Quick update

Hayden broke his fever when he was sleeping last night, so his first fever was short-lived! A tiny dose of baby Tylenol and a good 2.5-hour nap cured him right up, and he's all better. Mommy feels much better, too :-)

Where does the time go?

We've been busy bees since Jay left on Monday! We hung out with our friends and ran errands and had some adventures in babysitting! We also started our Love and Logic Parenting class, and so far I really like it. L&L is all about helping kids make choices, and be accountable for those choices. It's about responsibility, and helping parents use effective strategies for behavior. I won't be able to use any of the techniques for awhile, but I like to have as much in my parenting arsenal as possible.

Wednesday was our three-year-anniversary, and the first one Jay has missed! We spent it with Jenn and Addie eating Thai food in Wurzburg after dropping the dogs off, so I can't complain! I did get to talk to Jay at least, so I'm thankful for that.

Thursday we took Hayden's first trip to Poland! We like to shop for pottery there in a small town just across the German/Polish border. Four of us packed up four kids in two cars and hit the road around 7am. We made pretty good time, stopping to feed and change the babies and stretch our legs. I also got to test out our new Navigon, which I'm already in love with! How did we live here almost three years without a navigation system? I have no idea. It was a long day, with us getting home after midnight. Hayden did really well, but by the end of the evening was tired of his car seat.

Today he has his first low-grade fever :-( He is eating and playing fine, and seems to be in a good mood. He's flushed and a little tired though, so I'm keeping a close watch on him. Bless his heart, he's traveled out!

Hayden rolling over

He's getting pretty good at it! Check out his first short video!

Hayden is really good at rolling from his back to his belly, but sometimes gets too frustrated on his belly to roll back over to his back. But we're working on it!

Roll over, baby!

He did it! Hayden rolled over from his back to his belly all by himself today! I was so excited that I immediately grabbed the baby book and wrote it in. I was going for the phone to call Jay when I realized that Hayden, still on his tummy, started to throw up. Out of his mouth AND nose. Bless his baby heart. But I'm so proud of him!

Oops!

Mommy made a big mistake yesterday. They have a "playmorning" on post for moms to get together and let their kids play. Hayden can't do a lot of playing yet, but we figured it was good to get him around other babies while he's still little. So we grabbed the quilt, picked up our friend Sam and her son, Carson and met Jenn and Addie to hang out for an hour and a half. We had a good time, trying to avoid snotty toddlers with no concept of personal space. Hayden got pretty worn out after an hour, so he fell asleep. After playmorning, we all headed out together to run some errands and eat some lunch. Hayden slept off and on, 20 minutes here and 30 minutes there. He's been pretty portable the past three months so I really didn't think much about it.

Until last night.

Obviously, mommy has upset the delicate balance of his sleep schedule because he woke up nearly every hour last night. Which is a giant bummer, since we've worked so hard at getting him to sleep in his crib for longer stretches of time. Lesson learned! So today we're home, doing Hayden's normal routine in hopes for a better night of sleep for him (and me!). We have some exciting things coming up, like a Love & Logic parenting class and an Infant Massage class, so we need to make sure we aren't interfering with the schedule we've worked so hard to get on!

Hayden gets more alert and seems to learn new things every day. He is getting better at grabbing objects when they're near his face and hands, and is great at call-and-response babble. He likes to play a talking game with daddy, where they go back and forth making sounds. It's amazing to me how much he's changed already, and how fast he's picking things up. We bought some new pajamas yesterday since he's basically outgrown his 0-3 months sets, so they're all washed and ready for wear. We also got his Old Navy clothes in the mail and can't wait to put them on him. He has a onesie for St. Patty's day and a cute outfit for our family pictures in March, and some roll-up cargos that I'm dying to put him in.

He's starting to stay awake longer and play with some of his fun toys. He's very clear when he likes (and dislikes) whatever he's doing, which makes it a little easier to figure out what to do with him. We're going to start reading up on our baby sign language so we can start using it. Even if he can't do it yet, the more we practice the more it will become a habit. The idea of being able to effectively communicate with him long before he can speak is very motivating!

Baby Houdini

Hayden is getting stronger by the day, particularly with his legs. We discovered just HOW strong yesterday. I put him in his crib when he was a little cranky, because he didn't want to go to sleep. He was overtired, rubbing his little eyes and yawning. I laid him in the same spot I always do, gave him his bink and his puppy and closed the door. Usually after about 15 minutes he has worn himself out a little and we pick him up and he falls asleep almost instantly. When I went in to pick him up, I saw he had moved himself around a bit. Instead of being parallel to the long side of the crib, he had turned himself a whole 90 degrees so his head was against the drop side of the crib. Thank goodness for crib bumpers!

He's getting so much better at sleeping, finally! He's sleeping a little longer at night, and is starting to go longer between daytime feedings. Yesterday he played on his quilt so hard that he just put himself to sleep on it, which never happens. He's getting more consistent with daytime naps and goes down without a fuss most times. Hooray for progress!

Hayden had a playdate with his friend Addie, who is five months old and lots of fun! She can do things that Hayden can't, but they have a good time with his toys and playing on his quilt. Oscar likes Addie too, and she doesn't mind him licking her face and hands. We're hoping they like to play together so their mommies can scrapbook!

It's been awhile

I realized today we hadn't posted in awhile! Some days are busier than others, that's for sure. We are making excellent progress with Hayden sleeping in the crib, with only a few minor setbacks here and there. He goes right down for his daytime naps and is taking less and less "work" to go to sleep at night.

Hayden is three months old already! He's becoming more aware of his hands and feet and has become quite the wiggle worm. He kicks and kicks when in his seat and his play gym. We also tried out his Bumbo seat for the first time this week. He's not quite sure what to make of it, but is holding his head up pretty well while sitting in it. He's also started rolling over like a big boy! He is very good at rolling on his side from both his back and stomach, and today he actually rolled over from his back all the way to this belly! I think it was sort of a fluke, since he was mad while doing it, but it was no less exciting to me! He has also figured out how to roll OUT of his bouncy seat, which means the days of not being strapped into it are over!

He makes lots of fun baby noises and is starting to do so in response when we talk to him. He is growing all the time, and literally grew out of a pair of pajamas overnight! They fit when I put them on and when I changed his diaper in the morning, they were too tight at the toes for his little baby legs! It's so much fun to watch him play now, when he's becoming more active. He's also learning how to grasp objects. He loves to play the "sit up" game with mommy! While in the bouncy seat, I let him grab a finger with each little fist, and use the rest of my fingers to hold onto his wrists. Then we say "here we go!" and pull up slowly until he's in a sitting position. He holds his head up really well and we gently lay him back down to his reclining position. He laughs and laughs and we do it over and over again. He blows lots of baby bubbles, and is starting to need a bib to control all the drool! All in all, our baby boy is growing up!