Andrew Update: 7 Months

Wow!! What a difference a month makes. Andrew has made great strides this past month. Last month I was beginning to feel a little beaten down. The sleepless nights, and what seemed to be continual crying were really starting to get to me. I kept giving myself little pep talks, saying "I can handle this for a few more months if I have to," but I sure didn't want to.

So we did our best to let him "cry it out," or at least as much as we could. My family all came for a visit to celebrate Christmas, so we didn't feel we could totally implement our plan until they were gone. The night our family left Andrew woke up 6 times! I finally got up and fed him at 4 a.m. because I couldn't take it any longer. The next night he woke up at 1 a.m. and he cried for an hour straight (I did check on him periodically). I thought it would never end. He seemed to fall asleep for an hour and then cried for another 1/2 hour. The next night he only cried for 1/2 hour and then slept the rest of the night. And now....for almost 2 weeks straight he has been sleeping for 11 hour stretches!! Can you believe it? He went from waking up almost every 2-3 hours to 11! That little guy had me foiled! So we're all definitely feeling a little more up beat around here.

Andrew is also sitting on his own now. The girls enjoy fetching toys for him, and are constantly bringing the toys back when he pushes them too far away. He's probably going to be a late bloomer on just about everything, since they do almost everything for him. But he loves his new found trick and enjoys watching the dogs run around and play. He finally rolled over too. I know to many this isn't a huge accomplishment, but we've been working on some much detested tummy time to get to this point. He still hates the tummy time. He'll lay there and wail for 5 minutes, with his head laying on the mat in defeat. Sometimes he doesn't even try to push himself up, he gives up the minute you lay him on his tummy. But, as much as I hate to see him struggle, I give him his time.

Andrew continues to laugh, smile, and make raspberries. He has to be one of the slobberiest (word?) babies I've ever seen. And he is quite proud of the fact that he is slobbery. He hasn't lost his cuddles either. He loves to play with my hair while I nurse, and rub his head against mine while I hold him close. I know I will miss those moments later as he gets older. I almost get teary eyed just thinking about it. Yes, we are definitely seeing a more joyful baby this past month. And we are seeing a more joyful mommy too. It is nice to be on a consistent schedule. He eats at just about the same time every day and takes naps at the same time. So now, hopefully I can focus on exercising in the morning and getting myself in my own new routine.