Sydney's wall! Every night for about the past 2 weeks, we've begun to die down at about 5:30. By 6 pm, we're struggling to keep him entertained for more than 5 minutes at a time until it is bathtime. We take our nightly bath, and then nurse and he's down for the night. Even though it can be difficult to find what will distract him for the next hour, it is rather nice to know, for now, his schedule. It makes it easy to keep him from getting so upset, he can't calm down. And even when he does get uncontrollably upset, the running of bath water has, up to this point, been magical. He is a water baby. I included this photo because, like his mommy, Sydney is NOT a morning person. We bought the Grumpy doll for him merely to show that they have similar facial expressions. I hate getting up. Especially after a really nice nap, or in the morning. Apparently, he feels the same way...
We started 'solid food' this weekend. As of now, his eczema is under control enough to attempt this, and boy, was he ready! It took perhaps 2 spoonfuls before he was trying to force me to get it in to his mouth more quickly. I say 'solid food' oxymoronically because the rice cereal was more like a gruel. Have you ever looked at the first steps baby food in the stores? It is less viscous than my homemade soups and stews! Not very solid, but I guess it's a different texture than formula or breastmilk.
After feeding him today, I went ahead and made homemade carrots. Will I be doing this often? Goodness, no. But for today, it was nice to give myself a reason to get out my cutting board, my knives, and my tiny food processor that I got for Christmas (2?) years ago and have never used. I miss my days when I would lose myself in the kitchen, and Steve would walk in hours later with loaves of banana bread, biscotti, and homemade stew all sitting there. It will come, again, but I haven't been able to do this in over a year. Ergo, I felt a slight bit of accomplishment by simply making extremely mushy carrots and freezing them in portion sizes in my ice cube trays. In the meantime, even though I think it will be awhile before we transition to other 'solid foods,' I've been thinking we'll try yogurt and peas next...
As promised, here's a photo of my 6 month bouncing baby boy. Sure has grown, hasn't he? I try to take all these photos in his bouncy seat, since that is where most of the early pictures were staged. This way, we can see his growth measured against the same backdrop.
And, before I go for the evening...The Olympics are over. I'm not the type to stay up exhorbitantly late and watch every single event. I like the opening ceremonies. I sometimes watch the closing, as well. I don't have particular things that I look for (other than the 4x4 during the Summer Olympics). I think I enjoy watching these only because they bring cultures together. I get to experience so much more than what is 'normal' in my every day life. But I can't help feel a little bittersweet, this year. Bitter because I didn't get a chance to watch as much (nor would I have stayed awake for much...) and sweet because I also cut ties with the "It's the Olympics...how can you NOT watch them?" mentality that we so often encounter. It boils down to this...my life has changed this year, and I'm still adapting to those changes. I won't think of the Olympics again for 2 years, and when 2012 comes around, I'll be absolutely startled to realize that it is time for the next round. They don't change my life; they simply offer a different diversion, and I've got that covered for at least the next 18 years.
SOLs this week. Wish my colleagues, my students, and me luck.
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