Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Max: Part 1


I need to do an update on Max. He’s changed so much this summer, and I can’t seem to keep up with him. Some changes/things I want to remember about Max at 8 months –

-          He has the biggest smile that just lights you up. His crescent shaped, squinty blue eyes twinkle and look directly into yours, and you can’t help but grin back EVERY time. He keeps you happy.

-          He’s curious. We knew he would be into everything even before he could get around by himself; his eyes were always fixed on people and objects, trying to figure them out. Now that he can army crawl (with a bit of a lift…almost there!), I have to keep a close watch on him. He will put anything in his mouth and carry it around, sometimes sticking out through his lips, until I scoop it out with my finger, at which point he cries. He particularly likes paper and will suck on a wad like it’s candy.

-         He likes to carry blocks or puzzle pieces around in one hand while he crawls around.

-         He can climb up the stairs by himself, something he did for the first time a few days ago when it occurred to me that he might want to… and I think he could have done it sooner had I exposed him to them. Just yesterday, he was in the hallway blabbing away when he suddenly was silent. I went to check on him, and Max was a few steps up the stairs. The moment he saw me, his little body tensed with excitement, a cheeky grin on his face.

-         He played peek-a-boo with me the other day, only this time he was the one peeking. He had pulled himself up on the bathtub and was behind the shower curtain. He quickly pulled back the curtain, I gasped, he laughed, and then he did it three more times.

-          He’s loud. He does a fake cry when he’s hungry or tired that can burst your eardrums.

-          He’s noisy. When he’s crawling around, he likes to make a constant, low humming noise. When he’s jumping in his jump-up, he likes to scream. When he’s playing with toys, he blows bubbles through his taut lips.

-          He loves kisses. I do this thing where I gently kiss him three times in a little row near the corner of his eye. He either giggles or smiles with closed eyes.

-          He likes for me to lay down with him to fall asleep for naps or nighttime. This is no problem for me, and it’s one of my favorite things to do with him. We lay on our sides facing each other, his head on my arm. He plays with my hand/fingers until he lets out a certain sigh that signals the final descent into slumber. And that’s my cue.

-          He moves a lot during the night. He’ll turn circles and roll over onto his stomach and back again multiple times a night.

-          Recently, he’s decided he hates to be still during a diaper change. I have to wrestle with him 90% of the time now.

-          Of the things I let him have on a regular basis, he loves yellow and acorn squashes, snow peas, carrots, bananas, apples, grain cereals, and rice snacks. Of the things he’s only tried here or there, he loves ice cream, refried beans, and mashed potatoes. He does NOT like avocados or sweet potatoes; he twitches and gags when eating them. It’s so cute.

-          He has been clapping for months, and he’s a good mimicker and will slap his legs if you slap yours.

-          He still dances any time he hears music or a rhythmic sound. I was reading Dr. Seuss’s Foot Book a couple of days ago, and he started getting jiggy with it. Nah nah nah nah nah nah nah…

-          His hair can look any shade from white to red depending on his clothing and the light.

      While in his jump-up, he will jump for awhile and then let his head and arms fall forward. He'll watch the ground as he spins circles on his big toes.

-          He stretches the necks of his shirts from all his belly-dragging.

-          He sleeps through the night now. He’ll go to bed between 9 and 10pm and wake up between 6 and 7am for a bottle. After the bottle, he’ll sleep another hour or so. It’s divine.

-          He likes to be thrown up in the air, tickled, scared, nibbled, and wrestled. It takes a lot to phase him.

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