Cole Oliver. 7 months.

This has been a big month for Mr. Cole.  Lots of milestones,  Lots of changes.  My baby is growing up so fast!

At 7 months old, Cole ....

• is on the move.  Forward!  He's figured out army crawling and is slowly working on hands and knees crawling.  Nothing is safe on the floor anymore.
• took his first tumble off the bed.  (see above)
• loves to eat paper!  Sorry Siouxland Library :(
• cut his first two teeth in.
• still chews on everything.
• is babbling and cooing all the time.  We call him our little sheep "ba ba ba ba ba"
• loves looking at himself in the mirror.
• is a grabber!  Hair, clothing, your face!  He pinches (hard!) and tries to put it all in his mouth.
• takes great naps during the day.  He usually sleeps for a couple of hours in the morning and a couple of hours in the afternoon.
• sleeps terribly at night!  He's my worst night sleeper by far.  I'm lucky if he'll sleep 3 hours at a time before waking to eat.  Usually he's up every 1.5-2 hours :(  It's like having a newborn all over again.
• tried his first foods at the end of November.  Avocados.  He wasn't a big fan.  I was hoping eating solid foods would help him sleep longer at night.  So far, no luck.

Cole Oliver. 6 month.

And just like that, our little Scooter is 6 months old.  He's growing and changing so much and I'm just soaking up all his baby goodness before I blink and it's gone.

At 6 months old, Cole ...

• is still wearing size 3 diapers and 6 month clothes, although they're both fitting more snugly than last month.
• is very efficient at getting up on his hands and knees and rocking back and forth, but still isn't crawling yet.
• still chews on everything. Paper is his favorite. Nothing is safe on the floor.
• drools constantly.  Still no teeth.
• has become a hair puller.  And a cheek pincer.  (isn't that supposed to work the other way around??)  He has a very strong grip and whatever he grabs on to, he will NOT let go of.
• nurses every 3-4 hours during the day.  Sometimes life gets so busy that I just forget to feed him.  Even when he starts squawking and crying I think "Good grief, why are you so fussy??"  Oh. right.  You're hungry.  Poor 4th kid.
• has been sleeping a little longer at night.  Lately he's been going to sleep between 8-9pm.  He'll wake to eat around midnight, again around 4ish, and then up at 7am.  Sometimes he'll go back to sleep after I nurse him, but usually our day starts around 7am.
• usually takes a short nap in the morning (30-45 minutes) and then a longer nap in the afternoon (2-3 hours).  Sometimes he's squeak in a short early evening nap, but not very often.
• threw a few 4am parties this last month.  I knew I shouldn't have said anything :(
• has the best smile and giggle.
• received his 2nd hair cut at the beginning of October.  The crazy newborn hair got chopped :(  Part of me wanted to leave it since it was the hair he was born with, but we ultimately decided to cut it since we had family pictures coming up.
• talks and coos all the time.  He focuses so hard on making "words" come out.  My favorite sound so far is "mumumumumum"!  We'll just go ahead and say that's his first word ;)
• takes a bottle really well.  That makes it easier for this mama to be away from him.
• prefers to be bounced to sleep.  Or sometimes nursed to sleep on the bed.  He does NOT like to be rocked when he's tired.
• holds on to his blankie and sucks on it while we're bouncing him to sleep.
• is tolerating being worn in my carrier, but only if I'm constantly moving.  That's made running errands and trips to the park so much easier.

Cole Oliver. 5 months.

These months seems to be going by faster and faster.  Cole is definitely on the move.  He's very proficient at rolling over both ways, pulling himself side to side to reach toys. pushing himself up on his arms (and thereby pushing himself backwards) and even getting his butt in the air to all fours!!  Full on crawling is not too far off  And part of me wants to cheer him on because I know he's so much happier when he can get to the things he wants to.  It's fun to watch him explore new things.  But part of me wants to yell "SLOW DOWN!".  Being my last baby, it's bittersweet to watch him fly through these milestones knowing it'll be the last time.  Plus, I hate baby proofing!

At 5 months, Cole ....

• is wearing 6 month clothes and size 3 diapers.
• loves playing with toys, especially ones that make noise.
• is very good at getting toys, blankets, paper, and his fingers into his mouth.  Everything goes in his mouth!
• loves sucking/chewing on blankets.  It's like his pacifier.
• gets bored easily.  With 3 big brothers around, he's used to constant entertainment.
• likes playing in his excersaucer.
• nurses every 2-4 hours during the day.
• spits up a lot more than he used to.  That plus the drooling make bibs a requirement every day.
• smiles and laughs often. He's having so much more happy awake time during the day.
• loves to look at and play with the shower curtain.
• will either nurse to sleep or likes to be bounced on the big ball until he falls asleep.
• sleeps great in his own bed, but doesn't sleep well on mama anymore.  Usually there's too much going on for him to sleep on my chest during the day.
• naps inconsistently.  Some days he'll only take 45 minutes naps.  The next day he'll sleep for 3 hours in the afternoon.  It makes planning the day difficult, but at least he sleeps.
• wakes up every 2-4 hours at night to eat.  I really miss those 6-8 hour stretches of sleep :(
• will wake to nurse and then go right back to sleep.  I think it's been several weeks since he's thrown a "let's be awake for an hour at 4am" party.
• still loves being naked and bath time.  It's the easiest way to calm him down.

Cole Oliver. 4 months.

As much as I love my newborn babies, I just love when they get a bit older and their personality starts to show.  They become more interactive, smile more and you can actually put them down for longer than 30 seconds without them screaming their ever lovin' head off. haha!  We're loving our Cole baby.

At 4 months old, Cole ....

• is still wearing 6 month clothes and size 3 diapers.
• drools constantly and chews on his fist like it's his job.  Still no teeth.
• has started showing interest in toys. His squeaky moose is his favorite.
• found his feet :)
• has a fantastic smile.
• laughs! But what makes him laugh changes from day to day.

I spy dimples!

• gets the hiccups every time he laughs.
• got his first hair cut. The mullet had to go!

before

after

• has started going to the church nursery on Sundays.  He'll join us for worship, but then he gets too bored and noisy to sit through the quiet part.
• rolls over to his tummy very easily.  Then rolls to his back.  Then to his tummy.  He's always moving.
• can pull himself in a circle when on his tummy to reach a toy.  Seriously, this kid needs to slow down!
• will take an hour-ish long morning nap and (on a good day) will take a 2-3 hour afternoon nap.  Then he'll usually sneak in a short nap in the evening.
• falls asleep for the night around 9pm.
• will usually sleep 6-8 hours at night, but hit a growth spurt this month which included more night time feedings.
• sleeps in his own bed well, but still enjoys snuggling with Mama too.
• has started tolerating being worn in my Boba carrier.  But only if I'm moving.  Constantly.

Cole Oliver. 3 months

Well, somehow, against my will, this dude is getting older.  And bigger.  He's 3 months old already and growing like a weed.  But there are three big brothers to keep up with, so I guess I understand his hurry.

 At 3 months old Cole ...

• wears size 3 diapers.
• has outgrown all his 3 month clothes,
• is still the hottest/sweatiest baby ever.
• is taking great naps during the day.
• sleeps well in his car seat 
• consistently sleeps 6-8 hours at a time at night.  Hallelujah!
• can get his hands to his mouth.
• chews on his fist constantly.

• drools a lot (I fear teeth are coming soon)
• is a very happy baby now that I've eliminated all the gassy foods out of my diet.
• has wonderful, big, open mouthed smiles :) Although he's camera shy whenever I try to capture it.
• coos and talks to us all the time.  He's even started dinosaur growling.
• is totally entertained by his goofy big brothers.
• has learned to rock himself in his little rocking chair.
• can roll from his back onto his side easily.  Can't quite get to his tummy yet.
• just rolled from his back to his tummy as I was typing this. Haha!
• still loves to be swaddled and bounced or rocked to sleep.
• will sometimes nurse to sleep on the bed.
• likes to be held facing out.  There's a big world that he needs to see!

Cole Oliver. 2 months.

Time is so funny with a baby in the house.  Some days drag on for.ev.er and yet, here we are, with a 2 month old.  A lot has changed in the last month, mostly for the better thankfully.

At 2 months old, Cole....

• weighs 13lb 4oz (holy giant baby!)
• is stretching to the end of his 3 month clothes
• wears size 2 diapers
• is having a lot more happy awake time
• had his lip & tongue tie revised at 5 weeks old.  The recovery was super rough, but thankfully he's doing much better now
• still doesn't have an amazing latch, but it's better than it was before
• is the least consistent napper. ever.
• is sleeping longer stretches at night time, sometimes up to 5 or 6 hours at a time!!
• loves to look at faces
• is starting to smile and coo (my favorite!)
• still loves to be swaddled
• is no longer a fan of the pacifier. he prefers to nurse to sleep
• doesn't love his car seat, but he's not crying the entire time he's in it anymore.  so that's good.
• does not like being worn in my wrap or sling.  super inconvenient.
• has a very sensitive tummy.  I've had to cut out all dairy, soy, beans, broccoli, cauliflower, peanuts/peanut butter, any kind of sausage and orange juice.  (sigh)  Food will be fun again someday.
• loves bath time and being naked in general :)
• enjoys diaper changes

Cole Oliver. 1 month.

It's hard to believe it's been a month since Cole arrived in our arms.  It's a little sad because these newborn, squishy, sleep all day times are so fleeting.  But it's good too since those early newborn days are so hazy where I'm still recovering from birth, the baby has his nights and days mixed up, the big brothers are behaving terribly since they, too, are adjusting to a new life.  So it's nice to be a little more settled into a routine.

The big boys were all convinced we should name the new baby "Superman".  Hence the shirt :)

Anyway, we're ALL loving our little Cole boy.  For real, the big boys fight over who's going to hold/rock/pacify him.  Which would be great, except that they're boys.  And it's gets a little rough!  More than once I've said "We're not going to fight over the baby!" and "Don't hurt the baby!!"  Cole has come out ok so far - no major incidents - but I feel like it's only a matter of time.

For the first few weeks. Cole cluster nursed.  For a few hours, he'd eat every 20 minutes or so, which was a little exhausting knowing I couldn't go too far from him when he was awake.  Showers didn't happen much.  But then he'd sleep for a few hours.  Now at 1 month, he's spaced out his feedings a bit more and he's really not interested in nursing if he's not hungry.

Part of that may also have to do with his tongue tie.  That's been our biggest struggle so far.  The frenulum under his tongue is a bit too short, so he's not latching well.  Thankfully it hasn't caused any issues for ME but he's taking in a lot of air when he eats.  Which means there's a lot of gas in his poor little tummy :(  Plus, I've leaned that yet again, I will be going dairy free while nursing.  I've also cut out soy, beans, broccoli, peppers, onions and anything that might seems spicy/gassy.  (sigh)  Fare thee well cheese.  It was nice knowing ya.

But since I've cut out those things, he's been much happier.  And when we get his tongue tie fixed on Thursday, that will hopefully resolve any remaining gassy issues.  He really is a pleasant baby, but not when his tummy hurts.

Night time sleep is getting better now that he's figured out his nights and days.  Most nights he'll sleep for a few hours (any where from 2-4 hours), nurse and go back to sleep.  Sometimes though if he takes in too much air while nursing his tummy will hurt so we have to get up, burp and then rock back to sleep.  Sometimes that takes 20 minutes.  Sometimes that takes an hour or more.  Coffee is my very best friend.  He'll sleep part of the night in his rock n' play and part of the night in our bed.  Quite frankly, I don't care where he sleeps.  As long as he sleeps!  Daytime sleep is anything but consistent.  One day he'll cat nap all day long.  The next he'll rock a couple 3 hour naps!  If having 4 kids has taught me anything, it's to let go of expectations and just take each day as it comes.  If Cole is having a hard time sleeping, then we binge watch Netflix and I hold him for his whole nap.  If he's having a happier day, then I can put him down and wash a load of laundry or something.  The housework is so far behind it hurts my head to thing about it, but I know I won't get these days back either with my tiny boy.  So the dust sits.  The floors remain unswept.  And my arms and heart are full :)

Cole loves to be swaddled.  It's guaranteed to calm him down almost every time.  He takes the pacifier pretty well if he's tired.  He's a big fan of being held, but not always in my wrap or sling.  To put him to sleep, I'll usually swaddle him, give him the touchie (aka pacifier) and rock or bounce him to sleep.  He loves movement,  But he hates riding in the van and usually cries the whole time we're driving.

He's also a hot little baby.  He sweats more than anyone else in our house.  Most days he's just in a onesie, even to sleep at night.  I'll swaddle him in a thin, muslin blanket and he'll still wake up sweaty.  If he's sleeping with me, the bed will literally be wet where his head was.  And because I don't wash our sheets every day, my side of the bed is, well, kinda gross.

Cole loves learning our faces and is becoming more interested in watching his goofy brothers.  He also LOVES ceiling fans and staring at lights.  Oh, to enjoy the simple things in life.