Here is a fun video of Zach after a bath playing around on his favorite cloth diaper and the hat I crocheted for him yesterday. I have now crocheted about 7 hats for him, and I have "invented" 4 or 5 different patterns. I'm thinking I need some new models for my hats though, as well as some more natural fiber yarn. I have some wool yarn in purple, but the majority of my current stash is mostly synthetic. If you or someone you know would like a personally handcrafted hat for free let me know and we can talk about size, color, style, ect. I just love making them and coming up with patterns. I think my next project will ba a "slouchy hat" Here is a picture of what a slouchy hat is.

We took Z to get his second H1N1 shot today. It was relatively painless and in a few days he will be completely immune to the flu!! Yay! I had to have Elliot (Tosh for those of you who call him that) drive me since my car is still out of commission due to battery/alternator issues. I have been walking everywhere, but the 35 miles to Johannasberg (where the clinic was)
was a little ouy of my capability at this point. Anyhow, he took it like a champ and only cried for a few seconds when they gave it to him. I made sure to get him the preservative free one as usual. No mercury for us, thank you very much anyhow.
I am an advocate of delayed solids (waiting till 6 months) because as a biologist I know that the cells in the gut take time to develop and close properly before they are ready to protect the body from possible pathogens and absorb food properly, which has been shown to occur at 6 months, BUT I'm also a proponent of following your instincts as a parent (and in most situations in life). This is why I had such a struggle deciding when to start Z on solid foods. He was gaining PLENTY on breastmilk alone, so it really seemed best to wait. It was heartbreaking to watch him repeatedly lunge for our food and drool oh-so-subtly as we all cheerily ate dinner while he sat on my lap, but I was sticking to my guns! I would wait. But the straw that broke the camel's back came when one morning as I was eating my daily banana and Z did a faceplant INTO it in a desperate attempt to get a taste. As I wiped the banana and smugly satisfied look off of his face, I realized my instincts and my baby were waving a huge flag telling me "Hey! Time for some solids!" However, being that I am different, I decided to ignore the advice of most pediatricians to start with all the cereals and then go to the veggies and finally fruits, followed by meats and dairy. Being that rice cereal is easy to digest, I did give him some, but I also quickly added other yummy things like avocado and banana. Now he eats a whole range of foods including peas, green beans, carrots, oat cereal, unsalted crackers to teethe on, broccoli, sweet potatoes, apple, spinach, ect. Much to my dismay, he seemed to not like anything nearly as much as that first banana, except perhaps avocado. I would buy fresh organic produce, lovingly steam it, and then put it through the baby food mill I got a long time ago. THEN I would playfully "airplane" it into his mouth including sound effects and all. Within seconds it would be spit back out at me, and Z's mouth would be clamped shut, or he would be making horrible gagging sounds (not choking) as if it tasted like poison. And so now at 6.5 months he eats very little actual food, mostly breastmilk. He will eat a little bit, but then stops after 3 small bites. I just assumed he wasn't that into food and so I haven't been pushing the issue. Sometimes he'll eat the veggies we're having for dinner and sometimes he won't. BUT last night I saw organic babyfood on sale for 2 for $1, so I bought some since we will be hitting the road to go to New Mexico soon, and it might be difficult to make on the road. Anyway, I gave him some last night and HE LOVED IT!! It was nothing special, just peas and water on the ingredient list, but he liked it so much more than when I make him peas. The only difference is it was very smooth, and the purees I make tend to be quite chunky. So I think I need to start making his food thinner and more liquidy. I guess I'll start putting them in the magic bullet for a few seconds before I give them to him. Who would have guessed he's as picky as his Mama, who can't eat mushy foods?
Other highlights of the day include cleaning up dog poo from the yard, starting to fix the back gate (again), chasing a stray pitbull out of our yard after he growled at Elloit when he got home for lunch, and finishing packing all of Z's clothes for the Abq trip!! I can't believe it's only 2.5 days till we leave!! Yikes!