All About Bo
Four Months Old (official doctor's visit 2 weeks late)
Height: 26 inches
Height: 26 inches
Weight: 13 lb 3 oz
Five Months Old
Six Months Old (official doctor's visit)
Five Months Old
Height: 26 inches
Weight: 14 lb 6 oz
Six Months Old (official doctor's visit)
Height: 26.5 inches
Weight: 15 lb 3 oz
In typical second child fashion I have promised myself to complete this post BEFORE Bo turns SEVEN months old next Monday! Oh my goodness, time seriously needs to slow down now!!!! This is my new baby Bo, this is my smiley, happy, loving, laughing, jolly, sweet, talkative, calm, and adorable baby Bo.
If I thought months one through three were a blur, it seems they are only getting faster and harder to recollect. We made it through the 4th trimester and we are all doing awesome. Bo turned four months old right before Christmas, we had a great holiday (post coming), and a fantastic trip to Sunriver (another post coming) and then we came home to a few unseasonably warm and sunny months in Portland.
In anticipation of having a second baby I thought I would be more prepared for the fact that you can't control anything with a baby, particularly when it comes to sleep. With Jake I read the books and did the programs all in hopes that I would build a good sleeper who could get to sleep on his own, stay asleep, and carry that skill through his young life. We were successful very quickly (at least at night) so I just assumed that would be the same for another baby. I was wrong. Bo cries to wind down and sometimes it only takes a few minutes, other times he cries and forgets why he is there (he is there to sleep) and gets so worked up from the crying he can't start to relax. During these three months Bo was all over the board with night time sleep. Thankfully since about 2 months old he doesn't get up overnight more than twice. He is in his crib for about 12 hours and he goes right back to sleep after I feed him. He usually cries some at night as he is falling asleep, sometimes he just has trouble settling and if I go in and talk to him he is fine. He often wakes up a couple hours later, sometime around 9pm. Many times he might fuss a bit and get back to sleep but sometimes he can be very upset until I feed him and he goes right back down. Usually talking to him or picking him up and soothing and putting back down only makes him more mad. Usually he wakes up in the 1am hour to eat if he has been down since around 6:45. He will often go longer and a couple times he went to 4 or 5. We spent his 6th month working to try to get him consistently to only one feeding. At this point he was waking up sometime between 10pm and 12am and I had suspected for a while that he didn't really need to eat, but the cuddles and the sucking helped him settle back for sleep. So I had a couple of hard nights sitting on the couch and listening to him cry through these feedings. It usually took about 40 to 50 minutes but then he would go to 4 or 5 am! Clearly he was proving that he wasn't really hungry. I would feed him at this next wake-up, put him back down and he would be up between 6:30 and 7 am. Not bad! That stuck for a while and then slowing the wake-up time started to get earlier...but thats an update for his Month 7.
Going to get Bo out of bed in the morning is one my favorite things. He is so excited to see me and to start to the day. It is the same way in the middle of the night. He will be whining or crying in his bed and the minute I open the door I can hear his legs and arms start kicking and huge smiles as I give him a fresh diaper, what a cutie.
We got in a pretty good schedule during these months for Bo's naps. He took 4 naps a day (short ones) up until close to 6 months. I rocked him to sleep 2 or 3 times a day and most of the time the middle nap was in the car. He would go down about after his wake-up for his first nap. Second nap would happen between 11 and 12 in the car. The third nap he would take right about 1:30 after Jakey went down for his nap. The last nap he would go down for just before Jake got up from his, usually around 3:30. Even at close to 7 months this seems like ancient history because everything has changed! One thing that hasn't changed is the fact that he takes short naps. Many times he can't get past the 30 minute mark and if he does it is still usually less than an hour. Once in a while he will get 90 minutes or more and if that overlaps with Jake's it is a little slice of stay-at-home Mom heaven.
Bo is a great little eater. He still nurses about 6 times during the day and then depending on his night, one or two times more. He is very easily distracted now, but I understand. Sometimes it is hard for me to eat with a toddler screaming in my ear. Jake used to take breaks when he was nursing and look up at me, Bo doesn't do that as much as look for Jakey or just around the room. He is pretty efficient, he isn't very big and doesn't seem to need a ton at each feeding, but he nurses on both sides every time. He goes about 2 1/2 to 3 hours between feedings in the morning and then I feed him every 2 hours in the late afternoon (always with the hopes of a long night.) I started trying solids around 5 months. At my four month check-up the doctor said I could start anytime, but Bo wasn't really sitting up well assisted and he just didn't seem ready to me. I was right. He wasn't ready, pushing the food out, not able to get it to the back of his mouth and then gagging when he did. I put it to rest and tried again around 5 1/2 months. He started to get a little better but even by 6 months he wasn't consistently moving it to the back of this mouth and swallowing and his face looked like he was cringing, more about that learning curve in the next month's update!
Developmentally Bo is changing every single day. At 3 1/2 months Bo rolled from his stomach to his back. He did it a couple times, but then didn't really do regularly for several more weeks. Bo kept getting stronger and tummy time and doesn't at all mind being put down on his tummy when he is fed and well rested. At around 4 1/2 months old Bo rolled from his back to his tummy a couple times when he was trying to watch me or Jake leave the room. Once he got there it surprised him and wanted back to his back, but he couldn't quite figure it out. During Bo's fifth month he started to really grab and hold everything. He puts EVERYTHING in his mouth and has been doing that for a while. He can actually get a little fussy and impatient when he wants to suck on something but as soon as you give him a toy, a finger, a cup, or a teething ring he settles down. I would guess some teeth are right around the corner. Bo sleeps on his back and he really hardly moves around his crib at all. I try to lay him on his side when I put him to bed and down for naps with the hopes that he will start to happily roll onto his tummy and sleep longer. Bo loves to grab his feet. He would honestly choose his little toes, his socks, or a whole foot over any toy. I had forgotten how cute this milestone is.
Bo likes to face out in the Baby Bjorn and in the strollers. In the stroller he usually only lasts a little while because while he doesn't hate the stroller anymore, he does like to be able to see his Mama. Bo used to cry every time he got in the carseat. Then he stopped doing that and would just cry when he was tired. Then he stopped doing that and would just look out the window as he drifted off to sleep. It was all kinds of adorable. During these months Bo would also sleep in the stroller, it just had to be moving and he couldn't be overly tired, otherwise better move him to the carrier and then he is just fine. Bo loves to be talked to. He gives huge smiles and talks back. Bo likes to be held. He is a flinger so you have to have a good grip - two hands always! His favorite move is the back bend. I don't think it always means he wants to be put down, he has been doing it since birth. Sometimes I think he wants to be turned around so he can see out and other times I think that it is just his move. Some babies just have a natural tendency to lean that way. It hasn't been until the last couple of months that I could hold Bo on my shoulder and he would actually lean in to me, and even now he has to be really tired. He likes to be held when he gets up from naps and is done nursing. Just a few minutes of cuddles and some conversation and he is ready to be put down on his blanket. Bo likes his toys, probably Sophie the giraffe the best. He likes the ones that make a scrunching noise and anything easy to grab.
Bo doesn't like it when he is tired or hungry and he can't see his Mama. Bo doesn't like a bunch of faces all up in his. It takes Bo a few minutes to adjust to a new environment. If he is unsure he gives me the most desperate "please save me" sad face you have ever seen. If I am wearing him he will smile and just about anyone, clearly he knows he safe there. Bo is a really easy going and happy guy. He has a sweet little disposition and the most endearing smile I have seen. It is truly hard to see it and not have an ear to ear grin yourself.
It is hard to believe there was life before Bo. He has been the perfect little addition to our family and all of us, especially Jake, could not be more in love. Bo thinks Jake is the funniest person ever and you will often find them looking at each other, faces just inches apart, laughing and being silly. It is obvious that the brother bond begins at a very young age. Jake always asks where Bo is, when he wakes up in the morning and at naps, if I don't have him with me. Bo lights up the minute Jake whizzes into the room. Bo looks just like Jake did as a baby, but also is a mini-me of his Papa. It is actually a little scary at times. Similar to when Jake was born I feel like the bond with Papa really starts to take hold around the 5 to 6 month mark. Babies start interacting so much more at that age and I think it is easier for Dad's to start to "get them". Bo loves Papa, he gives him his signature wide open mouth grin any chance he gets. He has the smiliest eyes and I can see Brian melt a little around him. It's like in a blink of an eye they aren't babies anymore. It goes WAY TOO fast. The beginning was hard, but I would do it all over again for a just a few more days with my baby, my true baby. I tell Bo every night how much I love him before he falls asleep, I give him kisses until he can't stand it anymore all day, but sometimes it just doesn't feel like enough. I just want to squeeze him and take little bite. We love you Bo, thank you for letting us be your parents, you make me smile everyday and I can't imagine a moment without your smiley little face.
In typical second child fashion I have promised myself to complete this post BEFORE Bo turns SEVEN months old next Monday! Oh my goodness, time seriously needs to slow down now!!!! This is my new baby Bo, this is my smiley, happy, loving, laughing, jolly, sweet, talkative, calm, and adorable baby Bo.
If I thought months one through three were a blur, it seems they are only getting faster and harder to recollect. We made it through the 4th trimester and we are all doing awesome. Bo turned four months old right before Christmas, we had a great holiday (post coming), and a fantastic trip to Sunriver (another post coming) and then we came home to a few unseasonably warm and sunny months in Portland.
In anticipation of having a second baby I thought I would be more prepared for the fact that you can't control anything with a baby, particularly when it comes to sleep. With Jake I read the books and did the programs all in hopes that I would build a good sleeper who could get to sleep on his own, stay asleep, and carry that skill through his young life. We were successful very quickly (at least at night) so I just assumed that would be the same for another baby. I was wrong. Bo cries to wind down and sometimes it only takes a few minutes, other times he cries and forgets why he is there (he is there to sleep) and gets so worked up from the crying he can't start to relax. During these three months Bo was all over the board with night time sleep. Thankfully since about 2 months old he doesn't get up overnight more than twice. He is in his crib for about 12 hours and he goes right back to sleep after I feed him. He usually cries some at night as he is falling asleep, sometimes he just has trouble settling and if I go in and talk to him he is fine. He often wakes up a couple hours later, sometime around 9pm. Many times he might fuss a bit and get back to sleep but sometimes he can be very upset until I feed him and he goes right back down. Usually talking to him or picking him up and soothing and putting back down only makes him more mad. Usually he wakes up in the 1am hour to eat if he has been down since around 6:45. He will often go longer and a couple times he went to 4 or 5. We spent his 6th month working to try to get him consistently to only one feeding. At this point he was waking up sometime between 10pm and 12am and I had suspected for a while that he didn't really need to eat, but the cuddles and the sucking helped him settle back for sleep. So I had a couple of hard nights sitting on the couch and listening to him cry through these feedings. It usually took about 40 to 50 minutes but then he would go to 4 or 5 am! Clearly he was proving that he wasn't really hungry. I would feed him at this next wake-up, put him back down and he would be up between 6:30 and 7 am. Not bad! That stuck for a while and then slowing the wake-up time started to get earlier...but thats an update for his Month 7.
Going to get Bo out of bed in the morning is one my favorite things. He is so excited to see me and to start to the day. It is the same way in the middle of the night. He will be whining or crying in his bed and the minute I open the door I can hear his legs and arms start kicking and huge smiles as I give him a fresh diaper, what a cutie.
We got in a pretty good schedule during these months for Bo's naps. He took 4 naps a day (short ones) up until close to 6 months. I rocked him to sleep 2 or 3 times a day and most of the time the middle nap was in the car. He would go down about after his wake-up for his first nap. Second nap would happen between 11 and 12 in the car. The third nap he would take right about 1:30 after Jakey went down for his nap. The last nap he would go down for just before Jake got up from his, usually around 3:30. Even at close to 7 months this seems like ancient history because everything has changed! One thing that hasn't changed is the fact that he takes short naps. Many times he can't get past the 30 minute mark and if he does it is still usually less than an hour. Once in a while he will get 90 minutes or more and if that overlaps with Jake's it is a little slice of stay-at-home Mom heaven.
Bo is a great little eater. He still nurses about 6 times during the day and then depending on his night, one or two times more. He is very easily distracted now, but I understand. Sometimes it is hard for me to eat with a toddler screaming in my ear. Jake used to take breaks when he was nursing and look up at me, Bo doesn't do that as much as look for Jakey or just around the room. He is pretty efficient, he isn't very big and doesn't seem to need a ton at each feeding, but he nurses on both sides every time. He goes about 2 1/2 to 3 hours between feedings in the morning and then I feed him every 2 hours in the late afternoon (always with the hopes of a long night.) I started trying solids around 5 months. At my four month check-up the doctor said I could start anytime, but Bo wasn't really sitting up well assisted and he just didn't seem ready to me. I was right. He wasn't ready, pushing the food out, not able to get it to the back of his mouth and then gagging when he did. I put it to rest and tried again around 5 1/2 months. He started to get a little better but even by 6 months he wasn't consistently moving it to the back of this mouth and swallowing and his face looked like he was cringing, more about that learning curve in the next month's update!
Developmentally Bo is changing every single day. At 3 1/2 months Bo rolled from his stomach to his back. He did it a couple times, but then didn't really do regularly for several more weeks. Bo kept getting stronger and tummy time and doesn't at all mind being put down on his tummy when he is fed and well rested. At around 4 1/2 months old Bo rolled from his back to his tummy a couple times when he was trying to watch me or Jake leave the room. Once he got there it surprised him and wanted back to his back, but he couldn't quite figure it out. During Bo's fifth month he started to really grab and hold everything. He puts EVERYTHING in his mouth and has been doing that for a while. He can actually get a little fussy and impatient when he wants to suck on something but as soon as you give him a toy, a finger, a cup, or a teething ring he settles down. I would guess some teeth are right around the corner. Bo sleeps on his back and he really hardly moves around his crib at all. I try to lay him on his side when I put him to bed and down for naps with the hopes that he will start to happily roll onto his tummy and sleep longer. Bo loves to grab his feet. He would honestly choose his little toes, his socks, or a whole foot over any toy. I had forgotten how cute this milestone is.
Bo likes to face out in the Baby Bjorn and in the strollers. In the stroller he usually only lasts a little while because while he doesn't hate the stroller anymore, he does like to be able to see his Mama. Bo used to cry every time he got in the carseat. Then he stopped doing that and would just cry when he was tired. Then he stopped doing that and would just look out the window as he drifted off to sleep. It was all kinds of adorable. During these months Bo would also sleep in the stroller, it just had to be moving and he couldn't be overly tired, otherwise better move him to the carrier and then he is just fine. Bo loves to be talked to. He gives huge smiles and talks back. Bo likes to be held. He is a flinger so you have to have a good grip - two hands always! His favorite move is the back bend. I don't think it always means he wants to be put down, he has been doing it since birth. Sometimes I think he wants to be turned around so he can see out and other times I think that it is just his move. Some babies just have a natural tendency to lean that way. It hasn't been until the last couple of months that I could hold Bo on my shoulder and he would actually lean in to me, and even now he has to be really tired. He likes to be held when he gets up from naps and is done nursing. Just a few minutes of cuddles and some conversation and he is ready to be put down on his blanket. Bo likes his toys, probably Sophie the giraffe the best. He likes the ones that make a scrunching noise and anything easy to grab.
Bo doesn't like it when he is tired or hungry and he can't see his Mama. Bo doesn't like a bunch of faces all up in his. It takes Bo a few minutes to adjust to a new environment. If he is unsure he gives me the most desperate "please save me" sad face you have ever seen. If I am wearing him he will smile and just about anyone, clearly he knows he safe there. Bo is a really easy going and happy guy. He has a sweet little disposition and the most endearing smile I have seen. It is truly hard to see it and not have an ear to ear grin yourself.
It is hard to believe there was life before Bo. He has been the perfect little addition to our family and all of us, especially Jake, could not be more in love. Bo thinks Jake is the funniest person ever and you will often find them looking at each other, faces just inches apart, laughing and being silly. It is obvious that the brother bond begins at a very young age. Jake always asks where Bo is, when he wakes up in the morning and at naps, if I don't have him with me. Bo lights up the minute Jake whizzes into the room. Bo looks just like Jake did as a baby, but also is a mini-me of his Papa. It is actually a little scary at times. Similar to when Jake was born I feel like the bond with Papa really starts to take hold around the 5 to 6 month mark. Babies start interacting so much more at that age and I think it is easier for Dad's to start to "get them". Bo loves Papa, he gives him his signature wide open mouth grin any chance he gets. He has the smiliest eyes and I can see Brian melt a little around him. It's like in a blink of an eye they aren't babies anymore. It goes WAY TOO fast. The beginning was hard, but I would do it all over again for a just a few more days with my baby, my true baby. I tell Bo every night how much I love him before he falls asleep, I give him kisses until he can't stand it anymore all day, but sometimes it just doesn't feel like enough. I just want to squeeze him and take little bite. We love you Bo, thank you for letting us be your parents, you make me smile everyday and I can't imagine a moment without your smiley little face.
Bo's adventures (4-6 months):
