Let me just start off by saying that I am completely sick to my stomach. I am so mad at myself for getting so behind in my blogging. I hate when I do that because I forget about the cute things my kids do, or the funny things that happen that make documenting our lives interesting or worthwhile.
When I put things off, I forget. I knew that I had some serious catch-up work to do on the blog, so on Charlie's 5 month birthday I sat down and wrote out a list of all of the things I wanted to be sure to remember about him at this age. Now the list is nowhere to be found, which is why I'm sick to my stomach. My sleep deprived, exhausted mommy-brain has already started to forget things about last month, or has muddled old things together with new things... I've seriously lost sleep over this. It's terrible, but I'm going to try my best to remember what I can about my sweet Charlie.
Last month was not a month of significant change. We spent most of last month sick. We've been passing sicknesses around here like you wouldn't believe. So, I'm not sure if it's that last month was not a month of significant change, or if I/we were too busy/sick to really focus on the small changes that were happening. I'm sure there were some.
Charlie, still has not rolled over from his back to his tummy. He arches his body in such a way that I don't know how he hasn't flipped over yet, but he hasn't. He just arches and bends until he can see what he wants to see.
Charlie is the sweetest little guy. He is so mellow. When strangers smile and wave at him, he smiles and hides his head in my shoulder.
I don't have to support him so much. When I hold him on my hip, he does a relatively good job at keeping himself upright. Love when they can start doing that.
Charlie likes to blow raspberries and he is ticklish on just about every part of his body.
Charlie had rice cereal for the first time last month. The first time was kind of a disaster because he hadn't quite gotten rid of this thrusting tongue reflex, but by his second serving he was a pro. Now, he won't let us eat a meal without letting us know he wants food too. When we introduce solids to our kids, we hold off on fruits for as long as possible to give them a chance to develop a taste for vegetables. So far he LOVES them.
Last month, Charlie became a "supported sitter". He could also sit up on his own for a few seconds if he was holding a toy. For some reason holding a toy really helps his balance.
Charlie started taking baths with Jack in the big tub. We just put Charlie in his bumbo while I sit on the edge of the tub and hold the bumbo with my legs so it doesn't tip over. Charlie loves being in the bath with Jack.
Charlie has a love/hate (but mostly love) relationship with Jack right now. His feelings about his brother can change at the drop of a hat. One minute he'll be laughing just watching Jack play, and the next he'll be screaming in terror because of Jack's dinosaur noises. Sometimes, he cries when Jack walks away from him. He keeps me on my toes, but I love watching how the two of these boys love each other.
We've been really lucky with Charlie. He's still very easy to put to sleep. He can, and usually does put himself to sleep. He still falls asleep every time we put him in the car seat (one of my favorite traits of his). What's not so lucky is the fact that he's started night waking again. He used to only wake up once a night to eat and now, he's waking up 5, 6, 7 times... It's so tiring. Hopefully it's just a stage and he grows out of it soon.
We moved Charlie from our room into the nursery with Jack. We'll see how that goes.
This one is kind of funny/gross but it's something that I'll want to remember when I'm old and gray and my kids have all grown up... Charlie's toes are so long, he uses them like fingers to grasp onto things. When we take him out of his jammies he usually has toe lint between every single toe from gripping his pj's. Those are the kinds of details I tend to forget, and that I'll want to remember some day in the future.
Man oh mighty do I love this little boy. He is so sweet, and so mellow, and so animated. My heart almost hurts when I stop to just watch him, and I try to memorize the details of his adorable little face. Do you ever feel that way? So blessed and so full of love that you feel like your heart might burst or your eyes will overflow? That's me right now. Even though I often complain about how being a mom is hard, and tedious, and tiring it's also been the most miraculous blessing. To get to associate with and serve and teach and love my two sweet boys is the most wonderful challenge I could ever hope for.
