Today is not that day

Believe me, I know how overdue this is.  I think about posting here everyday and somehow it has continued to end up on the back burner.  A lot has changed in the last month and half.

Sitting:  In my last post I talked about how ready James was to be sitting.  He now sits without assistance and has for a few weeks now.  He does occasionally tip over so we usually keep the boppy around him if we're not sitting with him.

Crawling:  He's already moving towards this milestone and my guess is that it will happen within the next several weeks.  He started with planks (see below) and now gets on his hands and knees frequently and rocks back and forth.  Maybe he's just getting himself hyped up to make the big move.  He can also spin himself around quite easily when he's on his stomach.  It's amazing to watch him growing so fast.

Eating:  We started solids at the end of February with bananas.  I think the whole experience was so new to him he wasn't sure what to make of it but now he loves them.  He has also had sweet potatoes and avocado.  Sweet potatoes took a few tries for him to enjoy them and he is NOT a fan of avocado.  I'm planning to try peas and applesauce soon.

Sleeping:  James is still not a great sleeper.  He still gets up an average of twice a night making for one tired mama.  We are transitioning to also taking naps in the crib rather than the swing.  Overall I would say it's going okay.  Of the three naps he usually takes a day, the first is typically when he goes down the best - probably because he's the most tired for it.  The other two are often a fight and he usually ends up taking his third in his swing.  Yesterday I let him try to fight it out in his crib but it was a no go and he ended up skipping it altogether.  Someday he'll learn, but today is not that day.

Teeth:   I discovered yesterday that James is getting his first tooth!.  Every time I try to look at it he sticks his tongue out making it impossible to see.  It has yet to pop through and it's causing some fussiness on his part, though not too terrible. I'm guessing it will be through in the next couple days and hopefully he'll be his normal, happy self.

Size:  I did a few quick measurements myself last week and he's around 18.5 lbs and about 27.5 inches long.  His six month appointment isn't until the 18th since I pushed back his four month appointment (the shots need to be given at least two months apart).

Favorites:  Some of J's favorite things right now include nakey time before bed -  don't think he'll ever get tired of that one.  He enjoys his exersaucer but has a tendency to get bored with it relatively quickly, probably because he'd rather be practicing his moves on the floor.  He loves looking in mirrors while being held.  It brings a big smile every time.  Time with Dad is also high on the list.  He just needs to give James a silly look and J is taken over with giggles.  And of course, he is fascinated by Callie.  He stares at her constantly and is always trying to touch her if she's close.  I don't think it's one of her favorite things, though. =)

Playdate! (she was born the day before and was two doors away at the hospital).  He also looks huge next to her :)

Goofing around

5 months old!

Callie is not impressed

First time in the exersaucer

Loving the hat from Grandma Sue

Look what I can do!

♥♥

So happy :)

Getting in some dad time before he heads to work

"Helping" me cook dinner

Love. This.

Snuggle time

Planks all day.

What is going on?

I don't think I like this!

Okay, not so bad

J man looks like a doll but this is still cute

Already eating like a pro

And happy to do it! Can't believe we're at 6 months already!

Ooo doggy.

Lounging with Grandpa Joel

Uncle Clay time!

Grandma Pam snuggles

Playdate! They are 12 days apart.

Chillaxin with Grandma Pam.

Lounging with Grandpa Larry and snacking on his pacifier.

Weirdo as always.

I may have mentioned this already but if I could describe motherhood in a single word it would be: sacrifice.  Most days I do a pretty good job of handling the things that are (or aren't) thrown my way and other days I wonder how I continue or will continue to get through it.  There are days when I find myself thinking, "One day ___ will happen, today is not that day."  It makes it harder than ever to live so far from family.  I know God's plan is greater than my own but that doesn't always make it easy to handle.  Is being a stay-at-home-mom rewarding? Incredibly so.  Is it easy?  Not by any stretch of the imagination.  Don't believe me?  Read this.

Love,
-K