5 Months Development & Milestones

Dear Asher,

You are so interactive now! Within the past few weeks, you have let your silly personality come through. You are grabbing at toys more than ever - even today you are doing so more than yesterday! It's amazing how we wake up each morning to you doing something new. I am in awe of how much you are playing with your toys, reaching for Suki and Sumo, and following us around the room with your eyes and now turning your head when we go out of view.

Like all babies, you have your moments; but your budding personality is suggesting that you have a relatively patient and calm demeanor. There are times when you'll sit and watch me make Suki and Sumo's breakfast, make coffee, and get your bottle ready without making a peep. You'll even smile at me when I glance at you sitting happily in your Bumbo seat (which you are almost too big for!).

You are sweet, loving, and silly. You laugh when mommy does funny things like "the wave" with her arms. You love to reach for and pet your doggies. Luckily, they are patient and loving just like you. They don't even flinch if you tug on their ears. :)

You love to meet new people and are generous with your smiles. You still save the best ones for mommy and daddy, though. ;)

You know who your grandparents are, all 4! You get so excited when you see them. You are very lucky to have so many people who love you. I think we are all the lucky ones to have such a wonderful little guy to love!

I love to watch you grow. I love to watch you play and learn and develop. You are growing so fast and I am blessed to get to spend each day with you to witness it all happen. You are so very special.

I love you, little Asher!

Love always, Mommy

5 MONTHS OLD!!!

Asher is healthy and growing a strong! He has just acquired his second cold, though, and it's all my fault! He caught it from me but seems to be handling it much better than I am. Both of his first colds have come from me so if I could stop catching things we would be much better off! Hopefully the diet revamp helps - post updating on that coming soon!

SIGN LANGUAGE UPDATE - 5 MONTHS

We gave in and got the rest of the Baby Signing Time DVDs, a cardboard signing book, and "Mr. Hopkins" plush frog during a sale.

Asher's Intermittent Signs:

• "More"
• "Milk" - only while eating, not to ask for milk.
• "Banana" and "Carrot" - Similar
• "Eat"
• "Up"

He makes excited noises when hears a word he's familiar with during the signing DVDs. He's started yelling out with glee when he hears "train"!

MILESTONES @ 5 MONTHS

• Almost sitting by himself! Will "tripod" for several seconds along, then topples over.
• Rolling quickly, either side, 360 degrees
• Trying to crawl! Sometimes going backwards and gets so frustrated!
• Grabbing and holding toys.
• Reaching for toys, dogs, phone...
• Still saying "aaa-ooooo" and "aaahhhh". New sounds will come up every once in awhile and especially in when he's playing!
• Trying to grab spoon and hold bottle. Usually ends up pushing them away by accident!
• Gazing at lights.

TEETHING SIGNS

Every so often we'll think he's having teething pain, but then we'll realize he had gas or something else. There have been a few days where his temperature has been elevated (99-99.7) and I thought this could be related to teething. I don't think I feel anything under the surface of his gums yet, so we're still on TOOTH WATCH!

SOLID FOOD UPDATE - 5 MONTHS

Because we've had a few traveling days thrown in where we were mostly on the road and are still getting back into the swing of things while catching up on work with our shop, we haven't stuck to an official baby solids feeding schedule quite yet. Some days we'll have breakfast (fresh mashed bananas mixed with formula), some days dinner (Happy Baby pureed carrots or squash), and some days both! I think Asher will appreciate knowing what to expect and when, so within a few days we'll get back on track and put a real schedule in place.

Foods we've introduced:

• Bananas *Favorite
• Avocado - Reaction, rash and redness
• Carrots *Favorite
• Butternut Squash 
• Apples - Not too fond yet.

POSTPARTUM UPDATE

Feeling mostly back to normal now. Back to pre-pregnancy weight, just need to do some toning up! Still losing a lot of hair, but I guess that is to be expected for awhile. :( My hormones would probably be mostly leveled off if I could stop forgetting to take my birth control pills!


At 5 months, we couldn't be happier with our little man. He is such a blessing and so fun to watch as her gets bigger and bigger each day. While I miss my tiny little baby, I am so excited for each new stage!


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Baby Asher Begins Solids - 4 1/2 Months

With babies, I guess you have to follow suit with the same philosophy that people tell you to with your birth plan - you can plan all you want, but you have to be ready to roll with the punches and be prepared for the unexpected.

Just 2 weeks ago I was all for waiting the full 6 months to start Asher on solid food. Then, his 4 month sleep regression hit, he went through a MAJOR growth spurt, and he was watching us eat our food like a hawk. With STTN already out the window (he's back to STTN now, knock on wood) and his eating so much of that ridiculously expensive hypoallergenic baby formula, I figured why not?


IS MY BABY READY FOR SOLIDS?

Baby Asher was showing the following signs of readiness:

• Is over 4 months of age
• Good head control
• Can sit with support
• Has doubled his birth weight
• Eating 32+ ounces per day
• Losing tongue-thrust
• Chews on toys, fingers, etc.
• Stares at food longingly

GASP! WE DID NOT START WITH CEREAL

Why? From my research I have found that...

*Babies can't digest grains because their bodies do not produce the enzyme necessary to do so, pancreatic amylase, until 1-2 years old or when their first molars come in. Supposedly this can throw off the balance of bacteria in their digestive tracts and cause lots of problems including food allergies. Even after 1 year, some recommend limiting all grains until their molars come in.

*Feeding white rice based cereal is the equivalent of feeding your baby spoonfuls of sugar.

*The recommendation started with an advertising blitz in the 1950s and there isn't any actual scientific evidence that starting with cereals is necessary or best.

*Starting with carbohydrates may prime baby's palate for processed carbohydrates and can lead to obesity and other health problems later in life.

*Many rice cereals contain cancer-causing arsenic.

I did find Happy Baby Happy Bellies Organic Brown Rice Cereal which is sourced from California and regularly tested for arsenic (and has never shown any). It's available at Publix! It also has probiotics in it which is a plus. I haven't given any to Asher yet and need to do some more research on the whole digestion of grains subject before I do. Any advice is welcome!

What about iron? From what I've read, babies may need additional iron (mostly breastfed babies) starting at 6 months. This can be attained through the solids, so we will work in iron containing baby food options at that time. Lentils, chickpeas, tofu, meats, even sweet potato all offer iron. Our use of iron-fortified formula is a plus for us. Also, excess iron can cause problems, too, so those iron-fortified cereals on top of iron fortified formula could end up harmful.



ASHER'S FIRST SOLID FOOD WAS BANANA!

He loved it! If you choose to start your baby off with banana make sure it is ripe (almost over ripe) or it can lead to constipation. It makes a great first fruit because it is soft and sweet and full of wonderful nutrients.

His first solid foods have been/will be:

Banana
Carrots
Avocado
Sweet potato
Butternut squash

I'm not opposed to the store-bought baby food. The best from what I have researched is the Happy Baby brand which is organic and does not have any added sodium. Be careful that in the grocery store they stock the Sprout organic brand right next to the Happy Baby pouches and they look exactly the same! I bought a whole bunch of the Sprout ones by accident. Not that they're bad, I actually gave Asher the carrots today. But they do have a little sodium in them - not much, but it's there.

I plan on mostly making homemade baby food for Asher. Hopefully this will result in better tasting, more nutrient rich food for him. I found a book on making 100 days worth of baby food in 2 hours and will get steamin' and mashin' (or blending) when it comes in. I also have another book with baby food recipes, although most are for down the road when he is a little older. More on homemade baby food to come!

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Formula Update

This picture doesn't even show our entire "formula stash". Now, finally, I think we've found it!

Similac Alimentum in powdered form. (<--- Imagine singing angels and lots of light!)

This post is mostly for those who may be in the same boat as us when it comes to finding the right formula for their baby. It may get a little "TMI" up in here... but sometimes you just gotta go there.

I made a spreadsheet with Asher's reactions to the different formulas so that we could see which one is working out the best. Yes, I'm that mother. I'll show it to the doctor, too. Ain't no shame.

We gave up on the sensitive and the spit-up formulas within a week or so of trying them because the spit-up got so bad and was very curdled with a really acidic smell. Although this was still early in the game, my instinct told me we did the right thing. And things have been working out very well with this new formula. It's amazing the difference in his complexion since switching to the Similac Alimentum. Asher's always had lots of baby pimples, and now his face is almost completely clear. Amazing! The doctor agrees that he must have a mild milk and soy allergy.

When searching online, the symptoms and images of soy and dairy allergies show are always so dramatic, so for those who are unsure with their own babies, it may be helpful for you to see what Asher's skin looked like when he was on a formula he had an allergy to and now on the Similac Alimentum:

untouched photos taken with my phone

You can see how much healthier his skin looks now.

He also had these bumps and redness on his shoulders, back, and chest. I'm also wondering if it was contributing to this diaper rash that wouldn't go away. He is pretty clear now in his diaper area, although I've switched up a few things in our diaper routine, as well, so it could be a result of one of those things, too.

A lot of people brush off irritation like this on their skin as "just baby acne" or "just sensitive skin", but obviously it was something more and I'm SO RELIEVED that we figured it out.

This does mean that we are going to have to be extra careful when starting baby Asher on solids.

According to our doctor, we have to be sure to avoid these risky allergenic foods for the first year:

Citrus
Tomato
Wheat
Egg

From research I've done on my own, with the soy allergy, we also may have trouble with:

Green Peas
Chickpeas
Green Beans
Lima Beans
Barley
Rye

...and with the dairy allergy we may have trouble with:

Dairy Products in General...Cheese, Butter, Margarine...
Canned fish
Deli/Processed Meats
Pre-Mixed Cereal
Some Spices / Seasonings

...and there is a whole list of ingredients to look for in foods before serving them to an infant on solids. 

There's really no telling when he'll outgrow his sensitivity to soy and dairy. Could be one year or it could be longer. We'll just have to keep a watchful eye on that.

Since Asher sleeps 12-13 hours through the night already, there's no rush to get him started on solids before 6 months. We are going to try to wait the full 6 months before starting. I really don't want to rock the peaceful sleep boat!

Has anyone else had experienced with food sensitivities and their babies or been through something similar and have advice to offer when starting solids??

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