"Let's see what I can get into next. They'll never see it coming if I make cute faces."
It was way too hard to pick just one picture. As you can see, this boy has some MAJOR personality, and energy to boot!
On October 11th, Hayes turned 8 months old. It feels beyond crazy to write those words! We are having the time of our lives with our sweet baby boy and just can't get enough of all that he is learning and doing these days.
Weight: I think it's safe to say we've topped 20 lbs. Mommy's biceps are living proof. :)
Height: Approximately 27 inches
Loves: This boy would still rather be sitting in the floor playing with toys than anywhere else. Move the toy playing outside, and he is even more ecstatic! Hayes loves to swing and watch Rio fetch the ball, and he adores school, his teachers and his friends. He has gotten to the point that he will reach for the infant room as soon as we walk up to the building and he grunts until one of his teachers sits him down in the play area. I am soooo happy that he is super comfortable at Calvary and loves to be there! Hayes has also developed a love of playing catch lately, and believe it or not, has the ability to watch the ball and grasp it more times than not! (Needless to say, Pops is thrilled that the fundamentals are already being established.) Because this is a blog full of documentation about Hayes and his many stages, I must also add that this boy loves his mama. No, I'm not gloating... OK maybe a little, but I know these days are numbered so I must soak up every bit of the extra snuggles and kisses I get now! I literally can't leave his sight or a meltdown ensues, but again, I am cherishing every moment of this phase full of extra lovin! Speaking of lovin, Hayes has the best open-mouthed, slobbery kisses these days. He loves to give them, too! He still adores his food and lets us know when he's ready for it, which dare not veer from his normal schedule or else. :) What can I say, the child is a fan of consistency and routine, much like his mama! Hayes moved up to a convertible car seat this month and travels like a champ on car rides now, though he was never bad before. We still love playing with our bath toys and splashing, reading books (especially Chicka Chicka Boom Boom), as well as playing patty-cake and singing Taylor Swift's "Shake It Off". Hayes also has become a fan of yelling (bc everything is so much more fun when it's loud!) and will often squeal with excitement or yell words as he "tells stories".
Sleep: Hayes dropped his evening catnap right about the time he turned 8 months, and has been taking two long naps at school (one AM and one PM). The naps are usually about an hour and a half each, which is so impressive considering naps were not something I thought would ever happen for this little man! Hayes continues to sleep very well at night, and due to the dropping of the catnap we have moved up his bedtime to 8pm. He usually sleeps from then until about 7am-- sometimes a little later on the weekends which Mommy and Daddy LOVE. Hayes spent the night with GG and Pops for the first time by himself this month when Mommy and Daddy went to John and Courtney Lairsen's wedding in Concan. As usual, he was a rock star and didn't give his grandparents any trouble in the sleep department or otherwise. Well, besides that broken decorative clock that he threw across the hardwood floors, but who's counting? I may have said my son is a great sleeper, but I never said he wasn't wild, people. :)
Food: We've recently added green beans and non-pureed veggies to the diet, and Hayes seems to be taking to the new, thicker consistency of his food quite well. He is also eating a veggie and some puffs at dinner now, which has helped us to better establish a set dinner time where we all sit down at the table together and eat. Hayes is still a big fan of the sippy cup, and holds it and his bottles on his own when he needs a drink. We are still drinking about 4-5 6 oz bottles each day, about every 4 hours or so. The self-feeding concept is something we continue to work on, but Hayes has gotten the pincer grasp down within the past week or so, so now all we have to do is get the food to the mouth instead of in his lap in the high chair and we'll be golden!
Personality: Hayes becomes more sweet, fun and mischievous everyday. He is still incredibly active, and only sits and snuggles with mommy when he's sleepy. He prefers to be on the go or outside to sitting indoors, and will sure let us know this when we forget. Hayes loves women, and has perfected the art of flirtation as of late. Daddy is so proud that he inherited his "mad game" and Mommy just keeps hoping he'll focus on sports and hunting more than girls, at least for a while. :) Hayes is now able to say "mama" and "dada", associating them with Cody and me-- we can't get enough of this! He is also practicing his "p" sound and I even heard him mumble "Pop" the other day. Hayes is super curious and intrigued by all things new and different. He wants to touch, see and experience it all! If I am holding something (a cup, for example), Hayes will "help" me hold the cup and smile so proudly as he does it. Our little man has started to hear the words "no, no" a lot more lately, though I'm not sure it's really sinking it yet. This boy is into everything! When on the changing pad on his dresser getting a new diaper or changing clothes, he insists on attempting to pull the pictures down from the wall above the dresser. When we tell him "no, no" he just laughs and does it again. Gotta give him props for being persistent and optimistic, I suppose, but I have a feeling the terrible two's are going to be an adventure in our house! Haha. This last week, Hayes met a big milestone when he learned to clap on his own! From time to time, I can sing "If you're happy and you know it" and Hayes will clap his hands! I love it so much. Hayes is so sweet and social and adores being surrounded by other people, especially kids. He reaches for them and squeals when we see kids in public, which is so fun to see.
Dislikes: If I had to say one thing Hayes can't stand at the moment, it's simply to be alone. This boy is super social and does not like to be in a room by himself! He still doesn't love being on his tummy and has yet to crawl, but he is scooting on his booty all over the place. We continue to fight the tummy time fight in hopes that crawling is just around the corner. Hayes also isn't the biggest fan of teething. Poor baby drools a bucket a day but we're still waiting on that first tooth to appear!
We love you so much, Hayes Man and can't wait to see what the next month brings. We have a feeling it will be some big things!
