Zander - 5 Months

I am a little late on this update. Time is a thief and it just flies. Though I will say I am very happy to be out of the 4th leap and maybe, just maybe done with the 4 month sleep regression.

Zander has had a lot of changes this past month and continues to change and learn new things daily. This age is truly amazing to watch them absorb everything around them.

Stats: When we went for his 4 month appointment he weighed in at 13lbs 1oz and was almost 26" long. We go back again at 6 months. I did weigh him on our scale the other day and he was 15lbs! Holy moly! I love looking at Kinley's growth compared to his. It is so interesting to me. She was such a little pip squeak. He is wearing almost all 6 month clothes with the random 3 month onesie thrown in. I can't get myself to pack those up yet. I did have a 9 month onesie on him the other day and it wasn't too big. Tears! He is still in size 2 diapers and I think we will stay there for a few more months.

Sleep: I don't even know where to start with this. Like last month it has been all over the place. I do think we are getting back to where we were but that has only been the past week or so. He is still having 2 wake ups and the times are not consistent at all. Usually around 11 and then again at 3. If he doesn't have to go to daycare he usually sleeps until 8ish. If he has to go to daycare I have to wake him up to leave the house by 6:50am. I hate waking that sweet boy. He really loves his sleep. We are still using the dockatot but he has really started sleeping on his side and on a few occasions has rolled to his tummy. Soooo with that being said we are trying to transition out of the swaddle. It has been a little bit of a struggle. He likes to sleep on his tummy but I think is still trying to figure it all out. So many changes. Plus he is either teething or getting a cold so that is making things more challenging. He is napping in his room in his crib still and starts in his room at night. After his first wake up I move him to our room. If I start to see a little more consistency with his wake ups I will keep him in his room for the night, but with it being all over the place it makes it easier to have him next to the bed.

Eat: Zander is still exclusively breastfed. I am pumping 3 times during the day at work. Maybe in a few months I will go down to 2 times but right now I am going to stick with 3 even though I hate pumping. This month we increased his bottles to 4oz. He doesn't always finish them but my hopes is if he eats more during the day maybe we can get rid of one of the wake ups. Depending on when he ate last he gets 3-4 bottles while I am working. We don't do any bottles when I am off. He eats every 3-4 hours. We haven't started any solids yet and won't until he is at least 6 months and sitting unassisted as well as showing all signs of readiness.

Play: He LOVES his jumperoo. He gets in that thing and bounces away. He is still enjoying his play mat and continues to grab at the toys hanging. He really tries to pull himself up. He doesn't stay on his tummy long, he rolls right to his back. He has not rolled from his back to his tummy yet but gets his legs swinging and rocking and gets to his side. I am sure he will be going that way in no time. He is getting closer to sitting on his own but still needs help and we are in no rush for him to start moving anywhere yet. Totally fine with me. Kinley started crawling at 7 months. He has found his toes and doesn't stop reaching for them. It makes for LONG nursing sessions. He is so busy and so curious about what is going on around him. He has started laughing more consistently and I can't get enough. I am always trying to make him laugh. He gets the biggest grin on his face when Kinley talks or plays with him.

I think we are teething or something really close to that. The drool is out of control and everything goes in his mouth. His favorite is his fist, and he shoves the entire fist in his mouth. We used an amber necklace with Kinley and we are going to give it a go this time too. If nothing else I do think it helps with the drool.

This age has been lots of fun, besides all the wake ups at night. We will get there eventually right. I will keep telling myself that. I love watching him learn new things and accomplish different milestones. I really can not believe this little boy has been with us for over 5 months now! I think it is safe to say he is pretty happy about that! We love him to the moon and back and so blessed!

Other Monthly Updates:

• 1 Month
• 2 Months
• 3 Months
• 4 Months 
• Birth Story Part 1
• Birth Story Part 2

4 and 5 Month Must Haves

Sorry this post is so over due! Life gets busy with a little one :). Below are our must haves for a 4-5 month old!

1. Aden and Anais Security Blanket: We are really a fan of these blankets or loveys. I was very hesitant on giving her a blanket but with the breathable material these are made out of, it eased my mind. They are soft and come in a pack of two! Since we are trying to move past swaddling Kinley likes having something in her hand when falling asleep. 

2. Earths Best Oatmeal:  I knew I wanted an organic oatmeal to give her. We have been very happy with earths best and Kinley loves it! Win win. *We did not give this to her until she was almost 6 months old and this was at the request of the pediatrician to help her gain some weight. 

3. Tommee Tippee bottles: With being back at work Kinley is getting the bottle more often than not. I really like the tommee tippee bottles and she has never had a problem with them. 

4. Sophie the Giraffe: I can not say enough good things about this toy. People asked me if it was really worth the money. At first I didn't think it was any more than a glorified dog toy to be honest, but now that we are in the middle of teething Sophie goes everywhere with us! Kinley loves this toy! 

5. Jumperoo: I love all the bright colors and music this jumperoo offers. Kinley especially loves it because she can watch everything going on. She hasn't quite figured out how to bounce up and down yet, but I'm sure as soon as she does she will be loving it more!

6. Munchkin Spoons: We are really liking these spoons for feeding. We are following BLW but still giving oatmeal. Kinley likes to chew on them too ;)

7. Teething Rings: These are great to stick in the fridge to chill. Kinley loves chewing on them while they are cold. They make her gums feel good and keeps her from getting mad while I try to make dinner. 

8. Graco Slim Space High Chair: There are a lot of high chairs out there but this one works for us. Our kitchen is really small so I like that it folds up and we can put it against the wall when we aren't using it. 

9. MAM Pacifiers: For the longest time we loved the wubbanubs, though I found Kinley had a difficult time keeping the soothie in her mouth. We had tried many binks over and over and she always preferred the wubbanub. One day she took the MAM and loved it. They are much easier for her to keep in her mouth. They also make awesome glow in the dark ones! 

Other Must Have Posts:

3 Month Must Haves

1 & 2 Month Must Haves

Happy Hump Day!! I am so glad it's hump day but wishing it was Friday!

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Weekend Highlights

Hope everyone had a good weekend! Ours was mellow now that my family is gone it's back to just us. I miss them tons!

We have officially decided we are doing BLW. I'm so excited and just want to give her everything at once. She took a decent nap yesterday so it gave me some time to browse Pinterest and get some recipe ideas. BLW seems like it's going to work great for our family. We started this weekend with bananas. She loved them! We also did try a cucumber and I think she loved that because it felt good on her teething gums! 

We made a family trip to lowes, where I could spend a lot of money! We are going to give our bathroom a makeover. It really needs it. Ideally we'd like to purchase a new house but right now use staying put is what's best for us. So we are going to do a little upgrading and go with it! Anyone have any upgrading/remodeling tips??

Of course we went grocery shopping! Next on the list for Kinley is sweet potatoes! 

We are tackling the no swaddle also! We tried cold turkey Friday night and it was quite the mess. So Saturday we stuck to one arm and that seemed much better. She looks like such an angel. I love her tons! 

Don't let her fool you..it didn't last long! But I still love her! Does anyone else's little one LOVE their toes? She literally eats them! 

Happy Monday! Hope everyone has a great week!

5 Months

I know I say this every month, but where has it gone! Our little girl is growing so fast. She has mastered so many new skills this month! It has been tough all around but amazing to watch her grow and learn new skills each day. Good old leap 4 was very hard!

Sleep: We are SLOWLY making progress with her sleep getting better. From what I've been told sleeping through the night for a baby is more than 5 hours. If that is true she sleeps through the night, but I am calling BS on 5 hours. Who only sleeps 5 hours! That is really crazy to me. But anyways, she is usually in bed and asleep by 7-715pm. We start our bedtime routine between 6-630 depending on if she napped and for how long. We are still dealing with the 45 minute intruder, but she is getting easier to get back to sleep, usually just give her bink back and she falls right asleep again. Naps are still up in the air and sometimes she naps for 2 hours, most days are 30 minutes. I do believe we will get there with naps too. We tried to unswaddle this past month and it was a fail after a few nights. Kinley sleeps so much better swaddled. She is still sleeping in the rock and play next to our bed, with hopes to transition to the crib soon. Again I thought she would be in her crib by now but with the reflux and her flopping around like a fish it has been a complete fail. We will get there! When she is ready! So overall sleep has gotten better this past month but still not great. She is getting up 1-2 times a night, most nights once which is wonderful! Some nights she thinks it is party time from 2-5am which is very difficult. Poor girl is just not a good sleeper...but hey we are making progress and that is all that matters :)

Eating: We started oatmeal this month which has been so fun! She loves it! From the first bite this girl has been a fan. She reminds me of a baby bird..too cute! She is still getting breast milk and I'm not totally sure how many ounces she is eating in a 24 hour period. I am sure it is on the lower end. She is getting more consistent with eating about 4-5oz in a sitting but again has times she only eats 2-3oz. She is not a good morning eater at all. I am still pumping two times at work and 1-2 times at home. I really am unsure how long I will continue pumping and or breast feeding, just taking it one day at at time. After we see the dr for her 6 month appointment we are going to start more solids and venture into the adventures of BLW. I am so excited to start this with her! If her loving the oatmeal is any indication of how solids are going to go it is going to be awesome!

Play: The exersaucer wasn't doing the trick for her. The Easter bunny brought her a jumperoo that she loves! She hasn't quite figured out how to jump in it but she loves the music and playing with the toys. She really discovered her feet this month and next to Sophie they are the best chew toy. She has started rolling this month as well. She does much better at going from back to tummy but has gone from tummy to back a few times. She just isn't a fan of tummy time. We try though! She continues to love Sophie. She is so happy for walks in the ergo. 

Likes:
Visits with her auntie and cousin
Oatmeal
Playing peak-a-boo
Sucking on her toes

There's not much she dislikes besides nap time

She is one happy 5 month old! I love this girl to the moon and back! She changes every day and it has been such and adventure to watch her everyday!

4 and 5 month must haves coming!

Other blog updates in this series
3 months
4 months

So excited I just won the Mamma Chia giveaway with Ashley!