Over Labor Day we went with Missy, Kyle, Casey & Amanda to Colorado for Leah & Ben's wedding. We were not at all sure how Bennett would do with the trip, especially since we had a layover on our flights both ways! Also both flights got us in to Denver/Milwaukee late at night... But he did really great! A little fussing at the beginning of each flight, but then ate/slept the rest of the time. Someone had recommended we bring our boppy for the flights, and I am SO GLAD we did! Once he fell asleep, I just put him on that on my lap. And thankfully people are super nice when you travel with a baby...
The weekend was filled with hiking in Estes Park (Friday), hanging out around our cabin, a spa day, dinner & Pearl Street on Saturday, and a beautiful wedding on Sunday! Leah had an amazing wedding and she did most of the work herself! Monday we did a little hiking as well before we had to head to the airport. Here are some pics of our great weekend!
Bennett is officially 5 months old! I'm amazed I got this blog post out...it has been crazy around here as I try to learn how to balance work with having a baby, cleaning, errands, etc! I'm going to try NOT to rant about how overwhelmed I am in this post...but one might come later. :) And look for a post later about our Labor Day vacation in Colorado! Bennett's first time flying and he did great!
In the past month, Bennett has started at his babysitter's house while I work! He has a fantastic Greendale mom who lives a block from work watching him 4 days per week. We drive to and from work together, and I can get him right after school which is SO nice (literally...the kids leave school at 3:30 and he's with me by 3:45). On Fridays he goes to a mom from our church's house. She lives closer to our house, so on Fridays Brad drops off and I pick up after work. Bennett LOVES his babysitters, and he gets one-on-one attention Monday-Thursday. His Friday babysitter has her own two kids home, but he loves that too! :)
At 5 months, Bennett is itching to be mobile! He LOVES his exersaucer, jumper, and "standing" while you support him. If you even try to get him to practice sitting, he straightens his legs/back to try to push up into a standing position. Tummy time is going much better, but he's not really doing any moving, other than going in circles. Bennett also still does not flip from tummy to back, but ALWAYS flips back to tummy and sleeps that way at night.
I am proud to say that even as a working mom, Bennett is still 100% on breastmilk! Thankfully I have a great freezer store built up, plus so far I am pumping at lunch so I make up a bottle then. I nurse before work and right after work (then all the night feedings too). Bennett doesn't love bottles, but he tolerates them and takes between 4-6 ounces per feeding (we officially moved up to size 2 bottles recently). I think he's ready for solids, but we're going to wait until 6 months. He stares at our food while we eat, and is able to put things in his mouth (like his bottle!!!). It is AMAZING how much more control he has over his hands and fingers!
Bennett is such a happy and outgoing boy. He loves to "talk" and "sing" with whomever will look at him! He especially loves kids, and almost always giggles when he's around them. Bennett's favorite song is still The ABC's. He loves being read to (He looks at the pictures and grabs the page when you read to him)....the other night he fell asleep in the glider while Brad was reading him bedtime stories. However, when Bennett is upset, lately he's taken to screeching/screaming instead of crying. If it's serious, he cries, but if he's just kind of mad/tired/hungry, plug your ears! He has such a high-pitched scream. And sometimes he does it when he's just playing in his exersaucer and happy....so maybe it's just a fun new thing since he now realizes he can be loud.
Bennett also loves watching Cooper lately. Cooper will venture close enough to lick his face (which he gets scolded for), and sometimes he lets Bennett get a pet/grab before moving a little away. Bennett also loves the car/stroller, and still almost always falls asleep in them. He takes a nuk, but only when he's fussy or in the carseat. He doesn't need a nuk or blankie or anything for bed anymore. Bennett's happiest times are when he's outside or when he's getting a diaper change. He grabs his feet and talks and talks! Grabbing his feet is all the rage lately. :)
At night, Bennett usually goes to bed around 7pm lately (probably due to our early mornings). I have been nursing him at 10pm in his sleep, then I wake him up and feed him at 6:20am. He usually wakes up somewhere in the middle of the night to nurse, but lately I have been trying to let him fall back asleep on his own unless he seems really hungry/upset. Surprisingly most times he falls back asleep within 5 minutes.
Oh, and now Bennett's not scared of raspberries on his belly anymore! Now he giggles! His giggles are the best.
We don't have our next doctor appointment until 6 months, so I can't update with any stats. But I think Bennett's longer, because we've had to put away some of the 3 month (and ALL the 0-3 month) clothes lately. He is wearing all 3-6 and 6 month PJs. Pants are all 3-6 and 6 months. Shirts/outfits are mostly 3-6. He still fits into Carter's 3 month onesies. I really hope our next baby is also a boy....I just put away the cutest 0-3 month outfits and I really want to use them again!
Sorry for the lack of posts everyone! Can you tell I'm back at work??? Bennett turns 5 months old on Wednesday, so I'll update with another post then. In the meantime, here's a cute video of Bennett loving his new jumper to tide you over...
I love his sweet little jumpy legs! They remind me of the Flinstones driving their cars with their feet.
