Catching up - Dawson

*I wrote this several weeks ago, so some if this is old news. It just took me forever to get pictures together*

So our little guy is SIX MONTHS OLD!!!! What????? Where has the time gone??? I don't even know where to begin! The first 4 1/2 months or so were ROUGH as far as sleep goes. (lack of sleep = lack of brain power = lack of blog posts). It's amazing how two boys can have the same Mommy and Daddy and be so different. Sure, we had the normal sleep issues with Jake, but ultimately by 3 months he was a pro at sleeping. Not so much with Dawson. He's not a paci baby, no matter how hard we try. I've lost count of the number of paci's we tried with him. He might suck on them for a little while, but would rarely suck on them to go to sleep and he eventually would get mad if you put one in his mouth... even still, we continued to try. We were pushing the paci so hard because he wasn't really sucking his thumb either. So when he was sleepy, there was no comforting him. He didn't want to be rocked, swayed, bounced, nothing. So all we could really do was put him in his crib and let him fuss himself to sleep for EVERY nap and EVERY bedtime. It's amazing how just listening to a baby cry can be so exhausting! We did sleep him in his bouncy seat for the first few months, so when he would wake up, one of us was just bounce him in his bouncer. Sometimes it would work and sometimes we just had to let him fuss. There were times I could nurse him to sleep, but then he wouldn't transfer into his crib, bouncer or bassinet without waking up. Probably around 3 months we started trying him on his tummy. Getting to sleep was becoming a LITTLE easier, but getting him to stay asleep was the challenge. He was only sleeping 20 MAYBE 30 min at a time, which if you know babies, that's not even considered a nap. He was still waking up multiple times during the night as well. SLEEP DEPRIVATION was evident in this house. I think everyone was feeling the effects. Finally we decided, he is just BEYOND over tired, somehow we had to help him catch up on his sleep. So we decided his bedtime would be 5:30 if not earlier. Well, the first night we put him down at 5:30, he was asleep by 5:45 and slept through the ENTIRE night until 6:30 the next morning. (Unfortunately this is the one and only time he has slept through the night). Even still this was the beginning of a little bit of sanity returning. As his night time sleep got a little better, his naps got progressively better and longer as well. I have to say I also had a dear friend come over and pray over Dawson, this house and specifically his room. I'm very much a believer in spiritual warfare, and if you could see Dawson at some of this naps/bedtime, it did seem as though there was something else going on. Call me crazy, but this house we're in now was lived in ROUGH before we got here. We dont' know what kind of things went on here and therefore, what kind of "doors" were open for the enemy. That day, Thursday, October 18th was a HUGE turning point in his sleep. God is SO GOOD and SO FAITHFUL to those who call on Him. We're still not where we want to be as far as sleep is concerned, but it is MUCH better. He now goes down for most his naps and bedtime with very little fussing and naps are between 1 - 2 1/2 hours long. He's still going down around 6:00 at night and waking up at 10 and 2 to eat. Pretty soon we're going to be dropping one of those feedings, but right now we're all getting over some yucky congestion and coughs, so we're leaving it alone as of now. Oh, and he's also cutting his two bottom teeth. I feel like they have been coming in since he was 4 months. They are just under the gum and he is a drool machine. He chews on everything and has had some fussy days when I think they are bothering him the most. He did have a double ear infection about a month ago, but we got though that and have a clean bill of health. Speaking of health, did I ever post that he does NOT have Long Q-T Syndrome?? Well, if I haven't posted about that we are THRILLED that he was spared a lifetime of meds... which is a good thing (not only for the obvious reasons) but because he is not a fan of any kind of medicine... Tylenol, Motrin, gripe water, mylicon... you name it, he makes these awful faces, often spits it out and sometimes gags.
Other than fighting sleep issues with D, he really is a GREAT baby. Even when he's tired... make that EXHAUSTED, he's still happy and all smiles. Really the only time he ever fusses is when we're trying to get him to sleep or when he has missed some naps and is WAY over tired. (or is in the car for an extended trip)
He is rolling over both ways and has discovered that if he keeps rolling he can get where he wants to be. And, yes, folks, he thinks he's ready to crawl. This boy is going to be on the move WAY sooner than this Mommy is ready for.  He gets up on all fours, and rocks back and forth and often throws himself forward. He "planks" all the time. (He's going to have great core strength). Pretty much anytime he's awake, he's practicing. If I put him on his back, it's not long until he rolls over and is trying to get up on all fours. He's getting to the point where I'll put him down in one spot and when I come back he's not in that exact spot anymore. He's not traveling too far, but he is in motion. I'm enjoying this less mobile stage and praying it's not over too soon. He's not doing a whole lot of babbling, but enjoys doing his best Chewbacca impression. It cracks me up every time. He loves to watch Jake and finds him quite humorous at times. He is similar to his brother in the fact that he LOVES his doorway jumper and his exersaucer/jumper. I'm pretty sure he would stay in those two things all day if I would let him.
He is able to sit up unassisted.... when he wants to put forth the effort, ha. He still tumbles over after a little while, usually because he decides he needs to chew on his feet. His feet are his favorite toy these days. If he's on his back he's playing with those cute little toes. He is enamored with faces too. If you're holding him, watch out because he'll go after that nose and give your cheeks a good squeeze. If you're real lucky he'll plant a nice, wet, slobbery kiss on you.
At his last weight check (~5 mo) he was 18 lbs 10 oz, so a BIG boy. He actually outweighs where Jake was at 5 months by over a pound. I think we'll soon be moving him out of the carrier into a big boy car seat... we just need to find a new seat for brother first.
Having two kiddos has definitely been a challenge in the "getting out and doing things" department. (especially with D's difficult and unpredictable sleep patterns.) I still have not managed to get J and D napping at the same time either, so that's difficult too. So we get out on an occasional walk or a short trip to the mall, but it doesn't happen very often... another reason I'm SO thankful that we've been able to put Jake in PDO. (Parent's Day Out) twice a week. It's a GREAT outlet for him and good bonding time for D and myself.
We have made two trips to Dallas in the past 5 months. Once in August and the other in October. The one in August we went to the Dallas zoo (it was HOT), but Jake had a ball. He was especially excited because we got to ride the dart train. He still talks about that train ride. Our next trip we got to get out to the Arboretum and see all the pumpkins and enjoy a little bit cooler weather. (it got warm by the afternoon). The second trip was smoother for both boys, there and back, so we're looking forward to Thanksgiving being a  breeze.... hey, a Mom can hope, right?? Anyway, I know there is a lot I've left out, but I think this is long enough. Since this, kind of, catches me up, I'm going to TRY and stay a little more consistent with the posts... Hmmm.. have we heard that statement before?? I'm doing my best. I REALLY don't want to miss posting what's going on. I keep this blog, for me just as much as I do to keep family and friends in the loop. I want to do my best to make sure Dawson's early years are documented too. These early days go by SO FAST and I don't want to miss a moment or forget a detail. Well, I hope I haven't bored you to death and hopefully the cute pictures will make up for all the reading. Enjoy!!