Owen is 16 weeks old. I don't know if parents always think their babies are continually becoming cuter and cuter, but I know Cody and I feel this way. I find myself worrying that one day Owen is suddenly going to become less fun to hang out with. I'm telling myself that maybe that doesn't happen until your kid is a teenager. Fingers crossed.
Owen has started giggling in the past month. It is the most adorable thing you've ever seen or heard. We can't quite narrow down surefire ways to make him laugh. Sometimes he'll just start chuckling and it's one of the best things I have going in my life right now.
We have started going to Fayetteville once a week to eat Chipotle (very allergy-friendly restaurant) with Cody's mom. The trips are a nice little change of routine for us.
Owen has become much more active this month. He can roll from his back to his belly, but then is pretty much confused about what to do from there. He has found his feet. He likes holding them and staring at them intently. He loves sucking on his fingers still and has started playing with toys. He likes his bumbo seat that has the tray of toys around him. He also likes his Baby Einstein bouncer. He will lay on a play mat for quite some time (10-15 minutes) without becoming bored.
At around 14 weeks, we revamped our approach to parenting Owen. One day it just sort of dawned on me that Kristen Bell said on The Ellen Show once that her child had never seen the movie Frozen because they were following the American Pediatrics Association guidelines of no screen time before two years old. As a non-parent at the time I didn't pay a lot of attention to this statement, but the memory prompted me to do a little research about screen time and babies. I had told myself that "screen time" (which is a phrase that really makes my skin crawl for some reason) didn't start until your child was at least old enough to crawl or maybe old enough to walk. The first two months of Owen's life was spent with me holding/nursing him and watching TV. That's all we did. Nevertheless, Cody and I have made a concerted effort not to watch television during the day. The transition seemed crazy at first, but Owen really had started paying a lot of attention to the TV. Sure enough, without a television I am a markedly better parent. We read a lot more books, spend a lot more time outside, play with toys, and sit and "talk" to each other a lot more than I did when a TV was stealing my attention. I feel vaguely guilty about this whole thing, but I figure righting the ship at any point is better than not at all.
A few of the books that we read recently that we (I) really liked are: The Bears Sea Escape by Benjamin Chaud, Owen by Kevin Henkes, Edwina the Dinosaur that Didn't Know She Was Extinct by Mo Willems, and Naked Mole Rats Get Dressed also by Mo Willems. A couple times a week we visit the library and check out books. I've always loved libraries and have thoroughly enjoyed reading books to Owen. He seems to like reading as much as a baby can.
Owen weighs around 14.5 pounds. His growth seems to have slowed compared to past months. He wears some 6 and some 9 month clothes.
He starts out each night in his Rock 'n Play. That lasts generally around 2-3 hours before he cries and I excitedly scoop him up and lay him in bed next to me to nurse. I then spend the next seven hours contorted in bed around my infant son ensuring he is comfortable, well-fed, and warm. Go ahead and judge, all you parents who can manage to make your child sleep in a crib and go to bed at 7:30. Hats off to you, but Cody and I can't seem to make that happen.
I've thought multiple times about updating this blog more, trying to capture what life is like with a baby of my own. All that I can figure is that I can't tell you what this is like. I do not have the words to explain the feeling of being Owen's mom. I can't make you appreciate his giggle like I do. I can't recreate the profile of his face as he sleeps. I can't bring to life 3a.m. with a nursing baby snuggled up to my chest, listening to his breath in and out. I can't explain how his existence has completely altered mine in a slew of ways that I never imagined and for which I could never prepare. I just can't tell you about my life today because words could never accurately describe who Owen is for me. I understand now why being a parent is simultaneously the best and hardest experience a person can ever undertake. I worry how I will ever let this little human out of my sight. He is truly the best thing I've ever done.
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| This is where Owen sits most nights while we eat dinner. |
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| We've been going to the Farmers' Market on Saturday mornings. |
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| Before a bath one night. |
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| Cody was having some fun at Target. |
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Slightly cross-eyed Owen.   |
