Rylan 6 Month Summary

I seriously cannot handle how big Rylan is getting. I feel like with Brandon (our first) I couldn’t wait for him to crawl, talk, eat real food, etc. But with Rylan, I’m thrown off when he starts growing up. He’s at that perfect little age where he’s still really portable (no plethora of toys or ipads needed for a quick trip out), but engaged enough to have fun with. I’ve never been one of those overly emotional mothers, but after packing away some of his “6-month” clothing that was too small, I got a little teary eyed. My sweet baby is growing up!

And boy is he growing! This kids likes to eat like it’s nobody’s business. We are full on with the solids this month. So far he has had rice cereal, sweet potatoes (1st food!), pears, peas, carrots and oatmeal. I honestly think he would start shoveling potato chips into his mouth if I let him. Pretty much the only time we hear him whine is when we aren’t getting the food to him in a fast and continuous stream. This has made our family dinners a little more rambunctious than normal since I like to feed myself as well, which invariably causes a pause in his meal. Can I just tell you, as a mother who has had a “non-eater,” not having to coax every last bit of food into him is like heaven. I fully appreciate the gift that is this kids appetite! I’m only feeding him solids at lunch and dinner so far, since the mornings are bound to be hectic this month with Brandon starting school 2 times a week, but I think the kid will be clamoring for it soon.

Rylan’s reflux seemed to peak this month, so we’ve switched his meds up to Prevacid twice a day. It’s still not great, and I’m still doing more laundry than any woman (or man!) should ever have to, but let’s say he’s gone from spitting up 30 times a day (I kid you not) to like 15. So I’ll take it. Brandon took a good year till he was ready to come off the meds. Hopefully Rylan will fare a little better, but as for right now he seems to have it just as bad.

Rylan has definitely become more engaged this month, and has been loving the various toys and contraptions we’ve pulled out of the closet (just as a note for all you second borns out there – we have had some new additions, it isn’t all hand-me-downs!). He is forever trying to stick things in his mouth, and will steal that phone/cookie/cocktail out of your hand if you aren’t careful. Whereas Brandon was never really into toys, Rylan seems mesmerized by a new rattle or soft toy. It’s really cute and makes his short bouts of independent play time easy.

His sleeping is still going great, and I’ve tried to be more predictable about his morning nap, making sure he is in his crib most days as opposed to letting him sleep in the stroller. This consistency has really helped to lengthen his afternoon nap, and now I know that he will take a good 2 – 2 1/2 hour nap every afternoon. I think he might be ready to drop his 3rd nap in a month or so, as he has missed a handful of them and has been well rested enough to make it to close to bedtime without getting cranky. Most days he still falls asleep for about 30 minutes during that nap though, and will play quietly for the rest.

Here’s a typical day for Rylan at 6 months:

• 7:30 am – wake-up, get dressed and bottle (8 oz with 1 1/2 tsp rice cereal)
• 7:45 – breakfast w/ Brandon (usually in bouncy seat, not eating solids here)
• 8:15 – Outside!
• 9:30-11 – nap #1
• 11 – “play” with Brandon
• 11:30 – Independent Play (blanket time while mom preps lunch)
• 11:45 – bottle
• 12 – lunch (we introduce new foods at this time, so not to mess with bedtime if he has an adverse reaction).
• 1-3/3:30 – nap #2
• 3:15/3:30 – bottle
• 3:30 – “play” with Brandon (tummy time) or Outside
• 4:45-5:30 – nap #3
• 5:30 – independent play in play pen
• 6 – dinner with family
• 6:40 – bath
• 7 – bottle (8 oz with 1 1/2 tsp rice cereal)
• 7:30 – bedtime!

Happy half birthday little guy! We love you!

All pictures are courtesy of the amazing Laura Stone of Artstar Photography. Laura did our wedding photos and was kind enough to do some family shots of us when we were back in GA. I could not recommend her highly enough!! She also has a beautiful blog that showcases some of her work.