A day in the life..

To commemorate Kaiden turning seven months as of yesterday, I thought we would do what my fellow mommy-bloggers are doing and give you an open window into our (somewhat) daily life and the routine we have implemented.. or rather the one Kaiden makes us go by.

We start off early at 8:00 AM. He still hasn't mastered sleeping throughout the entire night, and still whines (not cries!) for a bottle mid-night, so we are a little lazy for the first couple of minutes getting out of bed. We religiously watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Handy Manny on Disney Junior while we play with a few toys. For a not-even-seven-month-old he has an incredible attention span.

By the time we change diapers, spend time playing with Sophie and our Bug-a-loop and hang out in the crib it's 10:30am! Into the living room to get him some breakfast. Today his breakfast of choice (not his choice yet, unfortunately!) is a Heinz Baby : Farley's Biscuits (original, he hates banana) which he loves because he tries to be so independent already. Anything he can eat on his own if great in his books! His biscuit and a 4oz bottle of formula later and he's ready to go for a nap so Mommy can start her day!

His naps sometimes last thirty minutes and span to sometimes two hours, either way it's the time I get to myself to check emails, browse Facebook, eat breakfast and tend to any other household chores that have to get done. How someone so small accumulates so much laundry, I will never know, and outside for a few minutes to water his plant! Back in, it's 12:00PM and Kaiden is awake.He is such a "meat and potatoes" man as my mother calls it. You can offer him other vegetables, he will taste it begrudgingly. Fruit, he will squinch up his face as soon as the sweetness (or sourness) hits his taste buds. Give my child any potato or meat puree and he'll eat the legs off the table. I'm sure that's not a figure of speech if he could walk. Today we are making organic sweet potatoes in our Magic Bullet (because our As Seen On TV store exchanges magic bullets for baby bullets in a week!)

We eat our lunch together because he definitely tries to mimic me at this point. Mommy eats, Kaiden eats. Mommy eats, Kaiden eats! Then we take a little stroll outside (only because today isn't too unbearable of a hot day) where Kaiden is stopped plenty of times by people claiming he's "so beautiful!".

Back inside, at which point his Nanny is home from her work day and spends time with him until his Poppy also gets home from work and they take him out for yet again, another walk. Time to change him again, he got dirty eating lunch without a bib, whoops! ?Now I have time to finish any laundry, text some friends and start cooking dinner (if it's my night, which tonight happens to be.) Ranch crusted pork chops, Cesar salad and ranch&bacon roasted potatoes.

He's back and now it's reading time. He loves to sit in his Mega Splash Exersaucer or his Baby Einstein Jumperoo and listen to me talk to him, play peek-a-boo, or read him books after books. Sometimes he turns his head like he is retaining the information and staring at my thoughtfully, and I laugh behind the book as to not interrupt his concentration.

We spend a few minutes eating more food (chicken and mixed vegetables) in his highchair, sit down for a quick bottle and rest awhile before it's 9:00PM and it's bath time.

My son loves, loves, loves, loves the bathtub. I'm quite sure if I left him in it all day he would be pleased. He splashes around, laughs, lays back and sucks on a facecloth constantly. He is SUCH a happy baby in the first place, but in the tub he's even more amusing.

And then we are off to bed where we co-sleep (whether with myself or his grandma, depending on who's less tired) and sing him songs of love and good fortune, and he finally rests his little head to lay down at 10:30 - 11:00 PM.

What works! .. & doesn't.

I've been given the same advice from the beginning of my pregnancy, and I'm sure it will continue to be uttered, "No two babies are the same, so not everything you read will work with your baby." This has molded in my head, so when a book says "routine, routine, routine", I used to nod in agreement.. now, I smile and whisper "No, no, no-no!".

The deep seated planner in me is one that wants things to be orderly, and have a schedule. The mother in me knows it's impossible with my baby. Kaiden is on Kaiden time, and me trying to adjust his feedings, naps, and bedtime will not go well for me at all and cause him too much distress.

I read plently of parenting tips, must-haves and reviews prior to having my little one, and I decided to compile a list of what works for us, and what really doesn't.

What works:

1. Bath (every night) - As indicated in a previous post, the only way in order to ensure my little guy gets more than a half hour of sleep before he's wailing, is a nice (very) warm bath with lavendar scented bath products (Thank you, Johnson's!)

2. Swing - Godsend. A lot of people saying it was useless truthfully made me hesitate, until my parents insisted the swing matched the bouncer, which matched the travel system, which matched his diaper bag, and etc. , so we wound up getting one anyways. Thankful is the word for this one. There are times where he requires movement - not just rocking or walking - but a lot of fast motion. Ninety percent of the time I put him in his swing when he's agitated, and turn on the classical music, and he's out like a light.

3. Reading - I'm not really interested in people's opinions when it comes to reading to him. I couldn't care less if he doesn't grasp the concept, doesn't understand the words I'm saying, or hates the sound of my voice. Most of the time after he's stayed awake long enough to have a full feeding - but hasn't dozed off - if I begin to read to him his eyes start to get heavy and he drifts off. Plus, if he one day is a genius, I only have myself to thank!

What doesn't:

1. Swaddle - I'm told most babies fight it initially, but after awhile they will cave and sleep sounder. Kaiden? Nope. The first few nights I tried, he would scream and squirm until his hands were released, popping them directly in his mouth. I guess he just really didn't like how close everything was in there (never-ending kicking and moving), and out here, he's no better.

2. Pacifier - We have tried countless brands, and have even tried letting him suck on his bottle (eyes closed, mind you!) and did a "quick swap", and he notices the difference right away and spits it out. Only when he's severely tired and half asleep will he even take one in his mouth to calm him down, and even then it won't stay in long. Makes it easier for me to have to ween him off of it in later life, I suppose!

So in conclusion - do what's best for you, and your baby. Don't rely on the opinion of one mother, (or author for that matter!) to determine the needs for your child and what's "best for your child". As a mother, you're already on the right channel, you just need to fine-tune it.