Jolly Jumpin'

Here's the video I promised. Unfortunately, I couldn't turn it in youtube, so you have to watch it sideways! It's still hilarious, anyway.

Riverdance

Barrett has recently discovered the fun of jolly jumping. This is both good and bad. It's good because it means I can put him into his jumper and he'll be occupied for at least half an hour. It's bad because now he thinks he's always in his jumper - so he tries to stand and bounce all the time: when in bed, while feeding, in your lap. My arms are getting tired of holding him up. I think it's like when you go swimming, and then for a few hours afterwards it still feels like you're in the water, and normal movements feel weird. Or maybe he's just a bouncing baby. But seriously, he's fussy all the time now unless he's standing. Last night he cried and cried, and I couldn't figure out what was wrong. Nothing worked - not cuddling, rocking, feeding, burping, singing. So I finally picked him up and tossed him in the air a bit, letting him stand in my lap. End of cries... until I put him down again. That had better not become a regular occurrence.

I do think he's been a bit fussy lately because of a few other things, though. He seems to have developed some sort of rash on his face and arms, which also seems to be causing some bad cradle cap. He's always rubbing his face on things, or scratching with his hands, of course, just making the whole thing worse. I've tried creams and soaps, but no luck. Yesterday at yoga, a few ladies suggested trying breastmilk, like, actually putting it directly on the rash. Apparently it heals anything, including eye infections. I put some on last night and this morning and it actually does seem to be working. Who knew!

Also, I think he's ready to start solid foods. He's such a big, hungry baby. I just don't think milk is doing it anymore. Speaking of yoga class, Barrett was very chatty yesterday. So loud, in fact, that I actually had trouble hearing the instructor. It was hilarious. And not very relaxing! But it's fun, so who really cares about the yoga part.

So a few funny developments lately: Barrett has started sucking on his lower lip. This is a hilarious face that you must see to appreciate. I got a picture of it the other day while he was playing with his giant frog. Yes, his giant frog. This is a big stuffy that Auntie Christina gave him, which is about the same size as him. He loooves it. He sucks on its fingers and eyeballs and wrestles with it.



Also, he's started laughing a little bit. Now, I was expecting him to start giggling like you hear babies do. Not Barrett. His laugh is a one-shot suck-in of air. The kind you do accidentally during a hard laugh or at the end of a hearty chuckle. And that's it. No giggles. No breathing out in a little chuckle. Just a suck of breath and a gummy smile. It's still worth all my troubles, but I do hope he figures out how to breathe out and laugh soon.

Daddy's shoulders is the place to be!

You must be wondering why this post is titled Riverdance. This is because when he jumps in his jolly jumper, he doesn't move his arms. But his little legs go like crazy. It's awesome. I got a video of it but it's not working right now. I'll try and post a new one later.

Yoga

Today was our first Mom & Baby yoga class. I've never been in a room so full of babies before. There were about ten moms, with babies ranging from 6 weeks to 6 months, and they were all quite active little critters. It was pretty good, although I got very little yoga done. But I suppose that's not really the point. I did, however, learn a few other things.

1. I definitely need new workout clothes. It's shocking how easily I convinced myself that I still fit into my old (pre-pregnancy, pre-40 extra lbs) ones... there's nothing quite like a full-length mirror to bring you back to reality.

2. I need to pin back my bangs next time. During one of the moves I leaned over Barrett (who was lying on his back on the mat) and he grabbed a big clump in each hand. Hard. It didn't hurt so much, but I was totally incapable of freeing myself. The instructor actually had to come over and pry his fists open while everyone in the room giggled at us. Now I'm always going to be "that bang girl."

3. I'm way more out of shape than I thought. I think I would have a hard enough time doing lunges and squats these days, but with a 16-lb baby on my knee it was nearly impossible! I'd better start walking every day.


In other news, I've gotten a bunch of kids' CDs out of the library to make copies of them. It's amazing how much my opinion of this music has changed over time. I remember how fun it was when I was a kid, but I never took any notice of the quality. It's still not too bad, but I never realized that Sharon, Lois & Bram use hilarious 70s-era keyboards, Raffi can't sing worth beans, and none of them can pronounce French to save their lives.

I'm also signing up for Babytime at the library. Whoo-hoo! Shakers, here we come!!

Haha baby mullet!