Almost 9 months

Shosei will be 9 months next Tuesday.  Let's see what he can do now and what his likes and dislikes are.

He can sit up straight without support for a long time and plays with toys on the floor contently for some time.  But when he gets angry or fussy, he sometimes just slams his body backwards, down into the cushion that surrounds him while he sits.  Unfortunately, he had to experience the pain of 'no cushion' because most of time now, he can pivot his buttocks to the floor but move his body around and reach for new toys from around the mat.  He can't crawl yet, but he can move from one point of the mat to different areas while keeping his butt on the ground.  He reaches for a toy, then sits back down in a different area than where he was originally sitting. 

He just recently discovered a drawer in the coffee table can slide out and boy, was he happy about his discovery!  He instantly put things that don't belong in his mouth up to his lips. 

When I sing him a song that includes actions such as clapping, he can now open his fists wide and flat and he can put his hands together to form a 'phlat, phlat' sound with my help.  He likes making noise with hard toys.  He likes to drop things on the floor and hear them clang and bang and then he picks them up again and drops it some more.  I have taken away the hard toys and replaced them with soft ones, because I'm afraid the noise is heard in the room below us in our condo.  :(

When he eats baby food that he enjoys, he goes 'Aaaah-Mmmmm, aaaahhh-mmmmm' while he chews.  Recently, he likes to eat tofu and taro root miso soup, cucumber mush, and of course he can't get enough of the bananas and milk.  I hope to start him up finally on eating meals 3 times a day now.  Eating more meals will help him eventually wean off his milk consumption! 

Shosei still likes his nightly baths that Daddy gives him.  He recently found out that splashing with his legs produces water droplets to fall onto his face.  He likes playing with household items such as the remote control, magazines, the curtains(especially on a windy day), the diaper tissue box, and towels.  I use one clean towel every day and he loves to rub his face in it and smell it.  He seems to find comfort when he falls asleep  with a towel or a blanket on his nose and mouth.  Funny that is the way his Daddy likes to fall sleep.  He doesn't like to sleep by himself in his crib and rather 'sleeps like a baby' if I let him sleep next to me on the big bed.

I hope and pray that he keeps on growing happily and in good health.  I thank my friends and family for all their support.  It has been an eye opening, crazy, and wonderful 9 months of parenthood. 

First overnight trip

Shosei experienced his first trip in a hotel this last weekend in Izu.  He experienced his first overnight, a hotel bed, a brief stop at the beach, his first waves, and his first restaurant.

We hadn't taken him to a restaurant at all since he was born last December.  It was a first for all of us.  Had he not drank his share of bottled milk, we wouldn't have finished, let alone, enjoyed a bit of lunch in the Chinese restaurant that we went to.  It seems like we prefer to sit on the floor with a low table, rather than sit in chairs at a booth or a table.  I haven't gotten to the point where I'm comfortable letting him drink water from the restaurant or even give him a sip of a watered down soup.  I don't know where the drinking water is from and I don't know where the vegetable are bought from.  They could be from the radiation-infested Touhoku area of Japan.

The stay at the hotel was nice.  It wasn't extravagant or luxurious by far, but it was still nice because of the friendly support of the staff.  My husband and I enjoyed 2 rounds of relaxing body massage.  And we relaxed in the huge hot spring bath, too.

On the way back in the car, Shosei was howling and crying because....I don't really know why....but it could have been because he was bored sitting in the car for 2 hours, or because he had pooped a little(but I couldn't see it at the time because it was dead center, rather than near the folds of the diaper).

I was able to sidetrack his mood with his favorite book and some crackers with apple juice.

I wouldn't mind going to the mountains next time.  The next trip to the beach will be saved until next year. 

Lunch time

Lately, Shosei has been disliking eating lunch.  It has been a month and a half since I started him on baby food.  On the very first day of baby food, he seemed so happy to eat from a spoon and eagerly opened his mouth every single time.  After observing him carefully, he seems to like bananas and anything fruity and sweet.  I don't add any extra sugar, of course.  It is just the natural sweetness that he tastes.  And also, he still loves his warm bottle of milk.  Every time I say, 'Milk time, Shosei!', his face lights up and he gives me a broad, toothy smile.  Before milk time, I feed him the usual baby food helping of mashed rice, some fish or tofu, and something fruity or a vegetable.  Today's menu is rice, fish and tomato sauce.  But I'm afraid after only a few bites from each plate, he will explode in fury and bury his face on the high chair table and give a small tantrum.  Before, I tried to feed him a little more even after his little blow out, but now, I can't tolerate it much with a pitiful smile, so I just clean up the plates and throw out the food that is only half eaten or not eaten much at all.  And then he just sits there on his high chair watching me clean up the mess he left on the table and waits for his milk to cool down.

I wonder what it is that I'm doing wrong.  I wish that he would eat more and eat the amount that most babies his age would eat.  I don't think he is eating enough and is drinking too much milk instead.  I know I shouldn't worry and every baby is different and they all act differently every day.  But I can't help thinking what could be triggering these refusals to eat after only a few spoonfuls.  As a new mom, it is so frustrating.  Should I just give it time?