Eight Month Update!

It has been awhile since I did a monthly update for Nick, so here is a quick summary of how my little guy is doing at eight months old (six months adjusted), along with an update on some advocacy work I've been doing:

Weight:
At the doctor this week, Nick weighed just over 19 pounds. Between his chubby cheeks and all the rolls in his thighs, he reminds me a lot of the Michelin man these days :) He wears size three diapers and 9 month clothing.

Eating:
As hard as it is to believe given how chunky he is, Nick is struggling a bit with eating solid food. I probably introduced solids too early, since he is only now six months old based on his adjusted age, but he has been eating solids for about two months now and still struggles with eating from a spoon. When I place the spoon in his mouth, he will push the spoon out with his tongue, and then suck the food from the spoon like it's his bottle. I remember my other children doing the same thing with their tongue the first two or three times they ate from a spoon when I fed them solids, but Nick is still having a hard time getting used to the spoon two months later. I know Nick is getting all the nutrients he needs from his formula, so I'm not pressing solids too hard. He drinks 6 ounces of his formula every three hours or so, and I give him one serving of pureed fruit and vegetables a day.

Milestones:
Nick's first tooth came in this month! He has gotten good at rolling both ways, and likes to roll across the room and find things to chew on. I am getting better at accepting that Nick will reach his milestones when he is ready, and, even though it's hard not to compare him to my older children, who always hit their developmental milestones ahead of schedule, I am doing a better job of remembering that Nick will start sitting up and crawling with time. It does worry me that he doesn't babble at all (and by that I mean no "mamas" or "dadas,") and it's hard to imagine him ever doing so. But, I remember a few months ago when I couldn't imagine him smiling, and he smiles whenever he sees me now, so I know it will come with time.

Coming Up:
I am so excited to celebrate Nick's first Halloween and take him to the pumpkin patch and trick-or-treating…especially because all of his candy goes to me :) Between now and Christmas, we will have a lot of "anniversaries" to relive, which will be emotional, but I also have the opportunity to do a lot of advocacy work over the next few weeks.

Advocacy Work:
Through my fellowship with the March of Dimes, I had the chance to help launch of the Blanket Change campaign this past week to draw attention to the maternal mortality crisis in the US. Also, November is Prematurity Awareness Month, and I have the opportunity to participate in my state's Signature Chef Auction and dinner. Even though a lot of my work just involves sharing information on social media, it's empowering to do so and I become more and more passionate about maternal and child health every day.

High Risk Hope Indianapolis:
As I have shared on my blog and Instagram account before, for months now, I have been trying to find a way to support women in my community with a child in the NICU. Over the summer, I discovered the amazing nonprofit, High Risk Hope, which is based in Tampa but is active in hospital across the country. High Risk Hope provides Bed Rest Baskets for women on hospital bed rest that include different self-care items that a mom stuck in the hospital might need, like chapstick and a pedicure set, and NICU Napsacks for new moms with a baby in the NICU. The napsacks include a story book, milestone cards for pictures, etc. The point of HRH is simple: brighten a mom's day and let her know she isn't alone when going through a difficult and lonely time. I am so excited to be starting a branch of HRH in my hospital in Indianapolis. I plan to find different and more exciting ways to fundraise, but on Friday I started a Facebook fundraising page to introduce HRH Indianapolis to my friends and family, and we already raised $500. I am so excited and happy to bring this amazing program to my hospital, and to help women from my hometown going through something similar to me.