Max: 5 Months

Well, the boss baby is 5 months old! Since I have yet to write one word in his baby book since he was born, the blogging continues! 

Max currently spends his days doing the following: eating, trying to shove everything in his mouth especially burp cloths and dad's fingers, possibly napping but only in his carseat, babbling and smiling, punching and kicking… just being Max. 

Max had a lot of fun this month. He spent a lot of time hanging out with Nonna and Pops while mom and dad were at work, listening to stories and playing new games. He took a million and one walks- sometimes in the stroller and sometimes in the Ergo. It seems he prefers the Ergo at the moment. He also was introduced to one of his mom's favorite places, Walden Pond, where he spent lots of time while in my tummy :) 

He was also introduced to a playground swing. He seemed indifferent to swinging himself but when he watched Eric swing it was the most hilarious thing he had ever seen. That was the first time we really heard Max totally crack up. 

Max has started to realize that restaurants are more fun (for him) if he doesn't sleep through them. 

Likes: listening to country music, looking at everyone and everything, babbling, watching Eric on the swing, shoving everything in his mouth

Dislikes: pooping anywhere but home

 

Feeding: This month has been a bit all over the place. He mostly still eats on the same schedule, but we had a crazy growth spurt in there and we have the occasional eating rejection so…? He is also probably ready to start solid foods in the next month or so, but I can't say I'm in a rush to have his food start costing money and making a mess :) 

 

Sleeping: Most nights Max sleeps from about 9:30 to 6:30-7ish. My goals for this summer include moving that bedtime slightly earlier while not moving the wake up time earlier. Considering Max had a terrible night last night where he did not go to bed until 1AM, I would say I'm off to an interesting start, lol. He continues to be a wild card as far as naps goes, but the morning one is getting a bit more consistent. Another goal for the summer :) 

Looking Forward

I have 2 more days of school and then it's summer :) Technically I'm working next week but it's a 4 day week and half days so I can't complain about that.  I have so much to look forward to this summer including... 

Today: I'm going out to dinner with some friends from work. 

This Week: My first official day of summer will be spent celebrating my best friend's 30th birthday! 

This Month: Just heading down the Cape and spending lots of time with this guy...

This Year: Even though we are taking a temporary hiatus from big trips, we do have a few things in the works. We will go on a long weekend trip to New Hampshire in July and a trip to Florida in December. Hard to believe Max will be almost a year old then! 

30 Years

Yesterday was my 30th birthday! It was a perfect day and gives me hope that my 30s will be even better than my 20s. 

Max and I started the day by taking a walk to visit my good friend Kathy and her two girls. They spoiled me with cards and presents :) Max took a nice nap on the way home and spent the rest of the morning eating. He is celebrating my bday with a huge growth spurt! 

Later, Eric's parents came over and took over Max duty. Then we headed into Boston for some more birthday fun. Eric Caroline, Jake and I did a boat tour in Boston Harbor. It was a gorgeous day so basically perfect to sit on the boat and drink beer. I

The Boston Harbor views were amazing too and definitely one of the reasons Eric and I have done this cruise so many times :) 

After the cruises we went for another drink in Fanueil Hall. 

Then it was time to meet up with Katie and Adam for a delicious dinner in the North End. I have never tried a restaurant in this area of Boston that was not delicious! 

We were home in time to see Max before bed and it was definitely a great day :) 

My 20s were awesome, though a bit crazy. I was 20 for a month when I hopped on a plane to Australia. That was only the beginning of my international travel that included New Zealand, Greece, Italy, Spain, France, England, Scotland, Ireland (x2), Canada (x2), Iceland, Austria and Germany. That's 13 countries visited, not to mention the US destinations like Hawaii, Sedona and Seattle that I fell in love with. But I didn't just travel, I also graduated college, taught kindergarten for 8 years, got a masters degree, got married, bought a house, did 4 sprint triathlons and had a baby. Really, it was a crazy 10 years. 

I don't plan to do that much in my 30s. But I do have a few small, and hopefully broad enough to stick with, goals. 

1. Leave the country at least once. I don't have any illusions that I'll be able to beat 13 countries this decade, so I'll aim low. 

2. Acknowledge who I am, act intentionally and don't apologize for it. By this I mean, Max will never have a Pinterest worthy birthday party. I will very rarely eat dinner past 6:30 or go out past 10. My house and classroom will never be spotless. I will never like classic literature. I will not waste time worrying about these (and other) things like I did in my 20s. 

That's it! I wonder if I'll still have this blog in 10 years to see how I did... :) 

What I Love About Max at 4 1/2 Months

Before I had to a baby I thought for sure I was just not a baby person. I had been known to joke that I would be perfectly happy to pop out a five year old. Of course, like everyone says, it's totally different when it's your own kid. Do I look forward to a time when I can bring Max to fun places and have him actually get it? Yes. Will it be easier when we can just put him in the car and give him snacks and not worry about him taking an hour to eat? Sure. But there are so many things to love about now. So many things I will miss. 

You're gonna miss this. You're gonna want this back. You're gonna wish these days hadn't gone by so fast. These are some good times. So take a good look around. You may not know it now. But you're gonna miss this.~You're Gonna Miss This, Trace Adkins 

Max can "talk" but not actually say anything. This means I don't have to worry about the word "no" yet! (Yes, I realize that crying is the baby form of "no" but let's stay positive now shall we?)

He knows how to cuddle and is willing to take naps on his mommy. 

Max doesn't know how to give actually kisses yet. He just opens his mouth like he is going to eat your face. Adorable. 

I can remember when you fit in the palm of my hand. You felt so good in it, no bigger than a minute. How it amazes me you're changing with every blink. Faster than a flower bloom they grow up all too soon. So let them be little 'cause they're only that way for awhile. Let them cry, let them giggle, let them sleep in the middle. Oh, just let them be little. ~Let Them Be Little, Lonestar 

He greets us every morning with adorable smiles, like it's the best news ever that we are actually right there in his room.

Max has little feet and little hands. I love when he holds on to my finger and we hold hands. 

 

Max loves to smile. If he's in a good mood all you have to do is smile at him and you'll get some smiles back. 

He can sleep anywhere (well except his crib…). He falls asleep in the car, out at a restaurant, sleeps right through most errands. No need to change our schedule for his naps, he prefers to nap out in public. Fortunately, he does believe in the crib for night time sleeping!

Max still goes to bed late and while I do look forward to the day where I have "me time" at night again, I also love that we get to hang out with him for so long even after being at work all day. Plus, it's convenient that we can still be out until 8 or so and not worry about messing up his nighttime routine. 

He makes me laugh with his funny faces and crazy noises. 

I love that it is relatively easy to solve all of Max's problems right now (assuming I know what the problem is…). If he's hungry I can feed him. If he is wet, I can change him. If he is tired, I can take him for a car ride or put him in the Ergo. I know there will come a time soon where I won't be able to solve all of his problems. I know that's a good thing, that it will make him into the teenager and a adult I want him to be. But for now, I will enjoy that just me picking him up is often something to smile about. 

So many things he does are new and still very exciting. He can roll over, grab his feet, follow people with his eyes… it seems like every day he can do something new. 

Four years later bout four thirty, she's crawling in their bed. And when he drops her off at preschool, she's clinging to his leg. The teacher peels her off of him, he says what can I do? She says now don't you worry this will only last a week or two. It won't' be like this for long. One day soon we'll drop her off and she won't even know your gone. This phase is gonna fly by, if you can just hold on… it won't be like this for long. ~It Won't Be Like This For Long, Darius Rucker 

*All photos in this post that don't look like they were taken with an iPhone are courtesy of the best photographer and aunt ever, Caroline.