Kim

Half a Year...What?!

Today is officially Henry's 6 month birthday.  What?!  How did that happen?  Seriously?  Weren't we just driving to the hospital at 4am to have our little guy?  Wasn't I just on maternity leave, completely sleep deprived and just beginning to get my bearings on being a mother?  Were we just acting like crazy fools every night trying to get our little guy to just smile at us once?  Wooosh....that is the sound of 6 months flying by.  It is so colloquial, but so stinkin' true: time is flying. 

Happy 6 months to me!
We had our 6 month doctor's appointment today.  More shots = no fun for the little guy :(  I know it will be worse when he can actually anticipate what's coming, but it is still so sad to see him get stuck.  Poor thing.  He continues to be long and lean.  He weighs 16.15lbs (40th percentile) and is 27.5 inches long (80th percentile).  He's very healthy and we continue to be thankful for that!

Henry is SO MUCH FUN now though.  I love watching his little personality develop and seeing him discover new things.  His favorite thing to do right now is jump in his exersaucer.  He has learned to manipulate all of the toys that are attached to it too.  He will easily spend 30 minutes in it, entertaining himself...mostly jumping like a crazy man.  It is too cute. 

I am so happy in this thing!
We're making big progress in the solid food eating arena too.  We've added apples and peaches to the mix and Henry seems to love them all.  When I give him a new food he always makes a little face the first time he tastes it.  Then it is like he realizes that it is pretty yummy and he opens his mouth and grunts for more.  Just yesterday, as we were eating peaches, Henry decided that he wanted to try feeding himself.  He grabbed for the spoon and before I knew what was happening, the entire spoonful of peaches had been flung to the floor.  I know this is just a preview into the messiness that lies ahead, but I will ill-prepared in that moment.  As a compromise, I gave him another (clean) spoon that he could play with/chew on between bites.  This helped some, but he's quick with those little hands - you really have to watch out.
But this spoon doesn't have any peaches on it, mom!
He's also teething like crazy, but so far it still hasn't seemed to bother him.  He is drooling and chewing on things constantly though.  His two bottom teeth are coming in, and I think I can feel a top tooth starting to come through his gums, but I am not sure.  He's just starting to like the cold teething toys.  The first time I gave one to him he made a funny face that told me he wasn't used to the way something cold felt.  Now he seems to appreciate them a lot more.

Preschool is on summer break now, so we're having to have babysitters during the week.  Luckily, we are very blessed that my mother-in-law is watching him a lot for us.  There are two other girls who are filling in the "holes" for me as needed.  I do not mind taking him to my mother-in-law's one bit, but I have found that it is hard for me to leave him at home with a girl close to my age, simply because I feel like I should be the one staying with him, not her!  It is silly.  I don't mind working, and truly this part-time schedule is so ideal.  I think it just feels like I am leaving him with a surrogate "me" and that annoys me.  He loves the two girls who have been watching him and they are wonderful with him...I don't worry at all...it is just the silly mama in me coming out, I think.  I don't get this feeling when I leave him with my mother-in-law or any other family members.  I don't know what it is.  So weird.  But I am very thankful for everyone who watches him for us and is helping get us through these last weeks of summer.  I will be glad when Labor Day gets here and he gets to go back to preschool though!

It is amazing how much we have learned in 6 months.  I think back to our first doctor's appointment that was just a few days after we brought Henry home.  I made Matt go with me, started preparing an hour early, and was completely paranoid that I would forget something or not have something our little guy needed once we got there.  Now, I easily throw the diaper bag in the car, strap Henry into his car seat and head out the door.  It is amazing how quickly all of this became normal for us. There is no doubt that we were meant to be a little family, and I am so thankful for all the blessings Henry brings us!
Kim

Scooter

Henry is narrowing in on his 6 month birthday.  Holy cow.  How is it possible that he has been here for half a year already?!  Each day is a new adventure.  He loves to play and reach for things now.  If he's sitting in his bumbo, you better look out for whatever is around him because he's very likely to knock it over, either with his feet or hands.  And speaking of his feet...he still loves to kick them.  Constantly.  He must have some of the strongest baby legs around!  We still struggle with naps, but he's sleeping great at night, so I don't worry about it too much.  I don't know what it is, but he'll really only nap in the afternoon if I hold him.  I'm not giving up though.

(OK, quick confession:  I am actually typing this right now with him asleep in my arms.  Pretty talented, huh?)

A laptop and a sleeping babe.

The little guy still isn't rolling over consistently, but he is definitely mobile.  He will roll from side to side, but I just can't seem to get him to go all the way over onto his tummy.  I am trying to be more intentional about tummy time, ensuring that he does it every day and he still hates it.  He's strong enough to hold his head up, but he gets so mad.  I know he'd be so happy if he would just figure out that he can roll onto his back and solve all his worries!  Poor little thing.  I am trying not to let it bother me that he's not doing a lot of rolling.  He is very mobile and I am sure he will roll when he's ready.  

One thing he has mastered is scooting.  He started out on his play mat the other day and ended up here...just by scooting on his back...
I think his new nickname should be "Scooter"
Don't worry.  I was watching him the whole time.  He loves getting somewhere where he can put his legs up and push off.  That is why he liked that corner of his crib.  He'd put his feet on the crib and then roll from side to side.  He thought it was hilarious. 

We're making some progress in the solid food eating adventure too.  We stuck with sweet potatoes for another week and he really started to get the hang of things.  This week I gave him bananas and he loved them!  He opened his mouth up wide for the spoon every time and even tried to grab the spoon himself a few times.  We've had bananas two days in a row now.  He definitely gets his love for them from his dad, as even just peeling a banana kind of makes me gag.  I'll do it for my sweet babe though.

We head to the doctor next week for his official 6 month appointment.  He has to get vaccinations again, but hopefully he'll handle them as well as he did last time.  I am pretty interested to hear how much he weighs and how long he is.  Our little guy is growing!  
Kim

Beach Babe

We finally got around to putting Henry's toes in the sand! He's been to the beach three times before, but it was cold each time and he never actually got to see the ocean.  This past weekend, we remedied that.  He was mesmerized by the ocean and didn't seem to mind a little sand between his toes.  He's going to be a beach baby for sure!  (I hope.) 
Toes in the sand!
Watching the waves roll in.

Checking out the ocean.

So it is hard to get a good family photo these days!
Henry also had a great time exploring more of Bald Head and watching Matt fish!
Lounging at the pool.

Next year maybe I'll have my own fishing rod!

Cruising around the island.
It was a great weekend relaxing at the beach.  Trips with a baby are certainly different and a bit more work, but Henry really is a good baby and overall he makes things as easy as possible.  We are constantly amazed by what a blessing this little man is.
Kim

First Tooth!

Henry is officially getting his first tooth!  He's been drooling and chewing on things for a while now and everyone kept telling me that he's teething, but honestly, babies do that so much that I wasn't sure whether he really was or not.  However, yesterday I realized that there is a little tooth working its way to the surface in the bottom of his mouth.  You can feel it just starting to break through his gums.  It doesn't seem to be bothering him, so let's hope it stays that way.  I'm guessing there are more to come soon?!
Can't see my tooth, but it's coming!
Also, we've started trying solid foods...just a little.  We started with rice cereal and oatmeal, but he had a few stomach issues with those, so I took a break.  I could also tell that he wasn't quite sure what to do with the food yet.  He's slowly getting the hang of it and will now open his mouth for me to put the spoon in.  Sometimes he keeps the food in, other times he pushes it out with his tongue.  With a little persistence though we can make some progress.  Because of the issue with the rice cereal and oatmeal, I decided to go ahead and try a vegetable.  Sweet potatoes are highly recommended as a first food, so we went with that.  He's had them three times now and seems to like them ok.  Again, I can tell each time that he's learning that this is food too.  Up until this point all of his food has come from a bottle, so there is definitely a learning curve there.  I am proud of him though.  I know it won't be long before he's eating sweet potatoes and all kinds of things like a champ.  I'm not sure what we'll try next.  You are supposed to wait a few days after introducing something to make sure they don't have any allergic reactions.  I have another sweet potato, so we'll probably stay on that for a few more days anyways.  Luckily, the Internet is a great resource and has a wealth of information on pretty much everything.  I really don't know how moms did it before Google.  (I mean, even the night I went into labor I was laying there in bed googling "what does a contraction feel like?" to make sure I was actually having them!)  I also have a lot of great friends with little ones just a few months older.  It is so helpful to hear their tips and tricks.  I can't believe our little guy is just a few weeks shy of being 6 months old.  Sometimes I look at him and he looks like such a little boy...other times I can still see what a sweet baby boy he is.  Pray the teething process continues to go smoothly!
Hi there!
Kim

Independence Day

Happy July 4th!  We had a great time celebrating Henry's first fourth.  July 4 fell on a Wednesday this year which made things slightly strange, but we were going to head to my parents house for the day to celebrate anyways.  However, a stomach virus of some sort attacked them the day before, so we erred on the side of safety and stayed in town instead.  Some good friends had us over and we spend the day swimming and grilling out by the pool.  That night we celebrated America with a nice Mexican dinner :)  Matt and I laughed about that, but hey, that's America, right?
Happy July 4th!
Kim

5 months

Currently, Henry is obsessed with cups.  I think he thinks they are all his bottle.  If you are drinking something and he is anywhere around he will try to grab the cup from you or swat at it.  You have to be careful - I've almost spilled a few drinks because of this!  Also, in the bathtub I use a cup to pour water on him.  He loves trying to catch the water in his hands, and will laugh as it splashes over his tummy.  He really does discover something new each day.

It has been HOT around here lately, so sometimes we just hang out in our diaper - and take a nap on dad.

We're still working on rolling over.  He's very mobile - scooting on his back and even rolling on his sides - but there has been no consistent rolling.  The other night he was laying on his side while playing on his playmat.  Eventually, he did roll to his stomach, but that is the first time I've seen him really do it.  He does roll from his stomach to his back more often, but again, nothing consistent.  I've come to the conclusion that he will do it when he is ready.  I think that he loves laying on his back (and now his side) to play and sleep and therefore has no real incentive to roll.  Henry's never liked to be on his stomach.  We do tummy time every day and he will tolerate it, but he clearly doesn't love it at all.  He's so mobile that I don't think we have anything to worry about.  Just one of those things...


Laying on my side and sucking my thumb.
Speaking of mobile, he's really learned to bounce in his exersaucer.  Last night you would have thought he was on a trampoline by the way he was jumping.  He thinks it is hilarious, and of course, we encourage him.  That boy should have the strongest legs around.  Aside from all the jumping he's doing, he still wakes up every morning and kicks his legs up and down in his crib over and over.  Really any time he is playing, there is leg kicking involved.  Maybe we have a future soccer star on our hands? 
Kim

This Love

This love that is motherhood is truly unreal.  People tell you about it.  You read about it.  You even imagine it.  But truly there is nothing like it, and nothing can prepare you for it.  I love this little guy so very much.  I tell Matt all the time that Henry is my favorite person in the whole world and he agrees. 

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