Baby Friends

Last weekend, we were super busy, and super social!

We had shabbat at Bibi and Zee's house, and everyone naturally gathered at the best spot in the house - the couch!  everyone was on the floor, playing with cars, racing cars, and putting cars in their mouths.

On Saturday, our friends Yana and Mike had a Turkey Fry at their house.  We hung out with my best friend from 4th grad, Hannah, and her husband Matt!  She is now pregnant, due with a baby girl in April.  And Yana has an almost 2-year old son.  Babies everywhere!  While Brad and Matt were drinking on the porch, Leo and I walked around, made friends, and had strangers hold us (Leo) - Leo loved it and snuggled with some of these new friends.  Literally...a random man was holding him (with his teenage kids looking on), Leo played with his scruffy beard, and then snuggled into his neck.  It was so sweet!  When we were walking out, the man was saying "Byeee, Leo, byeeeee!", and Brad was like "Ummm...who was that?".  What can I say, Leo is great at making friends!

On Sunday, we had some friends over for brunch.  I met Michelle and her baby Caleb at Mommy & Me Yoga at Magee Hospital.  We didn't really ever talk in class but we ran into her a couple months later at the grocery store and exchanged info!  Turns out she and her husband, Rich, are Jewish too, so naturally we have a lot in common.  

Caleb is about 2 months older than Leo and was showing off his walking skills:

And if we thought that was busy, just wait until this weekend.  Tomorrow, we leave for our long awaited cruise!

We have an eater!

Cue up the music, Leo is graduating - from Occupational Therapy!  He started working with Vicky, his OT (one of the many women in his life - in addition to his two PTs and all of his amazing teachers) a few months ago.  

When we started introducing food into Leo's diet in the form of purees, he hated them.  He would gag whenever we fed him and would suck his thumbs back and forth to avoid eating.  After a couple months of this we asked Early Intervention (state-sponsored Physical, Occupational and Speech Therapists which is free and totally amazing) if they could help.  Vicky came to our house and showed us a way to feed him - using the J-hook (focusing on where and how to place the spoon on his tongue, holding it in his mouth, and removing it in a certain pattern).  He IMMEDIATELY figured out how to eat!  Leo was still resistant to it but slowly he got better at it, gagged less, sucked his thumbs less, and got more into it.  His teachers at school are wonderful and work with him every day on eating too, and now we have an eating champ!  He is now eating solids like waffles with peanut butter, canned peaches, bananas, avocado, pickles (yes, whole pickles), noodles, puffs, yogurt puffs, large puffs, puffs of all sorts, and more.  And he is feeding himself - using his pincer grab on cheerios, fist-fulls of pancakes, and trying to "help" us feed him with a spoon.  What a nice helper he is (as he bangs it on his tray and puree goes flying everywhere).

As of this week, he is also successfully drinking water from a sippy cup!

Here are some shots of Leo showing off his eating skills:

A few weeks ago we went to Chipotle and didn't have food for Leo but he was showing interest in eating so here he is eating chips and guac!  A boy after our own hearts: 

 He is such a pro that now he's eating blocks and drinking coffee.  Can't hold this baby back!

9 Month Check-Up

Leo had his 9-month check-up this week!  He's weighing in at a whopping 20.5 lbs and 28 inches.  After the nurse took his stats, we waited for the doctor (in only a diaper).  And waited, and waited, and waited.  Here's what we did to pass the time:

Leo snuggled:

Used the stroller as a jungle gym:

Played with all of the zippers on the diaper bag:

Practiced standing:

Squirmed and flipped on Mommy:

Ate my socks:

And finally, after half an hour, the doctor came in!  She said Leo is growing beautifully...but he has an ear infection.   She put him on an antibiotic that should wipe out anything that's been plaguing him:  runny nose, goopy eyes, itchy ears, sleepiness, clinginess, lack of appetite...  We're only 3 days into the 10-day medicine and Leo is already a different man.  And believe it or not, next week Leo turns 10 months old!