04 Apr 8 Months with Maverik

8 months with my potato boy! This month was packed with fun events like St. Patrick’s Day, Easter activities, and his very first little getaway by car. It’s crazy that we’re already 2/3 of the way through his first year. He doesn’t even look like a tiny baby anymore. He’s getting so big, learning new things every day, and becoming more capable by the minute!

It wasn’t just St. Patrick’s Day and Easter that kept us busy. For three weeks in March, Erik was traveling for work, so I was solo parenting both kids. Between a baby who still wasn’t sleeping well and a 4-year-old with busy school schedule, it was definitely one of the toughest stretches I’ve had as a mom. Thankfully, now that we live with Erik’s parents, they were a huge help throughout the day, especially with dropping off and picking up Katerina from school. I honestly don’t know how I would’ve managed without them since I was also working at least eight hours a day. Every night I completely crashed the moment my head hit the pillow. Looking back, I’m so proud of myself for making it through those three weeks, and I have even more respect for single parents. I honestly don’t know how you do it!

As soon as Erik came home, it was my turn to be taken care of. I had all four of my wisdom teeth removed at once. For the first few days after surgery, Erik took over most of the childcare while I stayed on top of my pain medication and recovered. My gums bled constantly, my face swelled up into a perfect square, and the right side became so bruised. Other than keeping up with pumping milk for Maverik, I spent the first day doing absolutely nothing and just resting. As rough as I looked (and felt), those few recovery days honestly felt like a spa vacation compared to the three weeks of solo parenting!

At the end of March, we took a little trip to McCall, about two hours from where we live. My in-laws recently bought a small place there as a family getaway, and this was our first time visiting. Also, it also happened to be Maverik’s very first trip by car! He slept so well during both car rides and was such a happy little traveler… except for nighttime sleep, of course. But honestly, that’s pretty normal for him, so no surprises there! It felt so refreshing to enjoy the beautiful scenery and fresh mountain air after such a busy month. More than anything, it was so special taking our first little family road trip as a family of four. I can’t wait to take Maverik on more adventures and show him new places as he grows.

As for food, Maverik tried even more new flavors this month: guava, peas, pineapple, sweet potato, strawberries, oranges, beef, and kiwi! These days, he usually eats the baby food jars with multiple flavors instead of the single-ingredient ones. He absolutely loves eating and can finish about 80% of a jar in one sitting. He’ll happily eat anything we give him. The second he swallows one bite; he opens his mouth wide to let us know he’s ready for the next! He also gets so excited at mealtime that he starts banging on his highchair tray. I swear he’s telling us to hurry up—even though we’re scooping the next bite as fast as we possibly can! He somehow manages to swallow, open his mouth, and be ready again in what feels like one second. This boy definitely loves his food!

This month, he checked off several milestones on the CDC Milestone Tracker app:

• Is shy, clingy, or fearful around strangers
• Smiles or laughs when you play peek-a-boo
• Looks for objects when dropped out of sight (like his spoon or toy)
• Gets to a sitting position by himself
• Pulls up to stand

One exciting milestone that wasn’t even on the list happened just one day before he turned 8 months old—he started crawling! Up until then, he had been rocking back and forth on all fours, but he finally figured out how to move forward by taking little knee steps. I was so proud of him! Now that he’s officially mobile, we have to keep a much closer eye on him because he’s constantly on the move. He can also push himself into a sitting position from all fours, which he uses to change directions.

The funniest part? He actually learned how to pull himself up to stand before he learned how to crawl. Once he figured out how to stand using anything nearby, crawling came so quickly afterward. It’s amazing how babies just seem to know what to do without us teaching them.

I can’t wait to see what new milestones he’ll surprise us with next month!

To Maverik,

Fatima