Six Months

We've made it half a year! And we've all survived! There is something about six months that just seems monumental. It feels like we are right on the verge of hopping on the little man express. I can't stop it, and I just need to enjoy the ride.

You did not cooperate for your monthly photo. I tried three different times before giving up. Your 6-month appointment was today. You went through quite the growth spurt these past couple of months. You measured 28.25 inches, which puts you in the 97% for height. You weigh 16 lbs 4 oz, which puts you in the 25th percentile. Tall and lanky. You certainly don't look thin - I think all your fat is in your cheeks and thighs!

This age is so. much. fun. You are starting to become more independent and wanting to do more things on your own. You started sitting up unassisted right after 5 months, and now you can sit up on your own for several minutes. This has made you quite happy, and it's all you want to do these days. Mom likes this too because you are content to sit on the floor and play with your toys.

I'm sure you already have your sights set on your next move - learning to crawl. You get pretty upset when something you want is out of reach. You've figured out some creative ways to scooch, roll, or twist your way toward the object of your desire, but no crawling yet. It frustrates you to no end, but it's pretty cute to watch you try.

We took a few steps back over the last month regarding sleep. Nothing too drastic, but of course as soon as I felt like we were really hitting our stride and stringing together a few nights of no wakings, you changed things up. I blame the developmental leap we just survived. It was a doozy, but yet again, it was fun to watch you learn and master new skills. You have still been napping well overall, and going down easily at night, but your latest curveball is waking up within the first 1-2 hours and having a bit of trouble going back to sleep. However, once you do go back to sleep, you generally stay asleep until 7:00 a.m.

We spent the last 10 days in Kansas and Oklahoma visiting Schmeema & Papa, and then celebrating cousin Abby's first birthday. All things considered, you did really well. You were well behaved on the flights (save the last 15-20 minutes on the final leg, but I don't blame you - it was a short flight that lasted about 1 hour longer than it needed to), and you rolled with all the schedule upheavals. You were pretty content and happy during the day, but you did have trouble sleeping. It was a bit of a roller coaster - some naps were great, others were a fight. Some bedtimes were fairly easy, other nights you ended up waking a lot and/or sleeping in the big bed with me. It's hard to say how much of it was the travel vs. growth spurt vs. developmental leap vs. teething vs. all of the above. Once I accepted it was going to be a challenge getting you to sleep, I actually enjoyed all the extra snuggles. It's been a long time since you fell asleep in my arms, and it was nice to just be still with you again (you are such a wiggle worm that you have to be asleep or really, really tired in order to cuddle). But now that we are back at home, we are hoping to get back on track.

We are introducing solids this week - you are more than ready, but we thought it made sense to start in earnest once we were back home. You did enjoy a few bites of watermelon a couple of days ago in Oklahoma. And when Abby was eating her birthday cake, you helped her out by sticking your whole hand right in there. We intervened before you could get your hand to your mouth... you poor kid. Your parents are no fun.

You smile at us all the time, and we get you to laugh uncontrollably at least once a day, but when we are out and about, you are quite somber. You just really want to look around and take in all the new sights and sounds. You have no time for people distracting you from your observations. Of course, people are always smiling at you or talking to you (I mean, you are pretty adorable...in my totally biased opinion), but you generally give them zero reaction. ZERO. I spend a lot of time apologizing to people on your behalf. It's pretty funny to watch, though, because I know it's coming every time.

There are no teeth yet, but maybe you are working on some? It's hard to say. You've always put everything in your mouth so I can't necessarily blame that on teething. And when I say everything, I mean everything. I know all babies chew on things, but you chew on EVERYTHING. In fact, you immediately reject toys and objects that can't fit in your mouth. Your favorite toys are not toys at all, but random things you find to stuff in your mouth. You love chewing on water bottles, wrappers, paper, and plastic ziploc bags (you don't even use pacis anymore, but I keep the ziploc baggie filled with pacis in your diaper bag for pure entertainment). Lately, you've been chomping down on bags of frozen corn or peas. If nothing is readily available, you'll gnaw on our fingers, hair, jewelry, phones, or even my face. If it's within reach, it goes in your mouth. We are going to be in real trouble when you start to crawl.

Favorite activities include bouncing in your jumperoo and flying around in mom or dad's arms. You especially love being tossed in the air. You like almost any toy that can fit in your mouth so it's hard to say if you have a favorite - probably still the Baby Einstein music toy. It's the master distracter. Your shark stuffed animal is also a favorite - you like to eat his nose. You stare in wonder at your crib aquarium. I use it to keep you still before and after naps when I'm getting you in and out of your sleepsuit and pajamas.

We can add bathroom hand dryers to the list of things you hate. You get a little cranky when you are tired, when you topple over and want to be sitting up again or when you can't reach what you want. Otherwise, you are a pretty content baby. Of course, since you are so serious, we never really know. We have simply taken the position that we assume you are happy unless you make it very clear otherwise.

Your personality it coming out more and more each day. You are fascinated by the littlest things. I'm always amazed at what you will find interesting or hilarious. One day, you laughed and laughed when I simply dropped a plush ball onto the floor over and over again. Another day, ripping pages out of a catalog was the greatest thing that ever happened to you. Of course, if I tried dropping the ball again or giving you a catalog to play with, you would probably look at me with your sarcastic side eye as if to say, "These things are old news, Mom. Try again."

You like to observe and study things before making a move, but once you've decided you want something or want to do something, you will not be denied. It's always a fun game to hypothesize about your future temperament. It's all a guess at this point, but I do think we'll be able to look back someday and recognize pieces of your personality that are forming even now. People who know me and your dad often comment on how much you are like us. We get a lot of "he is so your child" remarks. I hope we do you proud, little man.

A bird pooped on your head this month. You were unfazed. And that's all she wrote. Let's do this again next month.