I am behind on posting these, so here’s a catch up on life!
Six Months
Half a year! He can sit up unassisted now. He loves reaching forward and can spend a few seconds on his knees and hands. He loves music. He still enjoys water. He is talking a ton. He is very social. He will miss spending his days with grandpa. He enjoyed his visit to daycare and enjoys being social at the church nursery. He chews on everything. He just started foods after turning six months. Baby led weaning has been fun already, but he may be allergic to some foods and strong smells like perfumes.
Seven Months
My little guy turned seven months old today amidst a global pandemic. It’s an interesting place to be in to say the least. For the last week and a half, Bryan and I have been working from home with him. Ezekiel is so active and loves attention. That has been quite the challenge.
I also accepted a promotion today.
(I have been so busy adjusting to the new normal that I never finished this. At seven months, I had been working from home for about two and a half weeks. It had been two weeks since we officially were both working from home. And it had been about a week and a half since the stay at home order went into effect and the daycares had to close except to essential workers – our daycare closed a few weeks after that. The first day of Ezekiel being home while we tried to work felt like a disaster as we passed him back and forth, juggled work calls and video conferencing, and tried to get him to play quietly by himself. It did not go well, and it was frustrating to feel like we couldn’t play like he should be able to and we couldn’t work like we normally would. I tried to get use to see clients via video as I could hear him crying in the background and sometimes my clients could too. The time at home had a lot of fear. I watched the news a lot and listened to the daily updates. There was so much uncertainty. But time did slow down. Even though it was hard, there wasn’t the same kind of rush to get everything done during our short time at home. We have tried to enjoy our time at home while giving our family grace as we figure out our new normal. Ezekiel got a well child doctor appointment and everyone wore masks. It was strange and you could tell it confused him. He loves to smile at people and see them smile back. It was different when everyone had on a mask. He was at daycare for three weeks before staying home. Overall I think he really enjoyed it. He definitely has some adjusting. But he seemed to like being there to play with friends all day. Sometimes I worry that he isn’t socializing. But I know we have to stay safe and that many kids stay home when they are little with minimal socialization. )
Eight months
Ezekiel has been so busy this month! He learned to crawl, get into a sitting position by himself, clap, and he has been saying dada. He has also learned to sign milk and can sometimes use it. He had started to learn to pull himself up to standing but is still working on that one. He loves the bath and has learned to splash more. As hard as it has been watching him full time with Bryan while both of us working full time, it has been exciting to see him grow. We were both there as he started crawling. We were here to watch him first learn to clap. He gets so excited now to crawl down the hall to see Bryan. His smiles and excitement to see us have been very rewarding.
It is not the life I had envisioned for us. There is fear, difficulties in adjusting to work from home, deal with face coverings, and anxiety. I had wanted to be in swim lessons, have him socializing with kids at daycare everyday, and leave the house regularly to have my own space. I wanted him to have lots of time with all his grandparents. I wanted to take him on play dates. But amidst the difficulties – and it’s so draining – there is joy. Ezekiel has the best smile, the cutest laugh, and an amazing sense of curiosity. He is so expressive, and it is so fun watching him figure out the world around him. And he is incredibly cute. It certainly took some time, but I am enjoying him a lot more. He gets so excited when we play and he can interact with us.
We have also settled into our routine a little better. We constantly have to reassess and figure out what works day to day, but we are getting it a little better. The stay at home order was extended until May 30th for the time being, so we will spend the next month home with him again to see what the new month brings. The new order also requires face coverings in public places. It is strange to think about history happening now. It still feels surreal. It feels strange for Ezekiel to get use to people wearing masks and to think one day he may have never really known any differently.
