Monday, August 29, 2005

Stages It was an odd weekend.  Oliver slept -  especially on Sunday - prodigiously. He took at least two long (two hour) naps during the day.   He also made great leaps in his development.  He tries to sit up now, when before he just lay on his Boppy or on a lap.  He's also able to grasp things now - we've got pictures of him with his fingers clenched around his soft rattle or a toy.  (We're still giddy enough that we take pictures of every little thing that he does.  We're taking an average of 100 photos a month.)  Before, he would bat at things or occasionally clench them against his chest with both arms, the way schoolgirls would carry their books before backpacks with wheels were invented.  The experts say that babies often sleep deeply and become fussy before leaping a developmental stage.  It's exhausting to learn new skills, so they rest as much as possible when they're not practicing.  (Sorry, I can't find a link to an expert.  Just trust me.) He's sleeping again, by the way.  He usually takes a nap, but he slept for hours and hours last night, woke up completely, let his mother feed him, and collapsed into sleep again.  When he was awake, we were very impressed at his ability to grab.  I told him there's probably a career ahead of him with that skill, but the only career I can think of that requires grabbing skills is shoplifting. 8:05:01 AM     Speak up!  []