Family

9 MONTHS! I’m in denial. Where has my sleepy baby gone?

 It is getting increasingly difficult to take monthly shots of Harvey (aka “The Boof”). The minute I sit him down, he is leaning over and ready to take off so I quickly snap a few shots then get him back into position! Why did I choose a bed as the location for these photos?!

 He is moving around faster every day now and getting a lot more adventurous. Just this week he decided that he could crawl down the steps (just 2 of them!) from our deck onto the grass and makes his way around the backyard all the time now! Then when he has had enough he somehow manages to crawl back up the steps and into the house. No one has seen him get up or down the steps yet so I’m not sure if it’s a smooth hike or not, but he doesn’t cry so it can’t be that bad! He is a toughie though, and doesn’t usually cry unless the hurt is really sore!!

This month Harvey has learned to clap hands, wave and give high-fives. As sad as I am that he is growing up, it makes me so happy seeing how the older three kids are with him now that he is so interactive and wants to be a part of everything that is going on around him. They spend so much more time with him now that he can do fun tricks! I often find them giving him a ride on the swing or pushing him around on the little ride-on car.

We have a little family chant that goes, “Harvey, Harvey, Harvey…” while we clap along to the beat and as soon as Harvey hears it he grins and does a little bopping dance for us. So, so cute! As he gets older we are starting to notice some of his personality traits emerging. He seems to have a strong determination and finds a way to get to where ever or what ever he wants. He loves to perform for an audience and continues to be obsessed with food! Happy 9 months buddy!

Look at the 8 month old boof! This month has been corner-turning…you know that time you are always waiting for when most of the bad habits are eradicated and you feel like you can breathe again!

When we got home from New Zealand there was finally a break-through in Harvey’s bad sleeping habits. I think the first few days after being home he was totally exhausted about being away and having rotten sleeps for 2 weeks and sunk into his cot and slept, and slept, and slept. I think that a few days of awesome sleeping seemed to kick his body clock into gear and he worked out how to put more than one sleep cycle together…or maybe it was just going to happen anyway? Either way, it is pure and utter bliss to put him down for a nap and know that he is going to sleep for more than 20-40 minutes. There is finally a routine to his day which makes things so much easier to work around. He has two naps a day now which are usually each 1 1/2 – 2 1/2 hours long, goes to bed around 7pm and sleeps all night until about 6am. FINALLY!

Harvey continues on his happy eating rampage, he is such a good eater and will greedily gobble up anything that is placed in front of him! He isn’t fussed about texture or lumps in his foods and munches away until it is all gone, despite having no teeth yet! And when the food is gone he always lets out an ear piercing scream for more!

He is crawling like a gun now too, nothing stops him. If he wants to be somewhere he will push and cram his way through until he makes his destination! He loves pulling himself up onto furniture and having a good look around and has started being more confident walking around holding onto things too.

We do love him so, even though his chubby cheeks and big lips are getting smaller every month!