This was a week of firsts: first avocado, first haircut, first Thanksgiving, first no-swaddle sleep attempt, and first non-parent-directed bath. Some successes, some failures. Read on for details.
*Avocado.* We decided to get back on the “solid-food train”:/news/2006/catching-up-with-lucy/ with Lucy, this time with some pureed avocado. Lucy didn’t know quite what to make of it at the beginning, and sort of held her mouth open instead of knowing to close it and chew. (She looked strangely like Bill Murray in a scene in _Charlie’s Angels_ where he is trying to talk with his mouth wide open in order for the Angels to hear his conversation through a transmitter in his tooth. Lucy is cuter, though.) We also tried a few Cheerios, but gave up after Lucy seemed to be trying to inhale them — an unpleasant experience for us all. We gave the good old sweet potatoes another try yesterday and Lucy gobbled them up. I think we are “off and running”:/news/2006/ready-for-solids/ with solids now! (Any tips on helping Lucy to drink a little water without choking?)
*Haircut.* Lucy has always been a thick-haired gal, but lately her ‘do has been looking a bit mullet-esque. So, Papa (very carefully) trimmed off the back fringe and now Lucy’s hair is very hip. Who knew this “dark-haired baby”:/news/2006/fresh-baby/ would turn into a “strawberry blonde”:/news/2006/venetian-blinds/?
*Swaddling.* We tried valiantly to give our swaddling practice the old heave-ho, but Lucy would have none of it. After frequently wiggling out of her swaddle, we tried to wrap her with one arm out — which resulted in several nights of multiple wake-ups and a sleep-deprived family. So, we finally said phooey and resolved to just swaddle her better, using duct tape if we must (although it hasn’t come to that yet). Since we’ve gone back to “full swaddling”:/news/2006/baby-houdini/ everyone has slept great. I think Lucy might just be one of those people who likes to be tucked in at bedtime!
*Thanksgiving.* Lucy got to hang out with Aunt Elena during the Gortner Thanksgiving celebration, where she was introduced to the pleasures of sucking on a spoon dipped in icewater. At Grandma and Grandpa Boyd’s house, Lucy enjoyed a reading of _Baby Faces_ with Grandpa and a ride in the BabyBjörn with Grandma. Fun all around!
p{color:gray}. Photo: Cousin Robert handles the snaps as Aunt Elena and Lucy get some quality time.
*First babysitter bath.* Jon and I had a long-overdue date last weekend, and we entrusted her bathing to our “fantastic babysitter”:/news/2006/friends-2/, Allie. It was so great to come home to a clean, pajama-ed baby!
Water without choking….I would suggest different types of sippy cups…..some have a really strong mouth piece that baby needs to really suck on to get water.
have fun on the solid food journey.
Hi Ann!
I just gave Abby a sippy cup this week and her expressions were mixed. Mostly gagging at first but I think she’s getting used to it. My theory about the gagging is due to the fact that they think any cup is a toy and they are surprised when liquid comes out, since all of their other toys don’t do that when sucked on.
Hooray about the sweet potatoes! It is definitely one of Abby’s faves – she can hardly wait for the next spoonful. I just introed avocado this week too. Yesterday she almost gagged on it, so today I “mixed” it with her cereal. I took a small portion of avocado onto the spoon then dipped the same spoon into her cereal. Much more to her liking. It is definitely a hoot to watch Abby’s face when she tries a new food!
Try a cup with only two holes up top….or no lid (of course you have to help) but then she can stick her tongue in and do a cat like thing. But, choking will only last a little while until she gets the hang of it all…and as long as you are there she won’t die…just a few chokes and gasps and then she will be off and running (I kNow it sounds mean, but it will work!).
Maddy wasn’t really ready for food until 8 months. I gave her some every time we ate, but really she didn’t want it until one day she was a little pigglet and now she is a pro. Her fav. has always (even at 6 mo) is a plain soft bread stick to suck and chew on.
Enjoy.
Benjamin really loved graham crackers – a bit messy when it gets all mushy and wet, but he liked sucking and chewing on it when he was Lucy’s age.
The Gerber veggie puffs make a great snack. They dissolve easily, are a bit larger than cheerios, and Mo loves to practice feeding himself.
Avocado is one of Mo’s fav foods. He will eat half of one all by himself! Sweet potatoes are another fav. Of course we haven’t found a food he doesn’t like yet.
We skipped the sippy cup and went to a straw and/or a small glass (a la Montessori)… it worked well for us. As to the new onw… who knows – he’s still a boob man for the next few months! : )
Allison! Does this imply your new fella is out among us? Congrats! Do tell: name? specs?