movin' right along...

The only way I can sum up Charlie over the past couple of weeks is that he moves - and he moves a lot! He has taken very well to crawling and is a champion at it. We had to buy a new "gate" to keep him confined to one area in our living room so that (A) he wouldn't hurt himself and (B) we might actually be able to walk away for a couple minutes in an attempt to accomplish something - even if it is just using the bathroom! :-) He doesn't seem to mind being confined. He actually likes the boundaries it seems. I think he feels a sense of ownership over the area.

We also bought him a new stand up toy because he is a pro at pulling himself up to standing now. It is a super interactive Leap Frog toy that plays all kinds of music and sounds and "teaches" counting, ABC's, shapes, colors, etc. He really loves it! We got it because he kept trying to pull himself up on his bouncer so that he could play with the toys on it. Unfortunately, by its nature as a bouncer, it is not the most secure thing for a wobbly baby to hold onto.

His two top teeth have popped through now - one more than the other. They seemed to bother him a little more than the bottom ones, but it was a fairly brief period of discomfort. Also, it is a little difficult to tell what the cause of his discomfort is these days with all the shots he has been enduring. At this point he has had both his seasonal flu shots and one of his H1N1 shots. He gets the second H1N1 next week and his next set of regular shots at his "9 month" appointment next month.

We are still at a standstill with the Synagis shots to protect him against the RSV. Vince talked to BCBS last Friday and they told him that they have not denied it for him, they are just waiting for a recommendation from a cardiologist or pulmonologist - neither of which he has. So, Dr Bode - our NICU savior - wrote a letter letting them know what a serious situation getting RSV could be even though he looks healthy now. Hopefully that will persuade them to approve him and approve him for shots through the entire season. We have heard that they are bring pretty stingy with how many shots they are allowing as well. So say a little prayer that we get good news on that front soon.

Charlie is in a good eating pattern right now. We still have our ups and downs, but right now we are up. He does not love vegetables, but we have found that if we mix them with a little bit of apple sauce he takes them more readily. Now we are working on decreasing the amount of apple sauce so that maybe he will come to like the vegetables for what they are! :-) We have avoided any dairy up until this point because of our concerns that he might have inherited Vince's allergy. But last week we decided to give yogurt a try and it went over really well. No signs of any allergic reaction and he loves it! We are very excited about that! He loves the organic puffs and we tried the Gerber cheese puff type things which he also enjoyed. Those are the only finger foods he will try though. We have been attempting pieces of banana, canned peaches, cooked carrots, ditalini pasta... He wants nothing to do with any of it - won't even put it in his mouth. We just keep trying though. He will figure it out eventually!

Overall, Charlie is happy, healthy, and just a complete joy to spend my days with. Vince and I are doing well too - have had all our shots and have managed to keep ourselves healthy so far! We love this time of the year and are looking forward to the holidays and all the new things Charlie will get to experience!

"Man, this thing makes my hands too cold!! Brr!!"

"How can it fit this whole cheese puff in

my mouth without mom noticing??"

"Yogurt?! Why didn't you guys let me have this before?!"

"Look ma, no hands!"

Charlie decided to turn his crib rails into a chew toy, so we had to rig this up for the time being in order to protect the crib and Charlie!

Charlie tends to hoard pacifiers lately. One is never quite enough! There is a fourth one somewhere. He is probably lying on it!