Carter: 6 Months

Monkey,
You are SIX MONTHS old today! 1/2 of a year! Oh my, I can't believe how much I love you and how quickly these six months have gone by.  This month has been my absolute favorite as you grow out of the itty-bitty baby phase and into the chunky, chubby, big baby phase.   I'm sure I will sing this tune for awhile, but I could stay in the sixth month forever.  I love that you laugh and smile all day and really show us what you enjoy to do and see.  We are good at guessing and fixing whatever may be wrong with you at times, and we can tell that you are starting to learn things.  Like when I go to pick you up you will lift up your arms.  Smart boy!  My favorite part is that you have developed a LOVE for your Mama and instantly calm when you are in my arms.  Nothing makes me feel so good as when I pick you up and you stop crying and bury your little head into my shoulder.  That feeling...where I know my life is meant for so much more (being YOU!) can carry me through all the rough times that come with motherhood.  To say my love for you has grown this month would be a very true statement.

Last month I said you were a very happy baby, laughing and smiling constantly.  This month you took a slight detour as TWO TEETH came in on the bottom!  You were a fuss-pot for awhile when your teeth were coming in and I just felt so badly for you.  Now I understand why moms curse teeth all the time; it's miserable to see your baby in pain like that! Thankfully, it wasn't too terrible and you were back to your giggly, smily self quickly.  You have Mama's permission to hold off on any more teeth until you are 12 months old :)

Your hair is coming back with a vengeance! I just love your spiky, blonde hair! I caught myself looking back at your baby pictures (can I really even say that since I feel like you are still a little baby?!?) this month wondering who that brunette baby with all that hair was, lol!  It's crazy to me that you have gone from a full head of brown hair, to bald, to blonde!  I can't wait to see what your hair does in the next 6 months.  Hopefully you got your Mama's hair genes...

You are still nursing about 6 times a day for about 30 minutes each time.  Our morning and night sessions are a little longer while you fill up your belly for the day or night.  Your teeth have not proven to be too big of a problem but I'm okay with you sticking to just the two teeth for awhile! You are also eating 4 tablespoons of rice cereal a day, 2 in the morning and 2 at night.  We will probably start veggies this next month after we get the okay from Dr K.  I'm so excited to see how you react to "real" food!

Your nighttime sleep was amazing for the first 3 weeks of the month.  You typically sleep 8-8 with a short feeding sometime between 4-6 before going right back down.  This past week you have been all over the place- waking 2 or even 3 times each night.  I'm guessing growth spurt and praying you go back to your 8-8 schedule soon...Mama can't keep up too much longer like this! At least not without copious amounts of coffee and/or Diet Coke :)

Your naps have improved...you are at least going down in your crib and not sleeping in my arms, but are still not where we need to be.  We will be holding Baby Nap Bootcamp in the McDaniel house this month until you get more consistent with falling asleep on your own and staying asleep an acceptable amount of time.  You are still wanting to cat nap throughout the day and I just don't think you are getting the rest you need during those cat naps.  What I would give for even just an hour at a time!!

 While you are awake you love to be "with" us "doing" whatever we are doing.  Independent play is just not your cup of tea...at least not for more than 5 minutes at a time.  You are all about being on our hips as we move around the house, the store, whatever it may be.  You have started playing in your Exersaucer this month and love watching the little frog light up and sing to you.  During dinner prep and dinner time you sit pretty contently in your high chair playing with your links and keys.  In the morning you love sitting in your bumbo and staring at yourself in the mirror or watching me blow my hair dry.  You are absolutely fascinated by the hair dryer!  You still love standing on our legs and jumping around- no longer will you sleep on our chest or be held in a bear hold.  No sir...you have to be seeing what's going on around you.  Nosy rosy!

You have finally started rolling over!  You still can't go from your tummy to your back (unless you are REALLY mad) but consistently roll from your back to your tummy over both shoulders.  I'm ready for you to be able to roll both ways because you get fussy when you are stuck on your tummy but you refuse to stay laying on your back! Silly boy!  This means our time being swaddled at night is coming to an end.  I really hate to see the swaddle go because I feel like that's your cue at night to settle down and go to sleep, but we can't have you rolling over in your swaddle.  I'm praying that this is a smooth transition for you (and me!)

You can almost sit up by yourself...you make it about 10 seconds before you fall over sideways or faceplant in the floor.  Gosh, sitting up...that seems like such a huge milestone and really separates the "infants" from the "babies."  I don't know if I'm ready for this!

Chatty Cathy- you love to talk to Mama! You wake up talking to yourself, talk while your eating breakfast, in the car, wherever we are you are always talking.  You've mastered all your vowel sounds and have started some consonant-vowel combos, the best being "mamamamamama!"  Daddy says we practice together all day but honestly you started that one all on your own, mister.  You mainly save the "mamama" for the beginning of a fussy period which gives me a glimpse of what it will be like when you can really start communicating.  I'm positive that the first time you scream out "Mama" when you are sad or hurt I will absolutely melt.

You are really getting good at using your hands and can grab almost anything you put your mind to.  99% of the stuff you grab and hold onto goes into your mouth, so I've really had to be good about watching what is in your arms reach.  One morning I looked and you had a makeup brush in your mouth!  You have also found your feet this month and love to sit and hold your feet, especially if you are lying down or in your car seat.  Thankfully you are not able to lift those thunder thighs up enough to get your feet in your mouth :)

Baby boy, sugar dumpling, pumpkin butt, monkey face...your Daddy and I are just pleased as punch that you are growing up to be the best little baby boy we could have ever hoped for.  We pray over your health and well-being every day and stand in awe of the work God is doing in us and for you.  We love that you have completely turned our worlds upside-down in the very best way possible.  We love you to the moon and back.

6 Month Stats:

Weight: 17 pounds, 8 ounces (52%)

Length: 26 inches (42%)

Eating: nursing around 6am, 8:00am, 11am, 2pm, 5pm, 8:0opm

Bedtime: around 8:30pm

Awake: around 8:00am

Naps: around 10am, 12:30pm, and 3:30pm

Diapers: size 3 Huggies

Clothes: 3-6 months

Favorites: talking and singing, chewing on your hands/our hands/any object, playing with Mama's hair, standing on our legs, diaper changes, bath time

Development: rolling over, sitting up semi-assisted, paying attention to small objects