Dillan came over for a play day and what a glorious time we had. He took his morning cat nap and I just held him the whole time. He slept through the night so he was raring to go today. Once he woke up it was all systems go and did not stop for 12 hours. At this age, he recognizes us and makes eye contact and tracks us as we move around. He moves his arms around and kicks and squeals when he gets excited and especially so when mom and dad enter the room. He still smiles at everyone but sooner than later he will start sorting out who's who in his life. He may find our scent soothing and calming. He is starting to draw conclusions about the whole world around him.
We took advantage of this beautiful weather and headed out for a long buggy ride as he absolutely loves the trees. Everytime we passed under one, he became mesmerized and we purposely kicked the leaves on the ground so it would make a lot of noise. Check out those big baby blue eyes.
I read But No Elephants ~ twice ~ as he really enjoyed that book. He likes his bouncer and we added an alligator mirror that plays music and he grabbed the mobile star. He doesn't grasp the rattles just yet. When he is tired of being stimulated he lets us know and I give him a tour of his favorite spots ~ the garden, blinds, the trees, and when he needs to calm down, the stained glass birdies in the bath. As Wayne put it perfectly "when he's upset, he goes from 1 to 90 in a hurry."
Right now everything goes in the mouth. The oral phase is evident and he explores with his fingers and the pacifier is secondary. This provides comfort and if you give baby anything it will end up in his mouth. I love how he dozes off when I feed him the bottle. He smiles because he's so happy and content with his full belly. His arms and legs are strong and muscular ~ I call him porkchop :0
Babies simply love to be touched. In fact, they thrive on it. Touch is a critical part of growth and development. I gave him a soothing massage with lotion because all that skin-to-skin contact helps us bond and it is soothing when he is upset and irritable. It is important to nurture baby's sense of touch with a variety of materials such as fur, terrycloth and felt (even though baby will try and eat everything!) The feel of a gentle breeze or being kissed on the nose are powerful ways to relax and engage baby and may even make him more alert and help have a longer attention span.
When placed on his stomach, baby will lift his head and shoulders high, using arms for support. This mini push-up helps strengthen his muscles and gives him a better view of what's going on. He may even amaze us (and himself) by rolling from his back to his front and vice versa. Right now Dillan does not care to be on his stomach but when he is, he goes into airplane mode and lifts his head, arms and legs. He is very strong and it won't be long until he realizes movement brings him more joy.
Mom and Dad came over for Friday night pizza and we visited for a bit. It was nice catching up on what's been going on the past few weeks. They had a professional photographer take family pictures ~ simply fabulous! When the day was over, we all fell asleep with a boat load of love in our hearts and a huge smile on our face.
