Hard to believe, but our "little" guy is 9 months old! He had his check up yesterday. We are thankful he is healthy and growing well. Abram is now a whopping 21 lbs. 14 oz. (75th%) and 27 3/4" (30th%). And just for fun:
9 Month Stats:
Abram: 21 lbs. 14 oz., 27 3/4 in.
Rebecca: 20 lbs., 26 1/2 in.
Mary: 18 lbs. 5 oz., 28 in.
Justin: 18 lbs. 12 oz., 26 1/2 in.
Hard to say who he takes after...he's just big :P His check up went well. He was not a fan of either the nurse or the doctor and cried pretty much the whole time. He didn't care for the shots, either. But at least he's a healthy little guy. And no more visits until he's one!
Abram is meeting all of his developmental milestones. He is on the verge of walking. He gets better at standing every day. And he's pretty speedy walking around if he has something to push. It won't be long before he puts the two together. With his mobility comes his ability to get into...everything. He likes to empty trash cans, unroll toilet paper, take DVDs out of the player, turn off the computer, rip apart magazines and of course get into his big sister's toys. We have to be very creative with finding things to entertain him. He is always looking for something new and interesting. He can have a huge bucket of his toys next to him, but that doesn't mean he'll want to play with any of it. Give him a piece of paper and he'll be content :)
Abram is starting to enjoy reading books and has started saying a few "words." Mostly he goes around saying "ca, ca" looking for Rebec
ca. And when he finds her he says "ca" and waves at her. He also neighs, moos and quacks. And he claps and says "yay." He's starting to make "car sounds" when he's playing with his cars. And he's very good at growling. Rebecca calls him the giant when she's playing with dolls, legos, etc. He comes over, growls at everyone and tries to grab them.
Abram now has five teeth and is working on two more. So far he hasn't figured out how to chew with them very well. But he certainly knows how to grind them...and does it all day long.
Although Abram looks a lot like his sister he is showing us that he has his own personality. He knows what he wants and makes sure that you know. If he isn't happy...everyone knows :P Abram still dislikes being confined in any way. Car rides are limited to about 15 min. or up to 2 hours during nap time. Meal times are quick...feed him what you can for the few minutes he'll sit in the high chair. The exersaucer is only used as a last resort for about 60 seconds if he needs to be confined/kept safe. Otherwise he uses it as a toy to climb on. We never were able to use the swing. He lasted about 60 seconds strapped in that as well. Thankfully Abram tolerates the stroller once in a while at least.
Abram also is not quite the sleeper his sister was/is. He is too busy to sleep :P Most days he takes 2 naps. And then goes to bed around 8. He is usually up several times at night. And up quite early most days. Both yesterday and today he decided 5:45 was play time. If he wakes up any time after 5 am there is no use trying to get him back to sleep. He's up and ready to go. Sadly this often means Rebecca is up earlier too. He's not exactly quiet all morning.
Abram is very strong. He lifts and pulls things that are quite heavy. The doctor asked yesterday if Justin or I were athletes. He was amazed how strong Abram is and said he'd probably be good at sports. Let's just say that diaper changes and getting dressed can be quite an undertaking. When his legs go straight you might as well not even try. You just have to wait until he's ready. Sometimes you feel like you just ran a marathon after getting him dressed. It's quite a workout.
Even though Abram is a rough and tumble active boy he is also about the biggest momma's boy you'll meet. He still won't let anyone besides Mommy and Daddy hold him. He cries at the sight of most strangers (especially nurses and doctors). And he likes to be touching Mommy almost at all times. If I'm on the floor playing with him he just sprawls on my lap to play with his toy. And I am his favorite thing to climb on. Whether I'm standing or sitting. He's a big snuggler and doesn't like Mommy to leave the room.
Abram is growing well and growing up quickly! He is a handful, but he brings such joy to our lives. We praise God for a healthy, happy little boy.
7 comments:
Wow! I would have figured he was a little higher on the percentile range for height. He's a big, healthy guy! So fun!
He sure sounds like he's ready to walk! Carson walked around 9 1/2 months and was doing all of the stuff Abram is doing for a bit beforehand. He'll just take off on you one day! I bet soon! :)
Maybe you should try some sleep training with Abram? Jaime and Sara have both been doing some sleep training lately and have had really good luck with it. Both of their boys used to have what sounds like very similar sleep habits as Abram, but are both now sleeping really well. Makes for a much happier mom and baby, too.
Nothing beats a Mama's boy! :) Love them!!
I've thought about the sleep traning Sara. But I'm not sure he's quite old enough. I was thinking by about 1 year if we're still having issues then we'll start the sleep training. For now the biggest issues are that if he has tummy issues he's up...and stays up. If he has to poop...forget about him going back to sleep. And once he's awake, he's awake if it's any time after about 5 am. But then he's melting down by about 7:15/7:30. I hope this phase passes.
There have been quite a few posts about when to begin sleep training on some of the message boards I've been reading lately. Pretty much everyone has said they started doing it around 6 months or so. I haven't done any reading (in books) or anything on it ever, though. Just have noticed lots of posts about it lately.
Grant is almost 7 months, but they did the sleep training when he was just over 6 months, and he took to it very well and fast. Aiden is almost a year, but he just started developing similar sleep habits to Abram in the last 2 months. Sara went through some sleep training with Aiden a couple of weeks ago and it has been wonderful, from what she says. I think it has helped Jaime and Sara even more than it has helped the babies. It's hard to be a good mom when you're always sleep deprived - which leads to stress, anxiety, and short-temperedness in most people - all the time. Not to mention lower immunity for both you and Abram. Anyway, it's a thought. You need to do what you feel comfortable with, when you feel comfortable with it, of course. :)
And I don't blame Abram for not wanting to sleep when he has to poop... I can't sleep then, either! :) Does he generally need to poop in the middle of the night?
I'm still not sure we need sleep training at the moment. He is actually getting better about sleeping at night. He mostly wakes just to eat. That's fine with me. That's normal. I think he went through a phase of MAJOR teething that was causing him to be up so much in the night. Thankfully those teeth are through now. Now the issue is just early mornings. But I don't think any amount of "training" will make him not have to poop at 6am :P He doesn't have to go in the middle of the night. Usually between 5:30 and 7.
When did Rebecca stop waking in the night to eat? I know breastmilk digests faster than formula, but I didn't think most kids were still waking to eat in the night very often at this point. I'm glad he's getting better, though. From what you just said, it doesn't sound too bad, at least. He may always just be an early riser. Carson always has been from day one, but I have always liked it - gets our day started sooner. :) Though I've had many days where I would have also loved to all sleep in till 7am or 8am, too... but for the most part, I've always liked it. You get up so early and you're already up when he wakes, right? So at least you're not missing out on any sleep of your own, so that's good! :)
Esther still gets up once...or twice...or three times to eat. I think partly it's because she's too busy (or I'm at work) to breastfeed well during the day. And like you, I don't really care as long as she goes right back to sleep. Sometimes I can get her to go back down even at 6 am, at least on weekends, which is nice. I figure if she's still waking to nurse after 1 year I might start letting her cry at that point! We just had her 9 month appt yesterday and she is 28 inches long, and only 17 pounds! Takes after Ryan. :) She's Hardly even crawling, and she's content to sit and play with toys and will let just about anyone hold her. It's crazy how different their personalities can be! By the way we just found out my parents are moving to KY in 1 month! Sold their house.
She is long and lean! I didn't realize Justin and Ryan were so different as babies...Justin was short and chunky :P Just like our kids. Abram is about 28" and over 22 lbs.!
It is funny how different they can be. Maybe it's a boy/girl thing. Rebecca was like Esther. She was crawling around 9 months and was perfectly content to sit and play with a toy or read books for a long time. And she has always been pretty social. Abram doesn't care about toys. He just wants to walk/climb and get into things. He's really taking off with his walking. And he's a big mama's boy :)
We have started letting Abram cry a bit...and it's working! His sleep is really improving and he's now able to put himself to sleep for naps or sometimes when he wakes at night. The crying isn't fun, but the end result is wonderful. I still get up if he needs to eat (which is once or twice a night). But if he's fed, dry, etc. and still crying then we let him cry. I think Rebecca nursed in the night well past 1 year. I dropped her last feeding (5 am) at 18 months.
Congrats to your parents! I bet you'll enjoy having them so close by.
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