Parker's 8.5 months checkup

Our pediatrician adds an extra appointment in during the first year to help with any questions or issues parents might have. So this appointment Parker didn't get any shots! YEAH! Parker is definitely a growing boy though!! Here's his latest stats:

Height: 29 inches (80th percentile)

Weight: 20lbs, 14.8oz (65th percentile)

Head Circumference: 46cm (75th percentile)

He's gained 3lbs and 3 inches over the past 2.5 months. And those three pounds definitely make a difference too. He's HEAVY! ;) All of those stats mean that Parker has pretty much outgrown all 9 month clothes. He fits perfectly into 12 months stuff, but has no room to grow. We've even started pulling out some of Dylan's 18-24 month clothes for him!! What a chunk! ;)

Parker's crawling everywhere, sitting up, pulling to standing, and starts to take a few steps sideways while holding onto the table. He is one busy little bee!! Some of his favorite things to do are stand at the train table and play with toys there, or else crawl/race down the hallway as fast as possible hoping either we won't see him head towards the bathroom OR hoping we play hallway chasing games with him :) Dylan is usually the best at this. Parker still tends to spit up after eating. The doctor thinks that this is because the valve between Parker's stomach and esophagus is still developing. If he continues to have this same issue in a few more months, we might go to a specialist, but at this point, the doctor isn't too concerned. Because of Parker's spitting up, we confine him to our laps or the exersaucer for about 30 min after eating to help his food settle some, which he HATES! He wants to be on the floor and getting into everything. Poor baby boy is so tortured. :)

Parker has had two bottom teeth for a while now, his top two teeth just broke the skin last week. He definitely is not a happy camper when teething. I'm not looking forward to when he gets his molars. Parker now babbles all different sounds: Da-da, Ma-ma, Ba-ba, La-la, etc. Although he doesn't yell at us as much anymore when he gets mad. :)

Parker is on a really good schedule too (except Mommy & Daddy dont get to sleep-in much on the weekends) He typically wakes up at 6:30am, eats breakfast around 7, lunch around 11, naps from 11:30-2pm, snack at 2, dinner at 5, and final bottle at 7ish to be in bed by 7:30. Sometimes he falls asleep while drinking the bottle, but other times he'll just sit quietly in his bed and babble for 15-30 min before falling asleep. He typically will sleep about 10-11hrs straight. He prefers to sleep on his stomach, with a burp cloth or small blanket curled up under his belly. He's mostly been eating lots of pureed fruits, veggies, and meats with his bottles. Carrots are one of his favorites foods and green veggies his least favorite -- but he will eat it, which is great! We've been given the all-clear to start more people food cut up super small, with the exception of no egg-whites yet. The doctor is also letting us start the transition to whole milk in the next week when Parker turns 9 months! YAY!!! Formula has been getting expensive so we are super excited about this one! :)

For the most part, Parker is a very happy baby. He smiles, babbles, and intently watches everything that goes on -- especially regarding Dylan. Typically only cries when he's tired, needs changing, or is hungry. And actually if you heard his hungry cry, you would think we starved him and he hadn't eaten for days!!! He does not like it when his food takes 30 seconds to heat up :) Since I can't seem to get any still pictures of him lately because he won't stop moving, here's a video from two weeks ago of him laughing while Matt is tickling him (and pretending to tickle him). I love his laugh!!! :)