Six

Did you know I have a six month old? I'm still asking myself that daily and then pinching my arm to make sure I'm awake! What a blessing Sam Fred has been to us these six short months. I never realized it until I had a child of my own, but children truly are a blessing from the Lord. I still scratch my head over people who see their children as burdens rather than blessings. I can't figure it out?!

Fred has crossed some milestones since I last updated, so I'll give you a quick list of a few of my favorites. It's always fun to go back and see where he was and where he is now.

-He is sitting up without any support...and every day he stays sitting longer and longer. I'm particularly enjoying this, because he can play and entertain himself with toys on the floor.

-He rolled over at 5.5 months, and now I can barely keep him on his back. Once he gets on his stomach, though, he is an unhappy camper. Each time I put him back on his back, I think...Surely he won't roll himself over again. Surely he won't. But, it never fails. Over he goes.

-Fred smiles all. the. time. It makes my heart so, so happy when he flashes that big, all-gums smile at me. Sometimes, I like to think it's just me, but he, indeed, smiles at everyone.

-We've been working on our catechisms. By "we" I really mean "I." I've been trying to practice them in front of Sam, though, so at least he can hear them and get familiar with them. It's never too early, right?

-Fredricko has discovered he can take his paci out, and, unless he decides to throw it, which usually happens, he tries so hard to get it back into his little mouth. I've only watched him a handful of times actually find his mouth, and I must say it's pretty entertaining, especially as he jabs his paci into his cheeks trying to find the hole.

-We officially started vegetables, and I do hope we have veggie-eater on our hands. A squash, sweet potato, green bean, peas, and carrots kind of eater. Despite his hereditary make-up, he loves peas. We've also introduced him to fruits: bananas, peaches, apples, and mangoes. He hasn't turned down any but was a little leery of the mango, so we'll keep on trying. A friend gave us a gigantic bag of baby food, and after we finish it up, I'm going to try making his baby food. Another friend of mine let me borrow her Williams-Sonoma baby food maker, and now that I know what he likes, why not?! If I had really thought ahead and really wanted to be organic and really wanted to save us some money, I would have planted a garden this year. How cool would that be? Backyard baby food.  Oh well...maybe next time.

-At his six-month appointment, he weighed 18 lbs. 14 oz. (75th percentile) and was 28 inches long (90th percentile). I'm thinking linebacker, eh? I love me a chunky baby.

Well, I think that's it for now. Post coming soon about what we've been up to this summer...