Attack of the Walker

I know, I know, cutest picture ever!I bought Eddie a walker last week. He enjoyed sitting in it playing with the toys, but was not aware his movements were making him go places. Until last night... I was at the stove cooking, when I felt a tap at my ankles. Thinking to myself "I know he was in the corner by the highchair", I turned around to see this happy boy smiling back. And yes he is naked for a reason, due to a poop incident while I was trying not to burn dinner. But I promise not for long seeing as it is the middle of winter. But I think it makes the picture that much better!

That's right, he covered some good ground.

And was so proud of himself. Which is great for me, because now he enjoys being in the kitchen while I am doing chores or cooking. And thanks to my mom, we discovered Baby Mum Mums. I know, stupid name right? They are these little rice cakes that he can hold and feed himself without it breaking off, or making too big of a mess. And he loves it!

But now he wants to feed himself everything. I have had to opt for allowing him to hold onto the spoon as I try to direct it into his mouth, which is easier said than done. Thus the peas on the front of his shirt even though he was wearing a bib.

Eddie's First Thanksgiving

Eddie had his first Thanksgiving last week. And I forgot the camera and the video camera. But I can tell you he sure looked cute in his onesie that said "My First Thanksgiving" on it. Eddie was even kind enough to nap during the Turkey lunch so I could eat.
We went up to Montana to spend Thanksgiving with my family. The Cardall's had their get together the Sunday before. So it was a fun trip getting to see my family again so soon. Eddie overall did really well on the trip other than refusing to sleep. He wanted to be involved in everything going on. Therefore, our first night back home, Eddie slept almost 14 hours, then napped another 5 the following day.Sleep deprived? I think so. But I can't blame him, Montana is just too exciting to miss a single minute of it!

Visit to Montana

Dan was out of town last weekend hunting for Elk so Eddie and I decided to venture to Montana for a visit. I left at 4am hoping that Eddie would sleep most of the way. It worked well on the way up, coming home was not so good. But we had a great visit with Grandma and Grandpa Merg. Here are some pictures from our fun weekend.

This picture was not taken this past weekend, but over Halloween weekend when we went to visit Dan's grandparents on Al's side. This is Eddie's great grandma Nedra Cardall. I thought it would be neat for him to have this picture with his great grandma someday.

Baby Proofing Here We Come

This video was taken 4 days ago, so a week shy of Eddie turning 5 months. I thought he was actually going to crawl. Just a matter of time now.

Look Whose Talking Now

5 Months Old

Eddie will be 5 months old tomorrow and I can hardly believe it. He is growing so fast and progressing even faster. I wouldn't be surprised at all if he crawls and walks earlier than normal. I decided to take some pictures and video to show how far he has come in just a few short months. He is a whole new kid from not only 2 months ago, but even last week.

He has been eating solid food for almost a month now. We have worked our way through almost all of the first baby foods. So far all has gone well except for the bananas. They are supposed to be the most liked of the baby food, but Eddie makes a horrible face and spits it out every time. I have found that I need the bib more than he does. The other day he had just gotten a big mouthful of squash when he sneezed...all over me. I was covered from my glasses to my waist. He thought it was funny.

It's Official...I'm One of THOSE moms

Do you remember all those times when you would look at a mother with her child, doing one of many things, and you would say to the person next to you "I will never be one of THOSE moms." Guilty as charged. I use to say this phrase to Dan on a daily basis "I will never..." and you can fill in the blank because I'm sure I've said them all, and now I find myself doing them all.

That's right. I said I would never give my baby formula. Done that. I said I would never let my child sleep in my bed. Done that. I said I would never have a problem making my child self sooth. I do. I also said I would never feed my child anything but homemade baby food. And the list goes on and on and continues to get longer with every day. The latest is the monitor...

I always knew that my baby would sleep in my room for a few months, and then as feedings grew to be less often I would move him to his crib in his own room. Sounds easy right? Wrong! I have been procrastinating it for at least the last 6 weeks. Okay fine, 3 months. Everyone has told me that once I move him out of our room not to get a monitor because it will just keep me up. Instead, the baby will make loud enough noises to wake you when the time comes. Seeing as we live in a small home, I thought this must surely be true and sounds easy enough.

Well, I broke down a few months ago and got a monitor. For nap time. No way was he sleeping through the night out of my room, even with the monitor. It has been nice being able to wander around the house with the monitor and know that I can still hear him as if I was in the same room. So I started thinking maybe I can handle it during the nighttime too.

So I tried it a couple of weeks ago. I put him to bed in his crib, then I went to sleep in my bedroom. Only there was not any sleeping on my end going on. The voices in my head were saying..."What was that? Did he just make a noise on the monitor? Wait, what if the monitor isn't even working? What if the batteries died? What if I can't hear him? What if there is nothing to hear? What if he pulled the blankets up over his head and is stuck? What if he quits breathing? What if he rolled to the edge of the crib? What if, what if, what if."

Finally, Eddie woke for his midnight feeding, so I fed him, put him back to sleep next to me, and I was finally able to sleep as well.

So now not only am I one of THOSE moms with a monitor, but a video monitor. Now I can hear and see my baby any time I want, without having to go in and out of his room all night long. So last night Eddie slept ALL NIGHT is his own room...and we both survived. I still had to resist bringing him back in to his bassinet, and at one point I seriously considered sleeping on his floor, you know, just in case. So tonight we will try it again, and hopefully it will get easier every time. And yes, it is true, I am one of THOSE moms.