Week 40 -

Brady turned 9 months old this week.  Crazy to think he's as many months old as Mom carried him in her belly during pregnancy.  He's becoming a little man now, very active and determined, his personality really showing.

This week we had to say goodbye to Grandpa Bob and Grammie Terry as they headed southwest in the RV.  We were very thankful for the 2 weeks they were visiting us, babysitting Brady the days he was sick and cooking yummy meals for Mom and Dad at night.  And Grandpa Bob put together Brady's toy shelf.  Thanks to a little Grandparent TLC, Brady recovered from his RSV getting back to sleeping and eating like his normal self.  He still has some drainage in his ears, but it's not as thick or green anymore.  We will continue to give him ear drops until he fully recovers.  This was also a very warm week in Texas, up in the 70s, meanwhile back East it was in the single digits or even negative temperatures.  Grandpa Bob and Grammie Terry took advantage of the nice weather giving Brady (and Indy) a few walks outside.  We also rescheduled our Colorado ski trip rebooking Steamboat Springs for later in February.

As Brady got to feeling better, he became more active and got to play a lot with his new toys.  This week we put up a play yard in the living room so he can practice his standing and walking (and rubber mats for his attempts at getting back down).  He really enjoys his toy house and activity center playing with all the gadgets, doors, windows, and slides, perfect for an active baby boy.  We continue to give him practice walking on his walker or toy motorcycle.  The wheels on the walker can lock allowing the baby to push it which for now is more Brady's speed until he gets better coordination in his legs.  Meanwhile the motorcycle he prefers to ride (aka be pushed) while he honks the horn.  Ever since he was a little baby he enjoyed music (even Mom's car radio while he was in the womb).  Most of his baby toys play music and he likes to hang onto to something while on his knees or standing and do a "booty shake".  It's hilarious.

With Brady feeling better and the Grandparents gone, Brady returned to daycare.  Since the holidays Brady has taken on a new feeding schedule at daycare.  He has pancakes for breakfast, chicken or beef with noodles for lunch, pieces of fruit of veggies for snacks, and three 4oz bottles.  He also naps 2-3 times per day (30 min to 1.5 hrs each) and poops 3x a day.  He's seems to prefer table food for dinner and is still a good sleeper at night.  He tried blueberries this week and really seems to like them.  It's so nice having our little guy feeling better again!

January 23rd, 71 deg at 6pm!

Enjoying the new play yard

You've got mail! 

Sorry Mom, no girls allowed 

"Pushing" the walker

Handmade baby rocker from Uncle Lou

Practicing crawling on his hands and knees (it was short lived)

Week 39 -

Grandpa Bob and Grammie Terry were here this week preparing to get the RV out of storage and head back out on the open road.  Mom's friend Megan from high school was also in town visiting her husband's family and got to meet with them one night for dinner.  And the New England Patriots advanced to the AFC championship game beating the Houston Texans and getting ready to face the Baltimore Ravens.  Unfortunately this turned out to be another sick week for the family with Brady picking up RSV for the 2nd time, Mom coming down with a sinus infection, and Dad catching the dry cough that's been going around.  For these reasons we had to cancel our trip skiing in Colorado this week, we just didn't want to be far from the doctor should Brady's ability to breathe get any worse (stupid RSV).

Despite being sick, not sleeping through the night, and not being interested in eating much, Brady did have a few developments this week.  We officially have 4 new teeth coming in.  That's the 2 front top teeth and 2 left side teeth (one upper one lower).  And Brady has developed an interest in pulling himself up on his hands and knees like he wants to crawl the more traditional way, but just kind of rocks back and forth a few times before dropping back down to the stomach.  He's more comfortable on his knees when playing on his toy house, holding himself up to swing the door or play with the window.  The kid is really strong and has developed quite a right cross.  He will knock over towers of blocks, knock objects around on the floor, or swat at things he doesn't like (ex food).  Speaking of food, he much prefers table food (or whatever is on Mom's plate) over his baby food.  This is probably good all around, as he is happier eating dinner with us and forces us to eat more nutritional food on a regular basis.  Also, Grandpa Bob showed Brady how to turn off light switches, he's getting quite good at it now.  We'll have to work on turning them back on.

Had to make a run to the kids resale store again to buy more 9 month or 12 month clothes as all his 6 month, 6-9 month, and even some 6-12 month clothes are getting too snug.  He goes back for his 9 month check up in 2 weeks.  He'll still probably be on the low end of the growth chart, but he's definitely growing and has put on some weight.

Gary, Brady, Lucy, and Chris

 

1st trip today to the ER - spent 4 hours at Cooks Children's hospital in downtown Fort Worth getting checked for the flu, pneumonia, and other illnesses.  Turns out Brady's fever (max at 102.9 deg F), cough, and rapid breathing is another bout of RSV.  And we'd almost made it 4 weeks without being sick, poor guy! Being at Cooks also made us thankful it was only RSV, we saw much worse when we were there.

Smallest hospital gown ever

Getting to be quite experienced in nebulizer breathing machines

Week 38 -

Major developments! This week was all about Brady and reaching new milestones.

First, he's got 2-4 more teeth coming in.  Two have already broken the skin and you can feel the rough edges on his gums.  They are his left side teeth top and bottom.  Not sure where those top two front teeth are hiding.  The other 2 maybes are his right side teeth where we think we can see white bumps.  So not a surprise he's taken to chewing on everything (Mom's shoulder, leg, window sill, ottoman, etc).

Another major development is pulling himself up to stand AND getting back down (neither gracefully, but it's a start). He half-walks half-pulls himself across the window sill to reach for objects and toys.  He'll also go from window sill to ottoman or Mom, still shaky but he's determined and loves being mobile and exploring.  When he hangs on to the window sill, he likes to smile and talk to his reflection, often banging on the window or sill and doing a little "booty shake" which we find quite hilarious.  Looking at our videos it's amazing to see how quickly he's gotten the hang of pulling himself up and walking, just from last weekend to this weekend.  Just amazing.

Since he discovered he can pull himself up we had to move his crib mattress down to the lowest setting. This we discovered one night watching the new video baby monitor - definitely a necessary baby item.  The video monitor is pretty nice, we downloaded an app to our phones that allows us to pull it up and see him anytime anywhere.  This comes in handy for the grandparents and will be great when Mom or Dad have to go on a business trip (Facetime for infants?).  It's also hilarious to watch him sleep as he's started sleeping on his belly with his butt in the air (see picture below).  And now that he's getting more vertical, we have to step up the baby proofing and are looking into getting him an enclosed play yard so he keeps himself out of trouble when Mom and Dad are cooking dinner or bringing in groceries.  We also need to protect the window sill corners and hide the string for the blinds.

This week started the weaning process which brings both relief and sadness for Mom.  Relief from the scheduled feedings and pumpings, but sad her son is outgrowing his Mommy time.  Plus it was the only time he sits still.  We tried to give him a 100% formula bottle right away - which by the way smells gross, kind of metallic but still looks like milk - but he wouldn't take it.  He'd crinkle his nose and refuse.  Then we tried 1 oz of formula with 4 oz breastmilk and he drank it at daycare.  Another day there was no refusing him so they gave him a bottle 100% formula and he drank it. We will try again and see how it goes at home, probably shouldn't have Mom try to feed him formula or he might not take it.

And speaking of eating, this kid can eat, and eat, and EAT.  He takes 3 bottles a day, plus 3-4 servings of solids, plus snacks of Cheerios at daycare.  They are introducing him to new foods like peas and carrots, pancakes, bananas, noodles, and chicken.  At home he ate pineapple, chicken, cheese, and pasta. We still give him baby food for dinner, but he's been eating 2 whole jars (that's 8 oz!) plus the finger foods.  He will also drink water out of a glass if you hold it for him.  As for the sippy cup, he gets the concept but would prefer Mommy's glass and drum with the sippy cup.  Someone is definitely in a growth spurt!  Hopefully he's getting all the nutrition and hydration he needs.  He goes back for his 9 month checkup end of this month.

Since the time Brady was about 4-5 months old we've been using sign language for specific baby things like milk, eat, more, water, done, sleep, cat, and dog.  This week he finally started signing back to us!  And it's just like they tell you, it's not perfect so you have to watch for it but it does minimize the fussing and frustration.  This was particularly helpful with "more" since he's been constantly eating.  He also signs for milk.  We'll keep using them all, and maybe add in some new ones, and see what he picks up.  Not sure how long he'll sign as he seems pretty vocal and eager to start talking.

Brady constantly chatters and babbles, at all different volumes, mostly loud ones.  If his ENT had any concerns about his hearing and speech development, he should hear him now (or maybe he can if he lives within 1 mile of our house).  We will post some new videos of him pulling himself up, playing, and babbling soon.

Since he's doing so well, we decided to try giving him baths again.  He still hates them.  As soon as his feet are immersed he starts crying.  We're going to try again as he was a little tired and cranky that night (someone fights naps at daycare) plus he'd given himself a scratch on his foot playing at daycare.  It could have been one or the combo of both things that got him upset.

Getting excited for the weekend as Grandpa Bob and Grammie Terry come back to town before heading out for the spring in the RV.  Also one of Mom's friends from high school is coming in to visit her inlaws so hoping it works out to get to see them and their kids.

Picture on the video baby monitor that triggered us to lower the mattress

Sleeping butt in the air

Banging on the window 

Playing with Dad with Fenway looking on from a safe distance

1st time in a highchair out for sushi for dinner.  What no sweet potato rolls?  Sweet potatos are Brady's favorite food.

Before dinner

After dinner

He must be in a growth spurt nursing twice plus 1.5 squeezy packs of food (4.5 oz each) and a small piece of chicken.  And that was just for dinner.

Weeks 36 & 37 -

Happy New Year! We have been on travel so these posts are combined.  Also there will be no week 35 or 36 Brady week-by-week photo.  We will continue to attempt the week-by-week photo but it is extremely difficult to keep him from rolling over and trying to crawl away.

The last two weeks we have been in the NJ, Maryland, Virginia area visiting relatives and friends for Christmas and New Years.  We visited the Seminara grandparents and Brady got to meet the Seminara extended family.  Grandma Nancy and Grandpa Dave were extremely generous giving Brady a large play center along with a wooden train Dave made himself.  Brady had fun playing with cousin Dana and her friend Lily, they may be just the right age when he's ready for a babysitter?  We also took Brady to see the Northlandz trains with miles of underground train sets.  Hard to believe this was all originally in one guy's basement.  One night we met up with Jill and Anthony and their kids for dinner.  The boys made homemade pizza while the girls caught up and played with the kids.  Jill and Mom were roommates in college.  Brady had fun playing with Penelope (9 mos, 2 weeks older than Brady), AJ (3 yrs), and Brianna (6 yrs).  While in NJ we also got about 3-4" of snow.  We packed Brady in his snowsuit and pulled him on the sled.  Grandpa Dave and Daddy rolled him up a snowman complete with a cowboy hat.  Brady wasn't afraid of the cold or the sled, but didn't seem very comfortable in the snowsuit which prevented him from crawling around.  He did grab a branch and fling some snow, and watched Daddy throw snowballs at Grandma with interest.

After NJ we went to Maryland to visit Grandma Nancy's family.  Brady had a great time at the farm playing with all his cousins.  Brady is the youngest behind Nicholas (18 mos), Madelyn (2.5 yrs), Sophie (4 yrs), Zachary (4 yrs), Isaac (7 yrs), Sam (8 yrs), and Ethan (10 yrs).  Needless to say it was a busy house but Brady did well adapting to all the activity and new sleeping arrangements.  He even played a couple rounds of duck-duck-goose. Isaac was a great "big-brother" talking to Brady encouraging him that he will be able to walk and talk soon.  He also helped Mom get Brady after a nap and really enjoyed holding Brady.  Isaac was also one of the few people Brady was relaxed with, other new faces Brady usually reached for Mom.  We enjoyed our time at the farmhouse.  Aunt Linda has done an amazing job remodeling and decorating, the interior reminds Mom of a ski lodge with hardwood floors and the large stone fireplace.

Next we visited Virginia for New Years.  We spent New Years Eve with Nicole and Ben, and their almost 1 year old Augie.  Mom, Dad, and Nicole all started Lockheed the same week and Mom and Nicole were roommates in DC.  Augie is just adorable, and took to Brady right away showing him all his toys.  The boys could barely keep out of each others way.  We had lobster and steak for dinner (super yum) and enjoyed some wine at the firepit when midnight rolled around.  Meanwhile the kids were fast asleep (mostly).  From there we visited Andy and Liz and their 2.5 yr old daughter Zoe.  Andy is a childhood friend of Daddy's that he met in the 3rd grade.  It was good practice for Zoe as Liz is due with a baby boy end of January.  Zoe loved Brady and was generous sharing her toys.  She seems to have the same spirit as Brady determined to play and not go down for a nap.

Developmentally, Brady tried some new foods including cut up bananas, strawberries, cheese, yogurt, and mangos.  He puckers up with bananas and strawberries, but loves cheese, yogurt, and mangos.  The squeezy packs were a life-saver on travel allowing us to feed him on the plane or in his car seat with little mess and clean-up.  He's a very active child when he's in a familiar place.  In new places, it takes him a little exploring to get comfortable before venturing too far from Mom and Dad (which is a good thing).  He's started sitting more regularly (which he learned from Penelope), and started pulling himself up onto his knees and even to standing.  He leans on Mom or Dad to semi-walk from toy to toy as his legs aren't stable enough yet to do it on his own.  The baby-proofing continues, and will be an on-going process.

As with every holiday vacation visiting family, it goes by fast and we enjoyed every minute we got to spend with family and glad everyone got to meet Brady.  2012 brought us the best gift with Brady and transforming us into the roles of Mom and Dad.  Brady had his 1st smile at 1 month, started daycare at 3 months, started rolling over at 4 months, got his 1st two teeth at 5.5 months, started crawling at 6 months, had his first surgery and started pulling himself up at 8 months.  It's exciting to look ahead to the new year and think of all the firsts Brady will experience like waving hello and goodbye, walking, talking, feeding himself, throwing a ball, and potty-training (maybe).  Mom is looking forward to starting weaning and getting back into physical activities like softball and soccer.  Dad is looking forward to spending more time working on the '61 Chevy and going on family vacations.  Wish you all the best in the New Year!

Rockin' his Patriots hat in Giants territory

Seminara Family Christmas 2012 

 Opening his gift from the Seminara grandparents

Checking out his train from Grandpa Dave

Suzy, Brady, Penelope, and Jill

Playing in the snow in NJ 

"Big brother" Isaac

Suzy, Brady, Nicole, and Augie

Riding his 1st motorcycle