six months old...

Eric and I were talking last night about how Cannon is 6 months old today. It already seems like so long ago since that morning we found out we were going to be meeting our little guy. But when you actually say that he is 6 months old, that sounds so old. Already? I can't believe it. I have been looking forward to this though. I don't want to wish away the time because I know it goes by so fast anyway, but I am happy to be six months into this experience. Somedays I never thought we would get here!
We went to his 6 month check-up this afternoon. He weighs 14 pounds 6.5 ounces (5th percentile) and is 24.5 inches long (less than 3rd percentile). I don't remember his head measurement, but it was in the 20th percentile. We know how to make big headed babies! The percentiles are based on his actual age and were not adjusted to his gestational age. The doctor was very pleased with his growth and was happy to see that he is making some progress on the growth curve.
A few things about Cannon at 6 months:
- He goes to bed around 8pm. He usually gets up one time during the night anytime between 2am-6am. He usually goes back to sleep and gets up around 7 or 8am.
- We are still working on trying to get a nap schedule. He almost always takes a 30 minute nap about 2 hours after he wakes up and then the afternoon can be pretty random.
- He does not spend much time in the sling anymore, but he loves the BabyBjorn. he usually spends a few hours a day in the Bjorn. My back and shoulders are very happy about this - the sling was starting to kill!
- He is drooling like crazy and is starting to put everything in his mouth.
- He is not reaching for objects yet, but he will grab at anything that is near his hands.
- He hates tummy time.
- He loves bathtime and infant massage(except for his shoulders).
- It seemed like he had a bunch of hair coming in, but now it is looking pretty sparse again. He has a big swirly cowlick on the back of his head just like his brother. He also still has a little bit of cradle cap, but its hardly noticable.
- He is wearing mostly 6-9 months clothes and size 2 diapers.
- He is being seen weekly by Pat, his physical therapist and Amy, his occupational therapist. Overall, he is doing pretty good. He still has some tightness in his neck and shoulders. He is also having trouble with the flexion of this body. This is because he did not get that time in the womb where he was all curled up in a tight space. His body always wants to be in extension because that is all he knows. He frequently stiffens his body and extends his legs and arms when he is in distress. This leads to him not being able to self-soothe as easily because he is always in a "fight-or-flight" state instead of a relaxed state. His tolerance level is much lower than most infants so he is easily set-off into crying fits. He is also showing many signs of some sensory sensitivity. They cannot officially test for it because he is too young, but the OT is definitely going to keep an eye on it. All of these issues are due to his prematurity and he is likely to outgrow them with a little help from certain exercises and lots and lots of patience and love.
- He is tolerating the car and carseat much better now and for the most part we are able to enjoy scream-free drives.