Eight Months

Trent is EIGHT months old! As for his weight, he weighed 19lbs., 2 oz. today.

Breastfeeding: Trent is still breastfed, his schedule for eight months looks a lot like it did last month. He still nurses 6-8 times a day and has solids about two times a day. I did buy a nursing necklace this month and it seems to have helped prevent him getting distracted while eating. Whenever I can, I take him to his room and feed him where it is quite and the lights are dim. Trent always eats the best there. If you are interested in buying a nursing necklace, I posted a link to the one I bought in my last post. 

Naps: Morning nap is usually around 8am, afternoon nap is around 12pm and for a week or so Trent stopped napping in the late afternoon (4pm). Trent then came down with his first cold and started sleeping in the late afternoon again. His bedtime is always 7pm and most nights wakes up to eat anywhere from 1230-3am and Trent wakes up around 6am for the day. He has given me a few nights this month of no wake ups-- which I obviously love! 


New This Month with Trent:

Trent is full on CRAWLING! He started crawling at 7 months and now he is a little speedster. Once something catches his eye that he wants, he will army crawl as fast as he can to get it before his brothers have a chance! Oliver also was an army crawler until about 8 months, so I am sure Trent will start crawling on all fours soon.  

Another new thing is Trent has been enjoying standing more. I have caught him a few times trying to pull up on furniture or stairs. 

Personality: Trent sure is a cuddly sweetheart! He loves attention, but once he gets it he gets shy and buries his head into my chest. Recently, he has stood his ground when it comes to his big brothers taking toys or if they are playing with something he wants, he will even try to grab it and shriek at them! It so funny. 

Spinach, mango, and pear popsicle 

Side Facts for Eight Months:

• Loves the shower, open spaces to crawl and roll, empty water bottles, MAM paci, nursing necklace, Zoli cup
• Dislikes: Still doesn't love the carseat but has gotten so much better, getting his face wiped, bibs
• Trent can now say: MAMA, DADA, and BABA

Trent's hair is blonde. His eyes are blue. He wears some 9-12 month and fits in some 12-18 month clothes.

Trent's Five Favorite Things At Seven Months

Trent is seven months old. What a fun age! Matt and I are enjoying Trent discovering new things. Here are Trent's current favorites:


1. Zoli Sippy Cup- This is the same straw sippy cup we used with Landon and Oliver. It has a pretty slow flow which is perfect for a baby who is just learning how to use a cup. Matt and I gave Trent it for the first time about a week before we went to the beach, knowing we wanted to keep him as hydrated as possible. I only give him about an ounce to two ounces of water per day and he absolutely loves it!

2. Mum-Mum- If you have been following along in Trent's growth, you will remember that he has not shown much interest in solids. Recently though he has enjoyed an occasional mum-mum which if you aren't familiar with, are basically rice biscuits. Trent's favorite one is the banana flavor!

3. Baby Booties- These are also a favorite of mine! We got Trent his first pair of these booties before he was born and he wore them home from the hospital. I love them because they truly stay on. I remember buying Landon and Oliver pairs of other booties around this age and they would just rip them off and chew on them. Now with the cooler weather and Trent crawling,  these are perfect!

4. Nursing Necklace - I have had a few other moms suggest for me to buy a nursing necklace to help Trent not be so distracted while he nurses. This necklace keeps him focused long enough to get a good feeding, even with his noisy brothers running around! He also loves to chew on it while I carry him around all day on my hip and I love how it does not look like a nursing necklace.

5. Baby Shaker- This egg shape shaker has been one of Trent's favorite toys for a while now. It is easy for his little hands to grasp and he loves to shake it all around and shove it in his mouth.

Bethany Beach 2014

Oliver Matthew (2 years 4 months)

Trent Parker (7 months)

Such a chub :)

Breastfeeding on the beach!

Landon James (3 years 5 months)

Thank you to my parents for staying with the boys during nap time so Matt and I could go on an ice cream date (alone!!!)

Best friends

Trent loves Papa

Oliver looking so grown up

He loved french toast

Sandy feet (Mama and Oliver)

Seven Months Old

Trent is SEVEN months old! As for his weight, he is approximately 17lbs, 13.5oz. and around 27 inches long.

CIO--At Trent's six month appointment we talked to his pediatrician about possibly doing Cry It Out (CIO). CIO, for us is when you put your baby down in their crib tired but not asleep and let them sooth themselves back to sleep when they wake up at night. Unless, of course, it is time for them to eat or have a diaper change. It was important for us to do this with Trent because his sleeping (or lack there of) had become so bad. He also needed to establish a healthy sleeping habit.

Trent would cat nap and snack all day and then wake up 2 or 3 times a night and at six months old and 17+ pounds I knew it was not just because he was hungry, it was more out habit. I felt he really did not need to eat that many times. After getting the advise to try CIO with Trent from his doctor, Matt and I went ahead and started sleep training him in his nursery in his crib. Before this, Trent would sleep in a rock and play chair swaddled next to Matt's side of the bed. After his second wake up though, he would usually end up in the bed with us co-sleeping which is something we didn't really want to happen, but happened anyway. 

The first night of CIO, we bathed Trent and I nursed him in his rocking chair in his nursery. He fell right asleep in my arms,  it was basically cheating because I was able to put him down in his crib already asleep. Trent woke up after about an hour and cried and cried for about 40 minutes and then eventually was so exhausted that he fell back asleep. Trent has never had to cry for more than 5 minutes, so 40 minutes is a very long time for him. I was an emotional wreck and had to leave Matt to watch the monitor while I went for a drive. 

Each night Trent cried less and less and now one week in he goes right to sleep for bedtime and nap times.

Our schedule for Trent now looks like this:

2AM (around) - Nurse and diaper change
6AM- Wake up for the day, nurse and diaper change
6:30AM- Attempt to feed him solids (breakfast)
8AM- First Nap
9AM(around)- Wake up, nurse, diaper change
1130AM- Nurse and second attempt at solids (lunch)
12PM- Second nap, diaper change
2PM- Wake up, nurse, diaper change, play
4PM(around)- Cat nap (car or on me)
5PM- Nurse, diaper change and third attempt at solids (dinner)
7PM- Bedtime routine and nurse 
9PM (around)- Dream feed a bottle

Trent's 4PM cat nap (15 to 20 minutes long) is one I would like to get rid of but he seems to still need it for now. If he doesn't nap then, he is a fussy wreck until bedtime which is no fun for anyone! I am so happy we did CIO, it was not easy and I knew it was not going to be, but since we also did it with Landon I knew what to expect and that it was successful. As I said it was totally worth it because not only am I getting the sleep I need to chase after my three busy boys all day, but Trent is getting the quality sleep he needs as well to grow. His behavior in the carseat has changed a lot too! 

New This Month with Trent:

Trent said his first word at his six month doctor appointment. Matt was holding him before the doctor was going to examine him and Trent said "mama" so clearly! It was the cutest! He has only said it a few other times since then, but when Trent does it so precious. 

He is just starting to crawl. Trent can move forward a good foot or so, but his favorite thing to do is to roll around to get to where he wants to be. After putting Trent down for his first night of CIO on his back, he quickly rolled onto his tummy knowing it would be more comfortable sleeping that way.

He is sitting for longer periods and now even if one of his big brothers knocks into him a little he is sturdy enough not to fall. 

Nursing: I am still exclusively breastfeeding Trent, he eats anywhere from 7 to 9 times a day. I have noticed new this month how much more Trent seems to be getting distracted while eating. I now have to give the boys something to do so they sit still and be more quiet.

Solids: I am still giving solids in baby led weaning (BLW) and puree pouches, but Trent still refuses them for the most part. The worst is spoon feeding him purees or oatmeal. He just cries and clenches his jaw shut! My best bet is to give him one of the poaches to suck on. I really feel if he would eat solids better, he would sleep better and I could possibly stop nursing him at night. 

Landon and Oliver had no problem with solids. Landon didn't even get teeth until he was a year and half and still ate pieces of chicken. I am not used to having a baby that hates solids-- it is definitely a challenge. One thing I have tried new with Trent this month that he seems to love are breastmilk popsicles, ha ha! He grabs for it every time I pull one out. 

Personality: After the first few nights of CIO, Matt and I felt like Trent was mad at us because he was not smiling as much as he used to... it was most likely in our heads ha ha! Trent loves his Mommy and Daddy, there is no denying it! I watch him looking at Matt while he is talking to Landon and Oliver-- its so sweet! Trent also loves for me to carry him around on my hip which is getting harder and harder the bigger he gets! Whenever anyone else is holding him, he leans for me and my heart melts. Though, more than Mommy and Daddy, Trent adores his big brothers! He is always beaming at them and I can't help but laugh a little that every time one of his brother goes to time out he just stares and smiles and laughs while they are sitting there. Trent can't wait to chase after them, I just see it in his eyes he wants to be big so badly.

Side Facts for Seven Months:

• Loves the bath, being held, the Ergo carrier, MAM paci, grabbing Mommys hair, rolling, watching his brothers, favorite toy, kisses on his tummy and nursing
• Dislikes: Still does not love the carseat, but since doing CIO he has been MUCH better about it.

Trent's hair is blonde. His eyes are blue. He wears 9-12 month clothing.