5 Months Old!

Dear Milo:

You turned 5 months old this weekend and it has been quite a month! You are so incredibly interactive now and you absolutely have your own personality. You're pretty easy going many times, unless you're tired or hungry - then you make sure we know it!

You have become such a grabby guy now, anyone who has anything near your hands had better watch out for you! You love to play with your lighted toys, your current favorite being your cell phone because you can push all the buttons. You just love to get raspberries on your tummy and now let out a really big laugh sometimes, especially when your Grandpa S does it - maybe its his facial hair!

I think you are just days from mastering being able to sit on your own. You've got the stance right, and you have the desire, but you still topple forward or to the side after a second or two. Daddy thinks you are going to crawl soon too. You no longer scream when you are on your tummy usually, instead you move your arms and legs like crazy. You have all the crawling movements going, you just have to figure out how to lift your belly off the floor! I have a feeling that once you become mobile we will be chasing after you all over the place. You are such a big boy that you have grown out of your infant bathtub and now you take baths in the big tub, sometimes with Daddy. You guys have a great time together in there!

This month I think you realized Bella is here and you interact with her now - petting her and reaching for her when she is next to you. She still loves to lick you and it usually makes you laugh. I had thought Bella would try to steal your toys, but actually its you that is stealing her toys if they are by you. Luckily she doesn't seem to mind and just waits for you to be done before she tries to hide it from you! I am so happy everyday to see you guys get along so well - you truly are buddies already!

We seem to be right in the midst of teething right now and it can be rough. It can make you a bit cranky during the day and there are some nights where you are up so many times it reminds of when you first came home from the hospital! I can see a bump in your gums so I think that tooth will be anytime now.

Also, this month we started you on solids and they have been a big hit overall. I've made all your food (except for the cereal) and its going great.

You have eaten:

• rice cereal
• avocado
• green beans
• butternut squash
• bananas

Bananas are your most favorite, with the avocado and squash coming in second. You don't love green beans but you'll eat them just fine when I sneak them in between bites of something else. Right now you are up to 3 meals a day, with 3-4 cubes of food each meal. (And I think 1 cube is about 1 ounce or so.)

Thank goodness its getting warm out because between the spitting up (which is still going strong) and the messy solids you spend a lot of time when we are in the house without clothes on! You love to be naked though so I think its a win win for us both - happy guy and slightly less laundry for mamma! (And a win for Bella too since that gives her more chance to lick your legs!)

Time seems to be flying the bigger you get but you are also so much fun! I can't wait to see what next month brings!