And Six Months Later...

Well, hello again!  I know I fell off the face of the planet after Gavin was born, but rumor has it that's fairly common with new moms.  The good news is that I've spent the past six months caring for the most adorable, loving baby in the whole universe.  There is no bad news.  :)

As anyone who is even relatively close to me knows, the first few months of parenthood were no cakewalk in the Dowd household.  After finally kicking a bad case of baby acne, Gavin developed a case of colic that kept him screaming from around 6:30 pm until he finally fell asleep around 9:00.  There was no rhyme or reason for it, and there was no solution.  This lasted for two months (though it felt more like two years).  Apparently moms who suffer from migraines have a 40% higher chances of having colicky babies, so this is something I can also look forward to with subsequent children, haha.  Anyway, Gavin outgrew the colic around four months but still refused to sleep through the night, often waking every single hour for some Mommy or Daddy cuddles.  We knew something had to change, so about a month ago (after a lot of back-and-forth feelings and several phone calls to the pediatrician) we used the Ferber method to sleep train him...and it WORKED!  We had one rough night, but by the second night we were already getting longer stretches of sleep, and by the third night we actually had to wake HIM up!  We still have a rough night here or there, but we now have a baby who puts himself to sleep in his crib (without needing to be rocked) and actually STAYS asleep!  Last night he went to bed at 8:30, woke up for a bottle at 5:45, and went back to bed until 8:30.  This has literally changed our lives.  Gavin is happier, we are more well-rested, and there is more time in the day to take care of things around the house and update this lovely family blog.

I will try and do a better job of updating more frequently, particularly now that Gavin is undergoing big changes on what seems to be an everyday basis!  He's rolling both ways with ease, sitting up on his own, interacting with toys, and giggling up a storm.  His smile also seems to be changing as his teeth come in.  He's always had a cutie pie little smile, but I especially love how he crinkles his nose now when he gets excited.

He has so much personality and LOVES to use those dimples to flirt with any and everyone who crosses his path.  I can't get enough of him.

Gavin is at the age where things are starting to get a little bittersweet.  Our little boy no longer needs to be cradled when we carry him...he fits nicely on our hips.  He likes to hold his own bottle while he eats. His little coos and gurgles are now full blown baby conversations.  We're looking into getting an upright carseat because if Gavin grows just one more inch, his current carseat will be too small.  His peach fuzz hair now needs combing every morning.  Our tiny baby is becoming a little boy, and even though I wouldn't change the stage he's at now for anything, I do look at pictures of him a few months ago and feel a twinge of sadness that those moments have passed.

So there's the shortened version of where I've been for the past six months.  Father's Day is tomorrow and Gavin and I are planning to take his daddy to the aquarium or zoo to celebrate, depending on what the weather is like.  Maybe we'll get some Orange Leaf afterwards?  Gavin LOVES Orange Leaf.  :)

Until next time...