I got 5½ hours of sleep last night! Thank you, God!

Yes, it does get annoying hearing that Caspian is "big" and answering, "Actually, he's in the 50th percentile, so he's exactly average." I think part of my annoyance stems from the fact that I don't want people to perceive him as "big" just because his mommy is, KWIM?
I put his length (28") and weight (20lbs, since he was 20lb 5oz clothed) into one of those online Growth Percentage Calculators, and here were his results compared to 8 month-olds:
    Length = between 50th and 75th percentile
    Weight = between 25th and 50th percentile
Here are his results compared to 9 month-olds (he's actually 8½ months):
    Length = between 25th and 50th percentile
    Weight = between 25th and 50th percentile
So he's actually skinnier than average, no matter how you calculate it! HA!

We just used H&R Block's online tax filing service, and it was sooo easy, even with all our self-employment stuff. You just follow the prompts on every page and enter your info. It even keeps a running tally of your return as you go along! You can have your return direct-deposited too, so you can get it even faster.


I'm taking some time off from blogging. See you next week!

To God Be the Glory!!! We slept from 12:40-7:30 and 8-8:40 last night without any waking or sitting up! What an answer to prayer.
Although I was a little disconcerted to find him sitting up by himself when I woke up at 7:30. He was lying on my arm, so it's not like he sat up on his own from a flat position, but I was definitely freaked to find him like that without having helped him (awake, anyway).

TMI Poo Question: When Caspian finally "went" on Sunday, he pushed so hard a vein popped out of his head. He didn't cry or anything, he just had to put forth effort. And it was runny poo! Yesterday, however, he pushed and sobbed several times -- sometimes, his body even trembled with the effort...but no poo. Should I be worried?

The lawn service came and did our yard yesterday, so Caspian and I watched the riding mower out the window the whole time. He was plastered to the glass from the moment he glimpsed that machine. I think we embarrassed the mower kid, but Caspian had a great time.

Last night we saw my parents for the first time in over a month, and I think Caspian was trying to catch them up on all his experiences, because he didn't stop talking the whole time we were there! He was very smitten with them and even restyled their hair! We measured him while we were there, and he's now 20lb 5oz (clothed) and 28" long. Everyone he meets says, "Oh, what a big baby!" but he's actually smack dab in the middle of the growth curve.

Well, we tried taking family Easter pics, since Caspian looked so cute. This is pretty indicative of how the shoot went.


I had to Photoshop this one for brightness, but most of the others are blurry or fuzzy. In the few where none of us is moving, Caspian has the most sour look on his face!


The ants went away mostly for a day, then came back with renewed vigor. I don't know what else to do, since the cats are inside cats only.

Caspian tries so hard to crawl! Especially now that I've (finally) washed all the toys we bought at OUAC. He is very focused on his piano/xylaphone, but the Disney Pop 'N Pals thing is popular too. When I sit him on the floor in the office for some alone play and he happens to flip over onto his tummy, he will stretch and wriggle trying to get back to those things!

Last night we were playing games at Amie's house, and the directions to the game were folded like a brochure. I opened it out once (like a roof) and bopped Caspian's head with it, like a hat, and said "boom!" Each time I did that, he went into giggles. I started bopping a hand, a foot, his nose, and his head in different patterns, and he just lost it. I wish I'd videotaped it.

He's back to napping! Praise God, tooth #3 poked through on Friday (top middle, right). He worked on it all day long, and it finally broke through. Ever since, he's gone back to taking naps again. I don't look forward to getting bitten now that Caspian has two teeth that meet.

He has his first cold food last week (sweet potatoes). He also had turkey for the first time (a little stage 2 mixed with water). I even tried spreading a little on his tongue and gums, but I don't think any of it actually went down his throat -- he just mixed it with saliva and spit it out. He is definitely not interested in solids right now...unless the spoon counts as a solid, in which case he's obsessed! We'll keep trying various things, just to give him exposure.

Caspian was enthralled when we took him to see Happy Feet at the dollar theatre. He watched the entire movie!

Last night, we achieved POO! Caspian finally had a dirty diaper for the first time in 9 days! It's okay, since he's still exclusively BFed, his tummy wasn't hard, and he hasn't been straining, but Charlie and I were still getting a little anxious. You know you're a mom when you praise God for poopy.

Caspian keeps sitting up in the middle of the night, multiple times, throughout the night. What the heck?! Nothing has changed about our routine/situation/climate. He'll struggle to sit up (still asleep), so I help him sit up, and he just flops in half or flops over onto my stomach and continues dozing. After a while, he'll flop back onto his back again. He does it with increasing frequency as he gets closer to waking up. When he naps in my arms, he struggles to sit up too, after a while...?

ETA: The worst part is that when he flops back down onto his back, he inevitably clocks me in the face. And baby skull is hard! I'm truly shocked that I haven't gotten a puffy lip yet.

Last night Charlie realized he gets Good Friday off, so with the two sick days he took, he's only had a two day work week! We're all still kind of congested and coughing a little, but are over it for the most part.

Caspian will just sit in the swing or hang out and look around, blowing raspberries or babbling to himself, and I think he forgets I'm right next to him, listening. Sometimes I'll turn around and stare at him until he happens to glance in my direction, and that makes him crack up. Just like any other person would be embarrassed to be caught looking around, spitting to himself. Just now, I blew him a kiss and he "caught" it and put it in his mouth! Too bad it wasn't a conscious action.

We were up four times last night. He's still not napping "properly," and I don't know why. He finally fell asleep nursing (after 10 minutes of crying and crankiness), but my downfall was in laying him down in order to eat and get work done. He only slept for 15 or 20 minutes. Poor guy really needs to rest! The only way he got his nap yesterday was for me to hold him for two hours after he nursed to sleep. I had my laptop, but it's a literal pain in the neck to crane right for that long! And I'm pretty sure he only fell asleep both times because of the Tylenol I gave him for his teeth...

My baby has started gargling. When Caspian lays on his back with a toy in his mouth, he gargles his excess saliva!

I swear the right "boo" puts out magic milk. Numerous times, it has been the final straw that makes him nap when he's sleep-striking, or "go" when he's constipated. It's just done the first again; for the second! Praise God -- it's 2:45, and this is his first nap since we got up at 7!

Yesterday, my dad came over to put down boric acid outside for the ants, and Caspian showed grandpa his special tree.


Normally he just gets a handful of flowers, but much to Caspian's surprise, one of the branches broke off!


One guess as to what he did with it...


When grandpa left. he got goodbye kisses.

Caspian pulled the "one nap" again yesterday, but at least it was 1½ hours long (in the car). He was so chirpy after getting all that sleep! I'm thinking about giving Caspian some Tylenol, now -- he's über-clingy and not napping...again. He's so tired, but he wouldn't even stay asleep when I laid down with him. He keeps trying to chew on my finger and he's a little warm, but his temp has only been in the low-mid 99s since Monday. He hasn't had a good poopy diaper since Friday, either.

I feel so guilty. When we were putting Caspian in his PJs after his bath on Sunday, I accidentally pinched his little chest with one of the snaps up the front. He still has a tiny round bruise right above his nipple. I feel awful every time I see it.

We all went to Hard Rock Cafe for lunch at the conference, and there was a long wait. Caspian hadn't taken a nap all day long, so he was pretty worn out. After flirting with all the Mary Kay ladies, he just didn't have any energy left.






I remembered what I wanted to mention a few days ago. Caspian loves the nasal aspirator now! Instead of struggling and crying when he sees it coming, now he grins and laughs as it sucks! We hold his hands and he lays perfectly still, just watching us clear out his nose.

Caspian wants to crawl so badly! Every chance he gets, he's up on hands and knees (or hands, knee, and foot), rocking hard!