Dexter at 5 months

Lovin' the Dexersaucer

Video in the Excersaucer:


Dex with Steve at 5 months

Frankie with Steve at 5 months

My little boy is growing up - he'll be 5 months in a few days. Here's what he's up to:

• He's 15 pounds, and 26 inches!
• He chuckles with the best of them still, and loves to smile for the camera
• He loves to grab at toys and stick them in his mouth - he drools up a storm, and will bite down hard on your finger if it comes anywhere near his mouth! Those teeth, they be a-comin'.
  
• Can roll from his belly to his back, although still doesn't do it on purpose, and is no where close to rolling from his back to his belly (he does roll from side to side on occasion). The few times he has rolled it clearly surprises and upsets him.
  
• He loves his feet. Can't get enough of them.
• Can almost sit up on his own - actually does for a few seconds at a time before toppling over.
• Loves his bath - kicks and kicks those legs, tries desperately to grab that rubber ducky when he goes floating by.
  
• Night Sleeping - goes to bed generally around 7, and I wake him to nurse around 10. He will often make it until 3:30 or 4, but sometimes still wakes up at 2 and 5 (like last night), and then will sleep until 6:30 or so (when his sister usually wakes him up!). A handful of times he has slept from 10-6, so I know he can do it!
• Naps - are starting to emerge more regularly. He has been taking a good morning nap (2 hours) from around 8:30-10:30. He usually goes down again around 1:30, and will wake on and off during this nap until about 3:30 or 4. He is still plagued by gas during this nap, and I generally have to nurse him on and off for most of this nap to help him get the gas through his system and help him sleep.
• Eating - he is still an exclusively breast-fed baby. Not so much from my choice, but his. He refuses the bottle and cup, and when I tried to give him oatmeal the other day at the recommendation of my pediatrician to help his gas, he cried. It was this really sweet, pathetic cry that said "Momma, why did you do this to me?" (see footage below!) He generally goes 3 hours between feeds, but I'll often nurse him earlier if he really starts crying because it's the only thing that seems to help. I've cut out dairy in the hopes that it will help his gas. It seems to be helping some, but he had a hard day yesterday, so I'm not sure it's the entire root of the problem.
  

I love my little boy, I wouldn't trade him for the world, but these last 5 months have been a challenge for me. This has been the hardest job I've ever had, and each day I am humbled at my own inadequacies.

Dexter tries oatmeal: