Henry Russell - 10 months

Summer is coming to a close, and it has been a wonderful one to say the least! We have been incredibly busy with camping, family vacations, house projects, and getting ready to start another year in the classroom for Luke and a new job for myself. As per usual, I'm writing this post a couple weeks late, but I didn't want to let another month go by without our monthly Huckles update!

At 10 months, Huck is furniture cruising like nobody's business and taking 2-3 baby steps at a time on his own. Luke and I took bets last night on when we think he'll be officially walking and we both gave it about two weeks until he's mobile and getting into even more trouble than usual!

Huck is our wild child through and through. He rifles through the DVDs from our entertainment center, climbs on anything and everything he can, is constantly hitting his head on things (poor kid), and gives Marleigh and Luke a run for their money during their daily wrestling antics. He is still loud with his screeching and screaming, but he's starting to develop a couple more "words" (or syllables), mainly "Ba" (ball), "Mama" (for pretty much everything, although I like to think he's really saying my name of course), "da," and the latest – "Papa" – which my dad is clearly thrilled about! I'm hoping that when he continues to learn to talk, the screeching will cease. Time will tell! 

He is sleeping through the night consistently and lets us know he's tired by around 7:30 every night. He is still taking two naps a day, but the morning nap is getting shorter and shorter and he's skipped it a couple of times, which makes me think that it won't be long until it's phased out altogether. His afternoon nap usually lasts a solid 2-3 hours, which usually gives me just enough time to clean up the house from his destruction before he wakes up again! 

Huck still loves his big sister, who only ever calls him "Huckles," and she is really sweet to him for the most part, even when he annoys her by stealing her toys and trying to eat her Play Doh. I am excited to see how their relationship grows once he is walking and able to actually play with her a little bit more! (Side note: the other day, Marleigh wanted so desperately for her baby brother to sit on the couch and watch a movie with her. We put him next to her and he was over it within 5 seconds. Poor Mar..! Maybe someday Huck will sit still! haha)

Besides a couple of moody days here and there, our Huckledoo is such a smily, happy boy. I really have never seen a kid whose smile can melt people the way his does. I can't believe it has been 10 months since he entered our world. I'm definitely starting to feel all the feels as we near his first birthday...!

We love you, Henry! Thanks for keeping us on our toes and melting our hearts on a daily basis. We are so proud of you and even more proud to call you our son. I hope you never lose your silly demeanor, your stubborn attitude, or – most importantly – your big dimples! ;) 
Happy 10 months, bubs!

Henry Russell - 7 months

Oh, this boy...! I don't even know where to start on our Huckles. His first few months of life started off a bit rocky with him being super fussy and pretty miserable most times, but now? Huck is the brightest little ray of sunshine I've ever seen! His dimply smile melts my heart more than anything. 

He is the snuggliest little man and always good for a "hug." He loves being close to people (especially his Mimi, mommy, and daddy!) but even more so, he loves to explore. Since he started crawling at around 5 months old, he has been on the move and keeping us busy constantly. He's into everything and furniture cruises like nobody's business. He is speedy when he gets his mind set on something – usually the step into our dining room – and we have to literally run to the kitchen to stop him from tumbling down it multiple times a day. He can prop himself up to standing up on any flat surface (even walls) and I don't think it will be long until he figures out how to stand on his own and walk. He's determined and fearless, which scares me a little bit for what our future holds with this little bruiser!

At 7 months, Huck is eating three meals of baby food a day and would devour an entire container of Puffs in one sitting if we let him. His first little bottom tooth is almost all the way through his gums, and I think there's another one on its way next to it. I always miss the gummy smile phase but I am excited to start being able to experiment with new foods for him soon! 

"Huckles" still loves his big sister more than anything in the universe and their relationship is really starting to form now that he is more active and grabbing for her toys more often. We're trying to teach Marleigh to be a good teacher for him and "maybe try reading him the book instead of grabbing it from him!" so we'll see how that goes ;) I want them to be built-in best friends so establishing a healthy dynamic with them early on is really important to us.

Huck loves Bob Zoom on Netflix, playing peek-a-boo, his sock monkey stuffed animal, playing with his baby spoons, and "booping" Hans in the head. He laughs at almost anything you do and his little chuckle is the best sound. He's also just about the most ticklish little thing I've ever seen, so we get good belly laughs out of him all the time!

He's sleeping pretty well lately (with the exception of a few rough nights here and there from teething and a little head cold he's had this past week). He falls asleep by 8:00 every night usually after a nice bubble bath, and will sleep through the night pretty consistently until around 6:15, maybe waking up one time somewhere between 2-4am. 

Huck is our big boy, wearing size 12 month shirts/tops and 12 month or 12-18 month bottoms. He wears a size 3 shoe but we have to go at least to 12-18 months with his socks unless we want to cut his circulation off at his ankles! We joke that he is built like his Papa, and he has the curse of the Griffith legs for sure! ;)

We're all super excited for the start of camping season this weekend and for all of the happy family memories that are yet to come with our little boy and his sissy. 

Huckle Doodles,

You're growing so incredibly fast and I find myself in awe of you and all that you are learning and doing with each month that passes. I am so proud to be your mommy and I can't imagine our family without you in it. You were our missing piece. I love your guts out, bubs! 

Henry Russell - 6 months

Half a year of Huckles. [Insert all the typical "time is flying" mom sayings here.] Our baby boy is getting so big and, along with that, is getting to be so much fun! The 5-6 month was a huge turning point for our Henry -- learning to crawl, holding his own bottles, sleeping pretty consistently through the night (sometimes with an early morning wakeup, but usually just one!), and did I mention crawling?! 

Huck makes his way all around the house now like a baby sea turtle. He's speedy and when he sets his sights on something, nothing can stop him from getting to it (looking at you, heating vent!). I think he learned to crawl so fast because he is desperate to be able to play with his big sister, who he is STILL obsessed with. One of our favorite games to play is having Marleigh walk away (making Huck's smile disappear) and then slowly walk back up to him (bringing back a big gummy laugh). We all love it, but maybe especially Marleigh! She loves her baby brother.

At six months, Henry is SO happy. His personality from the time up through about 4-5 months to today are like night and day. What started out as a fussy, crying, gassy little boy has turned into this little charmer whose gummy, dimpled smile is like a little beacon of sunlight. He always sticks his tongue out when he smiles, which is quite possibly one of the cutest things I've ever seen, and his grin is contagious. It's hard to stay in a grumpy mood when he smiles at you (which he's lucky for when he wakes up at 4:45 AM and doesn't fall back asleep until everyone else in the house is awake). He's also started pulling himself up to an almost-standing position on the kick & play piano, just like Marleigh used to. I have a feeling it won't be long until he's furniture cruising...! Even with his crawling and almost standing up, Huck still hasn't quite mastered sitting up yet -- partially because he's too busy planning his next move around the room to sit still.

He is eating two full containers of baby food (stage 2) pretty consistently at every meal and gets angry when we don't let him hold the spoon or feed him fast enough. He loves the mesh feeder with frozen fruit inside, devours puffs, and still absolutely despises straight vegetable baby food. 

We have developed a pretty regular bedtime routine with him, which has helped his sleeping habits a ton: dinner between 6-7 (depending on if I work that day or not), bath time by 7:40 at the latest, "baby massage" and pajamas by 8:00, 6oz. of bottle while we rock him to sleep by 8:15/8:30. He loves his crib and will fight falling asleep in our arms until we put him in his bed (which sort of makes me sad) - unless he's really tired, and then I prolong the bed time rocking process as long as I possibly can! 

Huck is our little chunk. He has earned the nickname "Bubba," and rightfully so -- he wears size 6-12 month Old Navy/Baby Gap clothes (which run big), 12 month footie pajamas, and 9-12 month pants. The other day, we were short on clean clothes for him (since he still drools all over everything he wears), so I grabbed a gender neutral long-sleeve shirt out of Marleigh's drawer. A 6 month old and a 2.5 year old sharing clothes! Ridiculous.

This past month, we introduced Huck to the wonderful world of camping and he loved it! He was a total trooper the entire car ride there and back (32 hours total) and napped and slept like a dream baby in the camper, with the exception of the two parties he had at midnight when we stopped half way during our drives. He loved taking walks in the backpack carrier on daddy's back, playing in the sand at the beach (or face planting into it when he tipped out of the Bumbo, if we're being honest), and spending lots of time outside, which he has never really had the chance to do living in the tundra we call Buffalo.

These past few months with our little man have been such a joy. I cannot wait to see how much he continues to grow and learn this month! Even though time is moving at warp speed, I wouldn't change any of it for the world. Watching his personality develop has been so much fun!

We love you so very much, Huckledoodle! Happy half birthday, bubs!

Henry Russell - 5 Months

This kid..!

At five months, Huck is growing leaps and bounds overnight. He has now started CRAWLING (the army crawl scoot), and he is all over the place trying to get his big sister's toys and eating all of the books in sight. He still loves his light up lantern from Aunt Jessie and Uncle Brian and he will crawl super fast to get to it every time we press the button to make it sing. 

He is also barrel rolling everywhere - back to belly and belly to back - but he still hasn't mastered the whole sitting up thing yet. I have a feeling it won't be long until he's full-fledge crawling everywhere and pulling himself up on the furniture. He's a little tank and we love every little bit of his chunky self! 

Speaking of his chunkiness, Huck is weighing in at over 16 pounds already and wearing at least 6-9 month clothes. His thick thighs don't fit into 6 month sleepers or pants, and he's filling out some 12 month clothes already, which is crazy seeing as Marleigh still fits into some of her 12 month shirts!

Although it started out a bit rocky, Huck's personality is the cutest. He is super smiley when he's happy and gives us endless amounts of giggles and belly laughs when we tickle him or make funny faces at him. He ADORES his big sister and the way he looks at her melts my heart. They are the best little playmates already and Marleigh is always telling us how excited she is that "Huck is getting big!" because she can't wait until they can play together. I'll remind her of that on the days when he is stealing her toys and pulling her hair soon, and annoying her non-stop when they're teenagers! 

Although he is still a little more high maintenance than Marleigh ever was when she was a baby (or at least how we remember her being), we have come to the conclusion that Huck's highs are higher and his lows are lower than hers were. Marleigh didn't give us giggles on a regular basis until she was about 6-7 months old, while Huck started giggling at around 3-4 months. And while she was pretty easy-going and never really made too much of a fuss, Henry will surely let you know when he is unhappy! 

Huck is still certainly a momma's boy, and he is super snuggly almost all the time. He loves holding hands, touching our faces (especially his daddy's beard) when we talk or sing to him, and he will rub his crib sheets until he falls asleep. He loves having blankets up near his face (which freaks me out a little bit - I always move them away when I notice it) and he nuzzles his head into our shoulders to let us know when it's time to get ready for nap/bedtime. 

We are feeding him baby food now and loves any and all fruits. He shiver/gags when we try to feed him vegetables, so we've gotten tricky and bought him a bunch of the pre-mixed blends from Gerber. Works like a charm! He will devour an entire container full of food at one feeding, and he's up to drinking 5-6 ounce bottles at a time, sometimes more.

True to Gill-baby form, he's not the best in the sleep department, although he is better than Marliegh was at his age (although that's not saying much). He's usually up anywhere from 1-4 times a night and sometimes decides that the hours between 3-4 AM are a great time to stay awake and chat until about 15 minutes before our alarms are about to go off. We just started "sleep training" him last night, so we'll see how that shakes out. Hopefully he will be sleeping through the night before we leave for our Myrtle Beach camping trip in a couple weeks! 

Five months is the most fun we've had with our Huckles so far, and we can't wait for him to keep developing into his own cute, quirky, sweet little self! 

Oh, Henny - You are the brightest little ray of sunshine in the mornings and our sweetest little snuggle buddy at night. We sure do love you! Happy 5 months, bubs!

Henry Russell - 4 months

These monthly updates always seem to sneak up on me somehow, and I might be in a bit of denial that our baby is already four months old! He is developing SO much every day, and I can't believe how much of a little person he is becoming.

At four months, Huck is growing like a weed. At his last doctor's appointment, he weighed just over 15 pounds and measures 26" long! He is filling out 6 month clothes and barely squeezing in 6 month sleepers. His chubby feet fit snugly in a size 2 shoe, and I'm pretty sure his hands are already almost as big as his big sister's! 

We got the go-ahead to start him on baby cereal/baby food this past week, and to say that he absolutely hates it is an understatement. You know that gag reflex you get after you drink a shot of tequila? The one that makes you shiver at the same time? That's how he looks when we spoon the cereal in his mouth. Every time. We thought that maybe mixing in the actual baby food might help since the cereal is so bland, but green beans, peaches, and apples all came back as a no-go. I guess we'll give it a little more time until we try to start him on it. For now, we can just keep chugging his 4-5 ounce bottles every 2 hours instead, and I'm okay with keeping him a baby for a while longer. 

Huck rolled over when he was about 3.5 months old (back to belly) and has flipped belly to back a few times since then. He loves playing in his exersaucer and it buys us at least 15 minutes at a time when we are trying to get things done, which is a major accomplishment around here! He also enjoys playing on his playmat, although he gets really frustrated at the baby in the mirror and at the fact that he can't quite put the hanging toys down far enough to eat them. 

He's still not sleeping too great throughout the night, and this past week has been a real doozy in the sleep department. With his four month shots making him a little out of sorts (decent fever, weepy, fussy, clingy) and the puppy waking up a few times throughout the night to go out, we're all feeling ready for sleep training (except maybe Huck. Sorry, bud). Luke has off next week for President's Day break and we are hopefully going to figure out a way to get this little rascal to sleep through the night! I absolutely hate sleep training but it worked wonders for Marleigh and now she is a super sleeper, so if Huck follows suit, it will be well worth the mom guilt I feel during the process.

Huck is still a momma's boy but he has been better lately about letting Luke rock him to sleep every once in a while, which is good! There are still times when he seems inconsolable and we can't figure out what he needs, and then Luke hands him off to me and he calms down after just a few seconds. It's nice that he loves me so much, and I try to soak in the moments as best as I can, even when I really have to pee or just want a couple minutes of alone time!

Marleigh has still been awesome at being a big sister and loves her little brother so much, even though she is 100% convinced that Huck is her sister. haha. Huck is obsessed with her and smiles so big every time she comes into the room, followed by giggles almost every time she talks to him. I cannot wait to watch their relationship grow over the years!

Aside from getting the puppy, this month has been a nice change of pace for us and we have been able to slow down a bit on the house projects. There is still a lot to do around here, but between feeling like walking zombies 90% of the time and trying to still maintain a sense of normal life, the projects have been put on hold a bit (mainly my fault because I have to paint the trim before we put it back up and I have been procrastinating big time!). 

But anyway, back to Huck. He is currently crying in his swing wanting to be held and rocked for his morning nap, so off I go! I'll leave you with this gem from the adventures of baby food. Enjoy!

We love you, Huckles!

Henry Russell - 3 months

Another month has passed and our baby boy is becoming less like a newborn and more like an actual baby every day! This past month has been a crazy one in the Gill household, as we had been busy packing our house, celebrating Christmas, and moving into our new home during the first week of January. I'm happy to report that we have officially unpacked almost all of the boxes, and life is starting to return to some sense of normalcy, whatever that is!

At three months old, Huck has started to develop a ton. He is starting to reach for his bottle when we feed him, grabbing our faces when we talk to him, and reaching for the toys on his kick & play play mat while cooing away at himself in the mirror!

He is so much happier these days ever since we made the switch to soy formula, and with the exception of a few cranky (overtired) moments here and there, he is a smily, giggly little guy! He still doesn't love when we leave the room or set him down somewhere for long periods of time, but he's getting a little bit better with the constant need to be held, which is nice especially since there's so much to do around here lately. 

Huck absolutely adores his big sister and his face lights up every time she talks to him. It's the sweetest thing! I'm reminded multiple times a day how lucky I am to call these two little humans mine.

On the sleep front, we're showing some signs of progress; and we will soon be transitioning Huck into his crib rather than the bassinet in our room. We're still working on a fixer-upper project in his room, but hopefully he will be all settled in within the next couple weeks! He has been falling asleep pretty regularly at around 8:00 every night and sleeping until anywhere between 10:30-1:00 after that.  One of us will wake up with him at that point and feed him a nice warm bottle, change his diaper, and swaddle him for the night. He then sleeps usually until around 4:30 or 5:00 and then, on good days, goes back down until around 7:00. Not a terrible schedule, although there are still plenty of nights that he decides it's time to party at 2 AM and keep us all up by grunting and cooing the night away. We're working on it ;)

Huck is super ticklish and lets out the funniest noises when you tickle his belly and legs. He loves being kissed, "blowing kisses," and when I shake my hair in his face. (Whatever it takes to get those smiles!) 

His dimple is still showing just as much as ever, and he is even getting a small one on his other cheek, which makes me super happy. I don't know if dimples are something that sometimes go away as babies get older, but I am hoping his stick around because they're my absolute favorite.

Huck is a little chunk and much bigger than Marleigh ever was. He's already filling out 3 month clothes and even fitting into some 6 month pajamas and pants. Baby Gap and Old Navy clothes for some reason always run huge, so he's still managing to fit into most 0-3 month clothes from there, although we learned our lesson the hard way that maybe slim fit pants aren't the best choice for his chubby little legs! 

Just like his big sister, Huck loves looking at books and even sits still through most of them (even the longer Dr. Seuss books)! He even pushes himself to sit up to look at the pages while he's in our laps. 

The past couple days, we've been noticing that Huck has started to wiggle his way around a bit. He is already close to rolling over (back to belly) and will somehow manage to scoot himself sideways on his play mat after we put him down. 

He loves his camping lantern from Aunt Jessie and Uncle Brian and will lay there mesmerized by it as long as we keep pushing the buttons to have it light up and sing to him! 

"Huckles" is a MAJOR momma's boy and I seem to be the only one that can calm him down when he's having a "moment." I not-so-secretly love it, although sometimes it can be a little exhausting being the only one that can stop him from scream-crying when he's overtired. I know that I will miss his snuggles, the way his eyes flutter back and forth while I'm rocking him, and the way his breaths get deeper while I hum him "Silent night" and he falls asleep; and I am so happy to be the one person who knows him best.

Although I love the newborn stage, we are super excited to have Huck coming into his personality a little bit more these days. Knowing how much fun every new month will be makes it a little bit easier to watch him grow up so quickly. 

Happy three months, little man!
You start our mornings with smiles and kicks and end our days with snuggles and sweet snores (and, if we're being honest, usually a lot of grunting in your sleep!), and all 12-ish pounds of you fills our hearts with so much love and happiness. This past month has been a good one, and we get to know you and your needs a little more each day. We love your drooly, moody, smiley little self so much and I can't imagine our family without you in it. 

Henry Russell - 2 months

Huck turned two months old on 12/8 and to say that he has made life interesting is the understatement of the year! We are still trying to get used to the frequent fussiness and constant need for snuggles that our little man provides on a daily basis. Despite the lack of sleep and occasional lack of patience, I can't help but fall more in love with him every day!

At two months old, Henry is starting to "talk" and coo a lot more. He especially loves being on his changing table and looking up at the pine cone garland hanging from the big mirror in his room. I get the best smiles and gummy almost-giggles out of him while changing his diaper, and his dimples are the cutest things I've seen.

He is quite ticklish and even though he is a lot fussier and more high maintenance than Marleigh ever was, I have a feeling we'll get the first true laugh out of him sooner than we did with her (she was almost four months old).

We made the switch to soy formula a few weeks ago and it has worked wonders on his personality during the day. Also, Karo syrup is a God-send for baby bellies and digestive systems that just can't seem to get their you-know-what together. (Pun 100% intended.)

Huck is weighing in at 11 lbs. 13 oz. and 23" long. He has officially outgrown his newborn clothes, with the exception of a few Carter's long-sleeved onesies that we are still managing to snap on him. For the most part, he has graduated into 0-3 month or 3 month clothes. Such a big boy!

We just started swaddling him at bed time and it seems to work at least a little bit with how frequently he wakes up during the night. We are trying to get him used to sleeping on a mattress rather than in the swing for when we move into our new house and hopefully transition him into his crib.

Huck still hates the bath, yet loves being naked!

We have been trying to increase his tummy time and he likes playing on his kick & play mat for a few minutes at a time. The mirror on it seems to be his favorite, and I don't blame him. I love looking at his little face too! 

Marleigh is still being the best helper and tells us multiple times a day how much she loves her baby brother. She is so sweet with him, and his face always lights up when she talks to him and hugs/kisses him! I cannot wait to watch their relationship grow over the years!

I know I talk a lot about how fussy he is, but Henry really is a sweet baby. He just needs a little extra love and attention (ok...lots of attention) to be content, and I will soak up the snuggles while I still can.

Two months down and a lifetime to go of loving our handsome baby boy! We love you, Huck!

Henry Russell - 1 Month

 
My handsome baby boy is one month old, and I swear it was just yesterday we were leaving the hospital with him. What is it about babies that makes time go into warp speed? Days feel like minutes and weeks feel like days. I have two short weeks left of maternity leave with my babies and I still feel like there is so much more to learn about our Huck. 

Here is what we have discovered about our little man so far:

He is noisy. The kid grunts and moans, snores, and grunts some more - every waking minute (and every sleeping minute, if we're being honest). 

He's fussy and a little bit high maintenance, which is totally opposite of how his big sister was as a newborn. He keeps us on our toes and likes to keep us guessing as to what could possibly be bothering him. More formula usually does the trick!

Speaking of which, he eats. A lot. Every two to three hours (at least!), sucking down anywhere from 2-4 ounces at a time, depending on his mood. He takes forever to eat, which usually leads to him eating 2 ounces, passing out into a formula-coma, then changing his mind as soon as we put him down and grunting/whining for more food. He's a tricky one!

He loves snuggling and holding hands. He even holds his own hands when he sleeps. If that isn't the most adorable thing you've ever heard...!

He is a poop machine! 

His smiles light up the room and I have a feeling that between his big blue eyes and adorable dimples, he's going to be quite the lady killer when he grows up.

He is very alert and very strong - lifting his head up on his own and focusing his eyes really well when he's awake. He especially loves staring at faces and looking outside. 

Despite our utter exhaustion, Huck has brought so much joy and love into our lives. His big sister absolutely adores him - almost to the point of smothering - and I can't get enough of his snuggles and smirks! Even though I wish time could stand still for a little while, I can't wait to see how much he changes over the next month!

Huck,

I am so glad that you came into our lives. You have filled a void in our family that we didn't know existed. I'm still learning the ropes of this whole mom-of-two thing, but your handsome little face makes the transition a whole lot easier! We love you so much, baby boy. Happy 1 month!

[Weeks 1-3. We had to enlist Marleigh's help to keep Huck propped up for week 1!]