Owen: 5 months

Another month has flown by and Owen is now a 5 month old.

At his monthly check up he weighed

16.15 lbs (75th-85th percentile)

and was 26 inches long (95th percentile).

The doctor says its a good thing that he is

"thinning out" so that I don't have to carry a baby that looks 

like Michelin man around.

We definitely have a tall baby on our hands.

Everyone had kept making comments like, "Oh he's at least 20 lbs"

So I honestly was expecting that.

I asked the doctor if it was normal that in 5 months he's only gained 5 lbs, 

and this was his clever answer.

"Well you know, what's not normal is being born 11 pounds. 

You have nothing to worry about"

He looks not as thrilled in this picture as he has in the previous months.

Just the night before we discovered his first tooth had started to break through

the gums. It sure has given him a lot of trouble.

Our friend Hannah invited us over for a water party.

Since Owen loves baths I thought for sure he'd like this.

At first I wondered if he'd think it was too cold (like the ocean on vacation)

but he was all about it. He just sat there splashing without a care in the world.

Speaking of sitting up, he'd been doing it with help for a good while but probably a 

week before that pool picture was taken he really got the hang of it and didn't much 

need (or want us) to help. 

He sits up loads these days.

We try to keep comfy things around him so that when he eventually

falls over, its a soft landing!

Another new thing this month is rugby. 

Daddy is already promoting it for our little big guy!

This ball has gone everywhere with us, even to church.

As evidenced by the red around his eyes in the above picture,

the biggest issue this month was sleep.

Really, thats been the biggest issue every month of Owen's life

but this month was intense.

We went on a trip to Missouri for a family event

and it was clear he was soon ready to be done with the swaddle.

I was terrified.

Any time I had tried to get Owen to sleep without the swaddle,

no one slept.

But we had come to the point where he also refused the swaddle.

So as soon as we got back home we did away with the swaddle.

We have this sleep sack called a Zipadee Zip.

It's star-shaped, so it slightly restricts movement,

(only enough so he doesn't whack himself in the face)

but is still safe so that he is able to lift up on his arms and roll over if need be.

He has been sleeping from 8pm to about 6:30 am

with three or four night wakings.

I feed him two of those times, and when he is up for good.

I am thankful that the transition out of the swaddle

wasn't the end of the world like I thought it was going to be.

(there was one or two really bad nights)

but he seems to have gotten the hang of this sleeping unswaddled business.

His naps have also improved.

His morning nap has always been the best, but it is a good solid 2 hours now.

(which is AWESOME)

Afternoon naps still vary.

He goes down at about 1pm and 4pm for anywhere between 30 mins-1 hr 30 mins.

There was also a big change in his diet this month.

After talking with the doctor we decided we'd try out some rice cereal.

He loves it! And is such a champ at eating from the spoon.

It was literally like he'd been doing it all his life.

The only downside to rice cereal is pumping the breastmilk to mix it with.

That is a chore, but I will spare you of the details.

It's crazy to think we are now less than a month away from half a year of Owen!

We have loved every minute of it.

Even the hard, sleepless nights.

He is such a blessing.