Ayden's Favorite Things: 6 Month Edition

 

We had another amazing day today. I think following my heart and instincts was the answer to all of our problems. Ayden got in an hour long nap (half after nursing on my lap and the rest in his crib) and a couple of shorter ones in the Ergo. Funny that when I stopped following someone else's agenda we ended up with the very outcome I had been working so hard to achieve. I also accomplished my goal of getting the upstairs back in order which mainly consisted of unpacking and doing laundry. Fun, fun...

Ayden was in an awesome mood yet again today. I think it's a combination of having a break from teething and me just letting him be. I still guided him through his routine but I didn't attempt to push or mold any outcomes and we moved through the day in sync and at ease.

So far so good still with Baby-Led Weaning. We're pretty sure he ingested a chunk of avocado at lunch and a tiny bit of broccoli at dinner. For the most part he just gums and sucks on the food. That is the beauty of BLW, there's no hurry. He'll still rely on breast milk for nutrients until he gets the hang of it on his own time. His breastfeeding intake hasn't changed at all. I actually feed him right before his food exploration adventures so that they are just that.

 

When Ayden was 1 month old, I wrote a post about his favorite things. These included diaper changes, sleeping vertically and bath time. Here we are at 6 months and though he still loves diaper changes and baths, and any chance to be naked for that matter, things have definitely changed around here! Now Ayden is completely aware of and involved with the world. Here are some of his new and improved favorite things:

1)Like I mentioned above, he still loves baths and now swimming!

He is a water baby for sure. He likes to splash, have water poured onto him and also enjoys capturing floating toys like his little yellow ball and rubber duck. So far he has no fear in the water and we hope to keep it that way!

2) Since I mentioned how he liked to sleep in his 1 month post, I'll mention it here too. He is a belly sleeper all the way! He sleeps on his belly all night only moving his head from side to side. He takes after his mommy :)

3) PETS! He is completely fascinated by both Maverick and Polly. He is content to just watch them but if they get close enough to touch I'm pretty sure it makes his day. I'm pretty sure Maverick is part of the reason Ayden has come to like walks in the stroller.

4) Touch. Ayden loves to be worn, tickled, kissed, hugged, "tossed" into the air. You name it, if it involves being touched, he's a fan!

5) Strings! He will sit and play with the shoe strings on my sneakers FOREVER! They never get old. He also loves to get his hands on cords, wires and anything else string-like.

6) Clapping. It all started with story time and the Peas Porriage Hot song. Now if you clap he smiles so big! He's a huge fan and I bet he'll be clapping on his own soon.

7) Music. I can get him to smile for pictures on command just by singing "You Are My Sunshine." He also loves "Bushel and A Peck," "Row Row Row Your Boat," "Baby Mine," Our Song and anything else we can make up to any given melody. If it's a song, chances are he'll love it! Throw clapping in with it (hence his love for Peas Porriage and Patty Cake) and you've made his day.

8) Crawling. He is not crawling yet but oh he wants to! He spends practically all day practicing these days. He's even pulled up to standing a couple of times. Once was on his Zany Zoo (also a current favorite) and called out for me (as well as a 6 month old can) because he didn't know what to do once he got up there. Here is a clip of some of his efforts today:

There are probably things I am leaving out but this paints a pretty good picture of how far we've come in the past 5 months since I wrote his last favorite things post. It was fun to go back and read, not only because he was so tiny in the pictures which gave me all kinds of warm fuzzies, but also because I said things like, "He has really come to life!" Haha, I had no idea :).

~Sarah