The Hayes Herald: Ezra--Months 4 and 5

Time is going by much too fast, and Ezra turns 6 months old today! He is absolutely the sweetest baby, and I know I will miss him being this little.

Ezra's first two pearly whites popped up a little before he was 5 months old. He still always wants to be chewing on something. Thankfully he hasn't tried biting me while nursing.

He has a very bubbly, social, cheerful personality. He smiles at anyone and everyone, lets anyone hold him, and only gets fussy when he's due for sleep or extra-hungry. It's fun to watch him when David enters the room. He immediately finds him and won't take his eyes off of him.

A little over a month ago I finally got Ezra sleeping in his bassinet full-time, not on the boppy on our bed. That was an easier transition than I thought. It's still so hard for me to sleep with him in our room. He's not a noisy sleeper like when he was a newborn, but I still try to be extra quiet, and am always alerted anytime he stirs. We had originally planned to bunk Eli and Clara in Eli's room around now, and move Ezra to the crib, but then I changed my mind and want to keep Clara in the crib as long as I can, since she sleeps so perfectly in there and desperately needs that solid 13 hr night that she gets.

Sadly Ez won't sleep very well in his carseat anymore. He'll stay awake happily in it, but if he's due for sleep it's hard for him to sleep anywhere but his bed. He does NOT like to be rocked, that only aggravates him that he can't get right to sleep. He's super awesome in that I can put him right down to sleep at nap or bedtime, hand him his little blankie that he likes to rub while sleeps, and then he'll fall right to sleep! This is thanks to him being a thumb-sucker. My first one! So, so cute. I love that I don't have to pop a paci in that falls out, because he always prefers his thumb.

I will definitely not miss such interrupted sleep! Ez has had nights where he'd only wake up to eat at 2 or 3 and then 5 or 6. But those good sleep nights are always canceled out by another new problem. He got a yucky cold and cough over Thanksgiving week, and since then he's been waking VERY frequently (like every 1-2 hours.) I think he has more teeth coming in because he won't take his paci and is very irritable in the night. Many nights I've fallen asleep sitting up with him passed out on me, so not fun!

The kids got such a kick out of Ezra starting to pull on his musical toy above him on his bouncy seat. This is where he sits during our meal times.

Video of Ezra @ 4 months

Ezra's schedule: He wakes for the day around 7:00-7:30. I nurse him when he wakes or wait until Eli's on the bus at 8:40. Naps around 9:00 for an hour. I nurse him again sometime between 10-11. If we're at home, he goes down for a nap about 1 1/2 hours after waking up. If we're out, he may fall asleep while in the car, but then wakes as soon as his carseat is moved. I nurse him again around 1 or 2, then again around 4-5. He takes a middle day nap for 1-2 hours, then a later day nap for 1-2 hours. It all varies just a bit depending on our day and plans. He goes to bed around 7:30, sometimes earlier or a little later depending on that last nap. He was sleeping until 2:00 a.m. before waking for a feeding, but lately he's waking around 11:30/12:00 a.m. first, then again at 2:00, and 4:00, and 6:00. :/ Hopefully once colds pass and teeth cut again we'll get back to some good sleep stretches.

He nurses on both sides during the day, but it is SO hard to get him to focus. He is distracted by EVERYTHING! He's always such a fast eater, only stays on for the let-down, then starts sitting up. He has a blowout about once a day. (Oh, the endless laundry!) It often occurs while he's sitting in the bumbo. He nurses on just one side when he wakes during the night, because he passes out.

Ezra enjoys watching the silly antics of his older siblings.

Silly video of Clara playing with Ezra--

Both kids still very much love their baby, and love getting one-on-one time with him so that he looks straight at them. Clara always makes sure that Ezra only has his "baby" toys (not her or Eli's toys). She also loves jumping on our bed when I've laid him on there for a few minutes. (grrr.) Eli tries to teach Ezra things such as how to give a high five, and he likes to tell us that he knows baby talk. ;)

Video of Ezra chewing on his hands while I get some giggles out of him--

We took some impromptu photos after church one day (about a month ago). Ez was tired but a good sport. Clara of course wanted to join in, too.

Ezra just wants to do everything too fast and soon! For a long time now he's been doing funny yoga moves on tummy time. He sticks his bum way up in the air! He learned how to scoot himself around the room from this move.

Video of Ezra showing off his yoga moves--

For a couple weeks Ezra's been saying "dadadadada." He also just started smacking his lips together, so we love encouraging him in his tricks. He can sit up for a little while on his own, rather hunched over though. He rolls from either side. He loves to stand (with help), and would probably appreciate me getting out the jumperoo. He reaches for everything, grabs for whatever he can get his hands on, and can scooch around on the floor in full circle.

Eli loves having time with his little brother.

Video of Ezra's first haircut. I never realized until afterwards how much Ezra's hair looked like a toupee! He is so much more handsome with his new look.

When just shy of 6 months we tried him some baby food. Such a cute video of him trying solids for the first time! The kids' commentary is the best part. :)