8 months!

My goodness, time sure seems to be speeding up! Another month has gone by already!

At 8 months, Samuel...

* CRAWLS! Well...he gets around. He is very determined to move, but his method is a little unusual. He gets up on all fours, moves his knees forward a little, then flops on his belly. Somehow this moves him forward a few inches, and then he gets up and does it again and again until he gets where he wants to go. He is getting faster, but he's still got some work to do on his technique : )

* has a tooth! Just one on the bottom, so far. It kind of snuck out there without bothering him too much. Another one is trying to come through and it is much meaner. His mouth seems to really bug him, and sometimes it wakes him up or makes him a little whiney. I give him Teether Tablets, Tylenol, and frozen apple slices to bite on that he seems to love!

* still eats pureed fruits and vegetables twice a day with some rice cereal. Just this week I started giving him some tasteless rice cracker things to practice finger foods a little.

* still likes to squeal at the top of his lungs when he's excited. He has also started making these deep, growly noises that tickle his throat and make him cough, which he think is funny.

* has SO much fun in his bath. He has learned to SPLASH, so he doesn't use his little tub at all anymore. Now he gets to sit all by myself in the big tub and make a mess flapping his arms in the water. He really likes the acoustics in there, too, so he does a lot of squealing!

* loves to ride in the stroller for walks in the evening. Any time he goes outside he is content and so peaceful!

* has figured out how to JUMP! He jumps in his exersaucer, in the johnny jump-up, and on any surface someone helps him stand on. He loves to bounce : )

Here's some photos from the last month...

Samuel LOVES the computer. Skype, emailing, blogging, facebook....

We took Samuel for his first hike up Stone Mountain. He enjoyed his ride!

This is how we usually find him when he wakes up, usually with his hands reaching through, too. If he could just figure out how to squeeze his head through, he'd be free!

I tried to get some sweet pictures of him at the park, but he was in a serious mood.

Very serious!

...at least until we got to the swings : )

8 month photos

Determined crawler!

See him in motion!

7 months!

Samuel is growing, growing and busy, busy! At 7 months he...

* is in constant motion. It is a rare (and usually very sleepy) moment for him to sit still at all. Twisting, reaching, flapping his arms...

* isn't crawling yet, but is rolling ALL over the place. He also spins on his tummy and pushes backwards to get around.

* sits solidly for long periods! He loves his new independent perspective, but gets frustrated that he hasn't figured out how to get OUT of a seated position when he's tired of it.

* is still nursing 4 times a day, and eats fruits and veggies with rice cereal twice a day. We're continuing to introduce new things all the time and so far he likes it all!

* has started making squeaky, high pitched sounds all the time. He sounds like a puppy.

* is learning his "Mmmm" sounds, and has actually said "MaMa" once.

* is still waiting for his first tooth. Mommy is in no hurry!

Looking like a little man.

First ride in a swing.

He just put his head down and dangled when we first put him in the bucket, but had a blast once he realized how much fun it could be to swing! Just look at these smiles...

Love playing with Daddy!

Ready for my first Georgia game! (but it was on after my bedtime, so I didn't get to watch!)

Progression

Samuel LOVES his bath time! Any bits of fussiness are guaranteed to disappear the moment he hears the water running, and he starts laughing out loud in anticipation when we begin to get him undressed. As he's in a stage of constantly reaching new milestones, including tonight's first time in the big tub, I thought it would be fun to watch his bath progression : )

First bath at home (3 days old?). Just a sponge bath, though. Not thrilled about it yet!

Finally get to submerge! Plenty of room in my hospital basin. (Cord is off...about a week old.) Liking things better now.

In my baby tub. LOVE soaking in the water and sitting in the sling. (about 1 month old)

Filling things out a little better now (about 4 months).

Turned around in the baby tub. Sling is gone, I'm sitting up and playing with toys! (6 months)

And now, in the big tub! (6 1/2 months)

So sweet : )

Six months...ish.

It's hard to believe that it has already been over half a year since Samuel joined our family! We were commenting the other day that even though it feels like he was born just yesterday, we also have a hard time remembering what life was like without him with us : ) He has been such a sweet addition, and we are beyond blessed!

I started this blog with great intentions of keeping up more regularly on our family and things. I failed. Here's to trying again...

At six and a half months, Samuel is

* finally on the growth chart as of his 6 month appt! He weighed 13 lb 12 oz (2%) and was 24 inches long (less than 2%). He's growing and proportionate and even full of rolls and dimples : )

* rolling all over the place and scooting around on the floor. We are beginning to think containment strategies in our multi-level house!

* finally getting more hair after losing most of what he was born with. It's coming in light brown/blond, instead of the nearly black he was born with.

* still wearing some 0-3 month clothes. He is starting to be able to get into some 3-6's, but they're a little big : )

* sitting fairly independently. He still topples often and can't be left without at least a pillow behind him, though.

* is very grabby! I like to touch faces of people holding me, take hold of ANYthing in reach, and I have started reaching out to be held by my family.

* going on about a month of eating cereal and other mush. We're exploring all types of fruits and veggies these days. Otherwise, he's still nursing 4 times a day.

* sleeping like a champ! He finally goes down easily and rarely wakes up for even a paci at night. And he can find and replace his own pacifier! We LOVE this skill!

* chewing on EVERYthing! Nobody sees any evidence of any teeth coming in, though.

* uses his feet like a monkey! He grabs them, uses them to play with toys, and even chews on them when nothing else is available.

* a constant babbler! He frequently lets out high pitched squeals and seems pretty proud about it!

* so SMILEY! Friends, family, strangers... anyone who talks to him gets a a big grin and is immediately charmed : )

* both in love with and loved by his big sisters. He lights up when he sees them, and they love to make him laugh and watch him develop new skills.

* super laid back and easy going. He never fusses and rarely cries.

We had a busy but fun summer. We got to spend lots of time with Sydney and Noelle, traveled a little, and adjusted to life with a baby as two working parents who are also still newlyweds. Ok. 'Adjusted' may be too generous of a word. We at least realized we have adjustments to make and are working on those!

Samuel is actually about 4 1/2 months here, but I couldn't leave out a picture of his first trip to the beach!

First cereal! (playing with the spoon is a lot more fun than eating)

Visiting with the cousins.

With Noelle and Sydney : )

Big boy, sitting up!

Trying this thing out...

Well, I guess I'm joining the crowd of bloggers. I'm pretty sure I have no skills or creativity for this kind of thing. Nonetheless, it seems a good way to share updates, photos, and milestones with the people that love us. If they can bear with me in life in general, I'm sure their grace will apply here as well. Stay tuned...