Nicknames: Ben, Ben-Bo, Benjamin Kenjamin, Benja-Kenja-Koo, Hungrykinds
Temperament: Ben is so happy, cheerful, and social, and becoming more expressive
Item/Toy we love the most: activity mat, lillebaby carrier
Item/Toy you love the most: bee toy, stacking blocks, soft blocks, pacifier
Things we're loving most right now: seeing your personality emerge, watching you learn about food, how well you sleep
Things you're loving most right now: sitting up, trying big people food, using your hands, playing with Abigail, watching everything
Eating: Ben continues to eat well overall and is nursing basically 5 times a day most days (6/7 am, 10 am, 1:30 pm, 4:30 pm, 7 pm). He is still taking three bottles at school for a total of 13 oz and this seems to be working out well. It was nice to be home with him over Christmas break and have a pumping break. He had a little bit of a hard time the first day back at school with his bottles but then he adjusted back to the routine.
Over the last month Ben went from showing very little interest in solid foods to being extremely excited about them. We started giving him a piece or two of what we were eating and he would actually eat some! This has included things like pancakes, toast, grilled cheese, fruit and other easy to chew items. We are going to start sending him some food to eat at school and see how it goes.
Sleeping: Benjamin is now sleeping through the night! Shortly after his six month birthday, he learned to roll over from back to belly. This initially caused more wake ups as he would flip himself off his bed, but then he adjusted (and I adjusted where I positioned him when I put him down). He then decided that sleeping on his back was for wimps and would immediately roll to his stomach when I put him down. After some anxiety on my part, we went with it and he is now sleeping wonderfully on his tummy all night long. He scoots like an inchworm when he wakes up, so he will go from one end of the mattress to the other through the course of the night, but rarely rolls off anymore.
Playing: Ben is really fun. He is very smiley and happy and social with us and at school. He is vocalizing more and will have "conversations" with us sometimes too. He is sitting reasonably well without support although I still put a pillow behind him. He loves to grab things and we are impressed with his fine motor skills and ability to manipulate things and get them to his mouth.
After learning to roll belly to back in November, he learned to roll back to belly a few weeks later. It actually happened while Abigail and I were decorating the Christmas tree. I had put Ben on his back on the activity mat near us so he could hang out, and then turned my attention to Abigail and the ornaments. After a few minutes, Ben made a noise and when I turned back, he was on his tummy. He seemed surprised and confused but pleased when we praised him and clapped for him. I flipped him back over and he did it a few more times while we could actually watch.
He is sitting well for brief periods but eventually tips over slowly, usually backwards. He has great fine motor skills and we are consistently impressed about how much he can manipulate and manage things with his little hands and fingers.
He still gets so excited when he sees Abigail and she loves to make him laugh. She is very sweet and wants to give him hugs and kisses and get his attention too. They are starting to be somewhat more interactive together and Abigail also still likes it when we emphasize how much bigger she is.
After learning to roll belly to back in November, he learned to roll back to belly a few weeks later. It actually happened while Abigail and I were decorating the Christmas tree. I had put Ben on his back on the activity mat near us so he could hang out, and then turned my attention to Abigail and the ornaments. After a few minutes, Ben made a noise and when I turned back, he was on his tummy. He seemed surprised and confused but pleased when we praised him and clapped for him. I flipped him back over and he did it a few more times while we could actually watch.
He is sitting well for brief periods but eventually tips over slowly, usually backwards. He has great fine motor skills and we are consistently impressed about how much he can manipulate and manage things with his little hands and fingers.
He still gets so excited when he sees Abigail and she loves to make him laugh. She is very sweet and wants to give him hugs and kisses and get his attention too. They are starting to be somewhat more interactive together and Abigail also still likes it when we emphasize how much bigger she is.
Growth:
The biggest growth area this month has definitely been teeth! We started the month with one tooth and now we have 6! He has the top four and the bottom two. He was fairly calm during this teething period although he loves to bite things. We do meet people sometimes who see him teething and biting things and say that he must be getting teeth soon. They seem surprised when I explain he already has six teeth and have to remind them that babies just like to chew on things and explore with their mouths. We had his 6 month check up and Ben weighed 14 lbs and 11 oz and was 27 1/4 inches long. He is solidly in 6 months clothes and his legs keep getting longer.
Ben also had his first bad cold the week between Christmas and New Year and while he was uncomfortable, he didn't have to miss school and eventually things cleared up just before his six month birthday.
The biggest growth area this month has definitely been teeth! We started the month with one tooth and now we have 6! He has the top four and the bottom two. He was fairly calm during this teething period although he loves to bite things. We do meet people sometimes who see him teething and biting things and say that he must be getting teeth soon. They seem surprised when I explain he already has six teeth and have to remind them that babies just like to chew on things and explore with their mouths. We had his 6 month check up and Ben weighed 14 lbs and 11 oz and was 27 1/4 inches long. He is solidly in 6 months clothes and his legs keep getting longer.
Ben also had his first bad cold the week between Christmas and New Year and while he was uncomfortable, he didn't have to miss school and eventually things cleared up just before his six month birthday.
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