6 Months

Dear Sam,

It is so unbelievable to me that I typed 6 months in as the title of this post.  Half of your sweet first year has gone by in the blink of an eye.  Driving you home today I heard a song on the radio that I would hear frequntly as we traveled to my many appointments to check on you before you were born.  It is amazing how that can see like just yesterday and so long ago at the same time.

We will get your growth stats at your well-visit next week.  I can't wait to see how you've grown, because I know you've done a lot of it.  You are feeling heavy and looking so big!  Your size is especially noticeable to me now when you're in your bouncer, car seat, or when someone else is holding you.  You are now a hip baby.  You wear size 6 month clothing, but 9 month one-piece items are just around the corner.  You wear a size 2 or 3 diaper depending on the brand.

You are still an eater!  I have not stretched your bottles out any, so you are still getting 5 bottles a day.  They are all 5 ounces with the exception of the nighttime bottle, which is 7.  We still put cereal in your bottle, and you are still on Alimentum formula.  I'm not sure if Dr. Applewhite will suggest trying to get you off one or both of those.  We started solids on a spoon Monday.  You got off to a slow start, but by the 3rd night of sweet potatoes you were eating like a pro.  Avery loved that you were eating sweet potato soup.  After 3 nights of that we moved on to squash, and you're now eating the whole container.  I've completely forgotten how we did this with Avery, so I'm hoping to get some guidance next week.  Dr. Applewhite said you could have as much as you want, and if that's the case, we already need to move to stage 2.  Lots of food still rolls back out of your mouth, and your toes end up in the mix if we're too slow with the spoon.  You now have 2 teeth.

Wake-up time is between 6 and 6:30 a.m. and you still go to bed after your 7 p.m. bottle.  We have not have any sleep disruptions or early wake-ups since the last tooth (knock on wood).  We do have 18 more teeth to go so that could change.  You are on a fantastic nap schedule now that you're at Jennifer's.  During the first week or so going there, you would catch a nap in the car on the way, so you were then able to stay up until after your 9 a.m. bottle.  We just kept you up on weekends and pushed past the drowsiness, and it's working great.  I guess I should have kept you awake longer before, but I knew it would work out somehow.  You now take naps between 9-9:30 a.m. and 12:30-1 p.m. for an hour to an hour and a half, sometimes longer.  You take a cat nap in the car on the way home from Jennifer's, or around 4-4:30 if we're home.  You are in the crib unswaddled for naps now (and have been at bed time for awhile) and put yourself to sleep for naps and at night.  At home you nap with Duckie, but not at Jennifer's or at night since you really like to put him over your face.  On Tuesday morning I got up and checked the monitor and found you on your stomach.  You've been that way every morning since and got on your stomach one night before I had gone to bed.

You still enjoy laying on your back, and now you roll all over the place.  We've got to expand our area for you to lay so you're not bumping your head on the hard floor.  Rolling back and forth can get you in some strange positions.  Things are also getting tricky on the changing table.  On your stomach you are trying to get your legs up under you, and you can pivot around with your arms.  You have good balance sitting up, but when sitting on your own you like to lean straight forward.  I think it's your love of your toes.  You've started propping on your arms so you can sit for a few seconds at a time.  You still love your bouncer and can kick to make it move at an unbelievable speed.  We had the grandparents over Sunday night for dinner, and everyone laughed at you kicking through the entire meal.  You enjoy spending short amounts of time in the exersaucer, which is good, because I think the swing will be going away soon.  You're trying to sit up in it, and you're pulling up on the mobile.  Everything still ends up in your mouth, including your toes.  Today you ended up with Avery's new shoe in your mouth, and she didn't really care for that.

(Proof of the rolling...you started on the blanket.)



You have the biggest smile in the world, and your eyes are so smiley too.  You share your smile with the people you know, but strangers usually comment on how serious you are.  You love to laugh, and Avery still brings it out best.  You just finished your 3rd week at Jen-Jen's, and her reports of you being so happy all day make me so happy as well. 

 

Sam, we couldn't love you more if we tried.  I could kiss your sweet cheeks all day, and I usually do.  Now I've discovered that I can do it at night without waking you, so I get a few kisses in while you're sleeping.  You fell asleep drinking your bottle last night, which is rare, so I made sure to get in a few minutes of rocking with your head on my shoulder.  Sleep rules can go out the window every once in awhile, because you're growing faster than I ever thought possible.  We love you to bits and pieces and are so happy you are ours.

Love,
Mommy