Uh-oh...We're in trouble...

Mummy and Papa are TERRIFIED!!!(Miles laughs with ominious glee...)

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!

The Irish Soda Bread in the oven smells awesome, Mummy!! Thanks for being a domestic goddess instead of doing work for your classes or preparing for your tutoring job!

...You're welcome

Milestones...really.

Several new developments, told through a series of pictures.

1. A boy who likes to stand up.
2. A boy who is interested in the Cats. (and vice versa)



3. A boy who likes more food (here, blackberries)


4. A boy who feeds himself Cheerios. (Only if they've already been on the floor.)


5. A boy who's just met a baby (David Frederick Brown, here, 10 days old)


6. A generally happy and pleasant boy



There's no mobility yet, but he's close to pulling himself up in his crib, which may be a problem once he's okay without his swaddle at night.
Sleeping is generally not a problem for him at night, but he doesn't much like naps.

Seven Months Old!

Miles was seven months old over a week ago and he's never been more charming! He's eating his solids and will even try a new one every week or so; he's sleeping at night, he's napping like a dream, and we've never had more smiles, laughs, and effusions of physical joy. He just started "dancing" which is really just bobbing rhythmically when he's sitting or on his tummy, but which looks totally rad. He's not crawling yet, and we're perfectly happy with that :-)





We're just emerging from about ten days, with a few breaks, of being snowed in. This last couple of snowstorms bought us a clean week and then some off of school. This was exciting in an end-of-the-world sort of way, but Jon was relieved to go back today. Here's us trying to make sense of our backyard:

Snow Day!

The third major snow (as in, Tuesday night's, NOT the one going on right now) found Mummy possessed of a desire to play like a child. With my child. Maybe it's the Wii fit credits giving me an energy boost... Here are the results:








Here's a couple of shots of my snow-penguin. I eventually decided to use the foam beak, though the carrot gave it a cool kiwi-bird look. Visibility over distance is an important consideration in snow sculpturing :-)

Miles and the Museum

Miles visited his fourth museum last Sunday. He's been to:

The American History Museum
The Natural History Museum (Smithsonian)
The National Portrait Gallery/American Art Museum
The Walter's Gallery in Baltimore

We're finding museums to be a great fit for Miles right now, since we can enjoy them while holding him, he can enjoy color, sound, and people-watching, and we can all enjoy very kid-friendly facilities- even in more grown-up types of museums. Oh, one more thing: museums are frequently free. Just a plug for anyone with a kid who is bummed because it's so much harder to go to movies, concerts and plays...
Oh, and don't forget: pet store=FREE ZOO.

Here's Miles and Papa soaking up the atmosphere at the American Art Museum:

The Graduate

Miles graduated from Sleep Academy this week! We did a three-day intensive course in which we employed the "Cry-it-Out" strategy that many consider to be borderline child abuse. I had Views against this method, myself, feeling that it would teach my child that the Universe was indifferent to him and basically untrustworthy. I had no philosophical conversion, but my pediatrician assured me that at six months, Miles is too young to connect our not appearing when he summons us to any intention on our part. Three events this past week brought me to readiness for this ordeal.
1. Monday night (as in, 1/4). Miles was put down at 9pm. He got up at: 10:15, 10:50, 12, 12:50, 3:30, and 5:30. This isn't such an anomaly, either; he'd been averaging 3-4 wake-ups recently and I had as many excuses for him as there were nights. Which leads me to
2. Pediatrician Visit. (Stats below) Our wonderful Pediatrician shot through the last of my excuses by informing me that Miles' ear infection was GONE and that if he was having gas, he'd probably be experiencing it during the day, as well. She advised Sleep Rehab :-)
3. A personal anecdote from a friend and like-minded Mom of a 5-month old who recently let her son cry himself out and as a result, he is now sleeping THROUGH THE NIGHT. I could feel myself SALIVATING.

On Friday night, Miles treated us to two hours of almost non-stop crying, and I thought (and still think) that my child could out-cry any baby on the planet. And I almost climbed in and cried along with him. And I almost gave up. And then, about nine o'clock: SILENCE.

It's only gotten better. Saturday we had 30 minutes of crying; Sunday, 40 (relapse due to lack of naps and exhaustion) and Monday, 12. Today, Tuesday, was a record at only 9 minutes of crying before silence fell. And the required feedings are falling later and later, so that Sunday night, he officially SLEPT THROUGH THE NIGHT! (that is, 9 until 5:45. Don't think WE got 8 hours of sleep, calm down now).

This has been one heck of a weary march for Papa and me, so you'll excuse us if we're excessively over the moon excited about our son's sleep progress.... and maybe have been a bit single-minded and unavailable. It'll pay off for more people than for us.

Sorry for the novel. (excited!). Check out: Solid Foods are now a regular feature!

Sitting up is a way of life!

And six-month stats: 27.5 inches (Yes I know he was also 27 inches at 4 months. They re-measured 4 times this month so there must have been Human Error. Or Miles is a Leprechaun. Or reality is fluid, not static. Or all three). 90-95% for height.
Weight: 16lbs 5oz (50%). Sliding into 6-9 month clothes (good heavens!). Time is FLYING.