Squeals of Delight
How can you not love his little squeals of delight? Next to his giggle it's the best sound in the world!
Plagiocephaly Update
May 2009:
June 2009:
July 2009:
Just wanted to update you on Gabriel's head situation. After our plane trip to Brownsville I noticed some regression. This is a little depressing as I was really noticing some improvement as of late. You'll notice from May to June it looks better. Now in his July picture his head is tilted to the left a bit...his nose is pointing towards the J in July. Sorry...but it's hard to catch a moving head on film without it being blurred so you take what you can get. It's still not bad, but it really does consume a lot of my thinking. I know the back of the head will be fine when he has more hair. It's his face I'm more concerned about. I notice it when looking at him, but that's because I analyze it all of the time. But, when you let him play in the mirror (he is then in 2D) you notice that the right side of his face is more prominent than the left. I just don't want him to grow up and be upset about it. So, I got a referral from his pediatrician to a craniofacial plastic surgeon. We have an appt. with him on Sept. 1st (or sooner if they have a cancellation). Mostly it's for my own peace of mind. If he's borderline helmet then Brian and I will have to do some serious thinking, but if he's very mild at least I'll be able to put my mind at ease. I know people think I'm obsessing but when you have to make a decision for someone that may affect the way they look at themselves for the rest of their life...well, it's not an easy thing to do.
He's Mobile!
Well just a few days after learning to roll back to front Gabriel has begun creeping (scooting). It takes a lot of effort for him, so he doesn't make it very far, but I love how adorable he is. The little happy noise he makes when he sees his progress, and how he uses his head instead of his arms to help him move forward.
Either he's tired, bored, or he desperately wants to be able to walk.
This week in the life of Gabriel...
It finally happened! All it took was Gabriel starting solid foods and a thunderstorm, but it finally happened!!! Grace laid next to Gabriel! Woohoo!!!!!!!!!!!! He was thrilled to say the least. He's been watching the big hairy doggy run past him for months now, and he's been dying to get a hold of that fur. Grace is very happy that she gets to lick out Gabriel's bowl when he's done eating and of course having all three of us by the quilt during a thunderstorm was enough to convince Grace that maybe Gabriel isn't so bad after all. Gabriel didn't let out any squeals of delight, but he was studying Grace like he was going to have take a test about her.
In other exciting Gabriel specific news...he began creeping today. He pulls his little knees under his tummy and uses them to push himself forward. He moved about a foot today (with the coffee table as his target) but then he got tired. What a fast little learner! He's mobile...aaahhhh!!!
This weekend we also visited with Jessica, Ebby, Bea, and Sebastian. It had been 3ish years since we visited with them (way to long)! Bea was just a baby then, and she's quite the little diva. :) (She is such a sweet and incredibly SMART little girl.) To see Bea as a baby click here.
Sebastian was such a cutie. So into his toys and the movie Cars. He's also a fan of dipping his chips in his Coke. lol Too funny! Sebastian is also a very caring little boy. When Gabriel was napping upstairs and we began to eat lunch, her realized that Gabriel was missing lunch time and he wanted to go and get him so he wouldn't miss out on eating. Awwww...
Bea and I had a great time playing "kitchen," working on her letters, and drawing pictures together. She was also very generous with Gabriel, sharing her toys and playing music for him.
Gabriel still has a hard time with waking up in a new place with new faces. His little lower lip shot out at the sight of Jessica when we got there, and crying ensued. But, with a few minutes of mommy cuddles he was feeling more confident and willing to be held by anyone! :)
Man...my other 2 family pictures turned out blurred. Ugh! Sorry Laepple's! But, here is their adorable family. Brian and I are envious that their kids are trilingual...English, German, and Spanish! It's so impressive and makes me wish I was better at French. Hmmm...maybe we should move to Paris.
Dear "Touchy-Feely" People of the World,
Stop touching my kid! Yes, he's adorable, cute, precious, lovely, beautiful, and many other wonderful adjectives. But, you don't need to touch him. Imagine how cute he'll be the next time you see him all sniffly, with a runny nose, a cough, and crying up and down the grocery store isles because you just HAD to touch my cute little baby. Yeah, he won't be so adorable to you then will he? NOOOOO...you'll be shooting me nasty glances thinking, "Why can't she keep that kid quiet? I'm trying to concentrate on my grocery list."
Yeah, People...it's your fault in the first place! You just had to touch his hands which then went directly into his mouth. News flash...I don't know where your hands have been! Did you wash your hands after you went to the bathroom? Did you cough, or sneeze, or pick your nose? Maybe you had a wedgie you just had to "fix." Ugh...disgusting. Then you TOUCHED MY KID! Don't be surprised if I take to slapping your hand away. It's nothing against you. I'm sure you mean well, are irresistibly drawn to my adorable little boy of course, and just want to get a little feel of that soft baby skin. But, I don't know you, and we don't want to get to know your germs.
If you feel compelled to touch, at least ask first. Don't just grab at my kid's hands or feet. He doesn't belong to you. So the next time you feel your hand moving out for him remind yourself that you may just bring out the Momma Bear in me, and that's not something you want to be on the receiving end of.
Sincerely,
One Agitated Mommy
Woohoo
Gabriel rolled over back to front today! So exciting!!!!
Mmmmm...Sweet Taters
Our pediatrician gave us the go on cereals and all Level 1 foods. Since Gabriel had already been dabbling in cereal, and over the last week became very proficient at it, so we decided to let him try sweet potatoes. I figured it was a good veggie that was a little sweet and therefore more appealing to the palate. He made an awful face after his first taste the other day, but now he loves them and opens his mouth for more. :)
He also likes to hold onto the tools mommy is using. Sometimes he's interested in the bowl, sometimes the spoon. Today I let him have his own spoon. He was attempting to get it in his mouth. Of course it didn't have food on it...until he smeared it on his face. Then he got potatoes on his clothes, arms, legs, and even his forehead. :)
Yes, he and his daddy are very messy eaters. Really, I'm messier at feeding it to him then he is about eating it. lol Most of that mess is from him turning his head at the last minute as I go to put it in his mouth. He likes to try to help me by moving his head...he just moves it in the wrong direction. :) When he's done he either purses his lips, whines, or tries to kick the bowl out of my hands.
I think Grace has found a new best friend. She sniffed out his empty bowl of sweet potatoes and licked up the remnants. See, Grace, we told you you'd like him.
Hey! That's my food, Grace!
A week of firsts...but a sad one at that.
Sadly on July 12 Brian's Grandfather, Jesse Champion, passed away. We went to Brownsville to attend the funeral. As sad as we are about his passing we know he is in a better place now looking down on all of us, especially his Great Grandson whom he never had the opportunity to meet.
On the "lighter" side of things. Gabriel did get to go on his first airplane ride, stay in his first hotel room, and met his Great Grandma and Brian's other Champion relatives.
Here are the guys getting ready to head to the airport...
Gabriel has to be the best baby I've ever encountered on the plane. On the way down he ate during take off and fell asleep during landing. On the way back he slept during take off and just smiled and "talked" to me during landing. :) He got wings and a certificate for his first flight.
The stay in the hotel room went surprisingly well also. We tried to stick to night time routine as much as possible. (No easy task.) I love this picture...
Poor Great Grandma Champion. Gabriel was always upset when she was feeling up to visiting with everyone. He was either hungry or sleepy. Finally we caught him and her in the same room while he was in a good mood and fun ensued! :)
We're so glad we were able to be there with the family. I know Gabriel was able to bring a lot of happiness to a sad situation. The circle of life continues...
While we were there Gabriel celebrated his 4 month old birthday. The 2 pictures above were taken on his birthday. But, I will take an "official" one (even though it a few days late) and post it tomorrow.
Laughing
It's hard to get him to laugh even though he's such a smiley fellow. He's more interested in his squeals than laughing, but here it is...the elusive Gabriel giggle.
The Hulk
Gabriel's 3 Month Professional Pictures
Here are 3 of Gabriel's 3 month pictures. I won't get the ones from his album until he's a year old so you'll have to be content with the extra ones I purchase. He's the most precious little baby. His big smile is the greatest thing I've ever seen. Most of his pictures were very smiley...most of those are in his album. I like a mixture of smiles and serious poses.
Photography by: Laura Odom Photography
The Amazing Jumping Gabriel
(Okay...he more wiggles his legs than jumps. He does get the music going on his own even though you see my hand enter the picture. He grips the green bar in front of him to "stabilize" himself. He's having a lot of fun in it though.)
4 Month Dr. Appt.
May 2009:
End of June 2009:
Gabriel had his 4 month appt. today. We were going in because we thought he had a food allergy (he doesn't). But, they decided to go ahead and do his 4 month wellness exam since I was going to be coming in next week for it. He checked out well. He has a drool rash on his face so they gave me a prescription for a mild cortisone cream for that and I have to put Aquaphor on it to protect the skin around his mouth. (Turns out he had just drooled a lot in his sleep last night so it wasn't a food allergy.) We also got the green light for beginning solid foods. We're excited about that new development. He has dappled in rice cereal but hasn't done anything daily yet. Also his head seems to be improving. Dr. Savrick said it is looking much better and she definitely would not recommend a helmet for his case. We're hoping it continues to round out.
Things like his exersaucer and tummy time have been a big help. Matt and Angie are letting us borrow their Jumperoo so Gabriel has been sitting in that yesterday and today. He thinks it's a hoot that he can jiggle around, and he loves when I help him "jump." I see him being able to do it in a few more weeks on his own I think. So...video to come when he can do that. He is still a little unsure about playing with the toys while he is moving but he finds it exciting and it brings many smiles.
Also teething seems to be in full force. Lots of drooling and chewing...on everything.
4th of July Weekend
We spent 4th of July weekend in Dallas visiting the Wood Family. We had a fun time. Here are the "kids" taking a nap on the way to Dallas. All of the excitement was a little too much for them to take. You can see Grace finally figured out how to make herself comfortable by putting her nose under the curve in the base of the car seat.
Barrett sure does enjoy all of the fun things his neighborhood pool has to offer. We hope to get back there again sometime. It was a fabulous pool!!!
Gabriel however is the only baby I know who can fall asleep in the pool with all of the excitement going on around him.
One of Barrett's favorites...the kiddy slide.
Poor Gabriel...he missed it all!
Barrett was a huge help to me this weekend by helping to keep Gabriel entertained.
He spent a lot of time entertaining his cousin by shaking the toys on the play gym for him. Thanks, Barrett! Thanks Wood Family for a fun holiday weekend.
This Week in the life of Gabriel
It was a semi busy week this week at our house. We took two trips to Pearland...one to pick out pictures from Gabriel's 3 month photo shoot and another one to Jeremy & Kari's house for Steve's birthday. In between all of that I made homemade (from scratch) cupcakes and icing. Yummm!!!
This weekend we have kept things quiet. Mostly hanging around the living room and dancing to Michael Jackson music. Gabriel is especially fond of his daddy time on the weekends.
We also started trying to teach him how to sleep in a sleep sack instead of his swaddle me's. We're doing it during nap times currently. So far he is making it up to 1 1/2 hours. (About a normal nap time.) At the beginning of the week he could only make it 30 min.
We've also been working on how to eat rice cereal. It's been slow going and we don't try every day. You have to catch him in a good mood. He liked it yesterday when we made it with formula per Marissa's suggestion! Thanks, Marissa!!! We will start doing it every day when he reaches four months.
We are also in major teething mode! He is fussier, drools like a faucet, chews on his hands, and likes having his gums rubbed with my knuckle. We've been using teething tabs since most teething toys are too big for his little 3 month old mouth. I can see the little white lines of teeth on his lower gums but who knows how long it will be before they pop through. I hope not too long.
Coming up next week in the life of Gabriel: Hanging out with Tara and Kennedy, hopefully a visit to the rec center pool, and visiting Uncle Matt and family in Dallas. We can't wait Wood family!!! See you soon! In the mean time...in case I don't post before then...HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!!!
Some other cute pictures...
Here is Gabriel doing one of his Itsy Bitsy Yoga moves. (One of the ones he can do...some of the newer ones tend to make him spit up.) Thanks for the picture, Brad.
Look at those eyes!!!
Awww...what a cute family we make.
What Would You Do?
Liv Tyler was in the news recently for publicly stepping in and calling out a mom/caregiver who was "hurting" her child. Now we don't know what the mom/caregiver did...a spanking or something more intense, but this brings up the question...what would you do in that situation?
Does it make a difference if it's a quick swat on the behind? Would you step in for that? Or would you step in at all even if that parent was hurting their child?
Some people may say they would be worried about their own safety as you never know what a person will do while upset or enraged. Some might say that it isn't their place to do anything...that that is a private family matter. Others might say you have a responsibility to step in and do something...be an advocate for that child. And a few others might even call the cops, but by the time they show up it may be too late for them to help.
Brian and I like to watch a show in the fall titled What Would You Do? It's amazing what people will allow to happen or even laugh about. Personally I would have to look at the severity of the situation to make a call. A quick swat on the behind...although not my favorite mode of discipline is not something I worry about. If the spanking is repetitive to me that's a problem. If it's a smack somewhere else that's a problem. I believe I would step in and say something. Some moms may just need a little cool down reminder as the job is a stressful one...and I'm sure only become more stressful as the kids get older.
Now for an even harder situation...what if the parent is yelling at the child? What if their are obscenities and a scene is being made, or threats are being made at the child? Would you do something then? I'm curious to hear your answers.
Happy First Father's Day, Brian!
