'm thankful for all the smiles and looks Rowan gives me when we're nursing...I think that's my favorite part.  I mean...how can you not just feel amazing when you have a sweet baby face inches away from yours that just smiles so brightly. 

But...then there are the parts that aren't exactly my favorite.  I can honestly say I HATE that I'm either tied to a pump or Rowan every three hours of every day.  I don't mind being tied to Rowan, but I hate the fact that if I want to go and do something for more than a few hours without Rowan, I have to bring along my pump and make sure I'm pumping every three-ish hours.  I also hate the fact that I have to pump every morning.  Rowan does a good job of draining 1/2 the milk I make overnight, but he can't drain it all.  So that means I get to pump every morning on top of nursing.  Spending 30-45 minutes each morning draining my udders is not my ideal way to wake up. 

I'm also frustrated with some of the struggles I've had with nursing.  Rowan and I figured out the whole latching thing within the first month, so that was great.  But because I am a freak of nature I produce a lot of milk.  Producing way more milk than Rowan needs has its pros and cons.  It's nice to know we have a freezer full of milk in case I have a dip in production for some reason.  It's also nice to know that I can donate milk to a milk bank in Kansas City for premature babies that need breast milk and can't get it from their mamas for some reason.  The bad thing is it has led to many a blocked duct and two cases of mastitis in the almost 5 months I've been nursing.  And when mastitis hits, I. Feel. Like. Death.  Fever...chills...aches...lethargy...and pain.  Oh the pain I feel in my boob.  Thankfully my milk production has slowed a bit so I'm not waking up in pain due to engorgement every morning.  And here's hoping there's no more mastitis in my future...twice is more than enough.

So do I hate breastfeeding?  Absolutely not!  I am just looking forward to having control over my body.  I'm looking forward to eating and drinking what I want when I want.  I'm looking forward to being able to spend an afternoon away from Rowan having some precious me time without having to plan time to pump.  I don't regret a single second I've spent nursing or pumping.  I don't wish I had that time to do something else.  I'm just not a mother that loves breastfeeding so much I won't want to give it up.  Once Rowan's ready to wean, we're going to tackle that beast full force.  But until then, I have about 7 months of sweet smiles and tender moments to look forward to while nursing my baby boy.  Those are the things that's going to make it possible for me to nurse until Rowan's first birthday...or thereabouts.

4 Months old and Baby's First Christmas

Being Four Months Old is Awesome!

Rowan is 4 months old now!  I may be in the minority of mothers here, but I LOVE seeing him grow!  I love seeing him start to giggle at different things...figure out what his toys do...have 'real' conversations with people.  It's great.  I'm loving every minute of his live and so very excited to see what's going to come next.

I'm so big!

Last week Rowan had his four month check.  He got a positive report from the doctor and everyone just thought he was super adorable.  The doctor even commented that it had been a while since she had a cute boy.  (I don't think I'll ever get tired of people telling me my baby boy is cute)  Rowan had to get his second round of shots.  He really didn't do too bad with them.  He cried (some real tears even) when he got the shots, but calmed down right when I picked him up.  He even smiled for the nurses before the left the room.  I think it made them feel a little bit better knowing he forgave them so quickly.

Baby play date

He also had a follow up appointment with the dermatologist.  He got another positive report from her.  He still has his hemangioma, and it will likely stay there until he's a bit older.  There is no longer an ulceration there though, which is wonderful!  She wants us to be careful with diaper changes still because the hemangioma could keep growing for another couple of months.  Here's hoping it doesn't grow much bigger OR if it does, it doesn't ulcerate again.  That just makes things a bit more complicated.

At four months:

-Rowan is 13 lb 13oz (25 1/2 percentile) and 25 1/2 inches (70th percentile)...not quite sure where tall and skinny comes from.  I was a bit nervous because he dropped in weight percentile from the 44% at 2 months to 25.5% at 4 months, but the doctor wasn't concerned.  She said he was still following a good curve, so he's doing just fine.

- He's consistently rolling from front to back.  He does get stuck sometimes, but he's pretty good about looking around for a little bit and then rolling himself over.  He'll roll himself completely on his side to try and go from back to front, but doesn't get all the way over yet.

- He's chewing on his hands quite a bit and drooling lots.  No teeth seem to be coming up, but we're pretty sure that's on the not so distant horizon

- He's sleeping wonderful.  He goes to bed between 8 and 9 usually, wakes up at about 5 to eat, and then goes back to sleep until about 9.  We're really really lucky.  He's taking three to four short naps during the day (about 30-45 minutes) so most of his sleep is at night.

- He is laughing a lot more now.  He gets such a high pitched giggle...it's just adorable.  

Daddy set it up so I could play my piano

Sometime in the next month or so we're going to venture into the world of rice cereal.  Crazy to think that he's going to be eating 'solid' food soon.  Starting to figure out what food we're going to make for him first.  Here's hoping he likes more vegetables than his daddy does!

First Christmas Eve

 Rowan's first Christmas was a bit of a whirlwind.  The week just flew by, but it was a wonderful week.  I got some unexpected time off on Christmas Eve, which was the best Christmas present ever!  Ian and I got to enjoy our first Christmas as a little family together.  Complete with Christmas Eve service...and Rowan wearing a bow tie.  He looked simply adorable (in my humble and completely unbiased opinion)  =)

The rest of the week was spent in Lincoln with Ian's family.  Ian's parents were able to come down from Gillette despite some questionable weather and a burst hot water heater.  We were so glad they came down.  Ian's brother Colin also came down and got to meet Rowan for the first time.  Aileen's house was FULL to the brim with the 8 adults, 2 kids, 2 little dogs, and 1 baby...but it was the great to have the whole family under one roof.

This will be full each year, right?

Rowan of course got spoiled beyond belief by both sides of the family.  Rowan's Gigi (my Nana) had a stocking knitted for him that's bigger than him.  I guess someone's expecting Rowan to be on the nice list each year...don't think my sweet boy will have a problem with that.

Love my aunt Aileen

Aunt Larka makes me smile

Grandma and Grandpa

First Christmas hat

Passed out baby