Time Flies When You're Having Fun!

My little man was SIX months old on the 14th of this month...I can't believe it. Half of a year has just flown by in a blink of an eye. I know I'm all clichey tonight but sometimes they are just so fitting! It is incredible how much he has changed in just a month. The past few weeks he has learned to sit up for a few seconds unassisted, learned how to feed himself messily with his spoon, how to hold his own bottle and how to pull himself along with his hands though he hasn't figured out the crawling thing yet. He has also recently learned the art of deception. He now will fake cough if I'm not looking at him and then start smiling when I rush over to see if he is OK. It's a little game we like to play and I have even recently added the pantomime of CPR to it as well which he thinks is hilarious:) He also fake cries to get attention. I fell off the bed laughing one night when he was wailing away and when my husband picked him up he flashed the most devilish grin at me over his shoulder...lord I will have my hands full!

This kid has my heart really! I always feared I would have a hard time bonding with a baby but that has not be the case at all. In fact, I always preferred cats to dogs because dogs are just sooo needy and never go away(my mom still has custody of my little Chihuahua puppy from 7 years ago)! Just the thought of being away from him breaks my heart though. Hell, he is STILL sleeping in my room though I have at least kicked him out of the bed now that he is old enough to reach over and poke me in the eye when he wants to get up. It makes me sad to think about him waking up in the middle of the night cold or scared and mommy not being there to comfort him and stroke his forehead and tuck him back in. It's just all the small things he does that melts my heart. Like when he chuckles with his eyes shut when I sing "Hush Little Baby" or when he reaches his soft little hand out to stroke my arm while I sit next to him in the car or when he scoots so he is pressed against my chest while we are napping if he wakes up and we are not close by or how he holds our hands up to his face when he is tired. I never knew I could crave the affection of another person quite so much! Sometimes I feel like I could just hug him for hours breathing in that sweet baby smell. I have lost my damn mind for real.

Well, obviously I am smitten but I know this staying at home with him all day can't last forever. I KNOW I need to go back to work but I refuse to stick him in daycare for 8 hours a day. I can't imagine waking up, dropping him off all day and then picking him up at night to feed him dinner and put him to bed. That makes me want to cry just thinking about it! He has become my little companion in life since his daddy is lacking in that department! He hangs out with me while I cook and clean and run errands and go to the park in good weather and even grocery shopping! I love having him with me because everything he sees and experiences is new and that makes it so much more fun and interesting for me. Even the veggie aisle at the supermarket is fun when you are explaining all the different vegetables and colors to a little sponge of a baby! I know I am probably fostering a codependent relationship with him but I just feel like this is such a special time in his life...his first everythings and I want to be the one sharing them with him, not some daycare worker who couldn't care less if he stands for the first time on her shift. Sigh...

So anyway, aside from the heavy stuff...let me tell you about swaddling blankets:) BEST things ever! If I could only have a few items with me as a mother this would be a necessity. Early on you will want to swaddle baby for sleeping and also before being passed around from person to person. They feel secure like this and sleep better, startle less and don't get as sore from all the handling your family may want to impose on their tender new bodies. G spent his first few months in a onesie, beanie cap and a swaddling blankie and that was it! So much for cute outfits, pants and PJ's! Later on they are great to put down wherever your little drooler is playing to keep things unslobbery or to make spit up clean up a breeze. You will want to place a blankie where they sleep in case of a leaky diaper at night so you don't have to change the entire bedding set and also when you change diapers in case of a surprise shower! Also, the baby changing stations at every place I have seen them are DISGUSTING! I don't think they ever get cleaned. I bought a little fold up diaper caddy pad that rocks but before that I would pack a blankie to have to lay down on those nasty things so G would not be forced to lay in filth. They also work as a slobber wiper offer, a chew toy, sun/rain/wind block and bib in a bind. Needless to say, I have about 20 on constant rotation at all times:)

OK that's all the rambling I have in me for one evening. Night folks.