Six Months!

Jack turns 6-months this week, which is so crazy to me. On one hand, I can't remember my life before he arrived (though I suspect it involved more sleep), but it also seems like just yesterday that he arrived into this world. I am a big fan of half-birthday celebrations, but Jack's is proving to be a bit tricky, having been born on August 31. Technically, his half-birthday would fall on February 31, but since that's impossible, should we celebrate it on February 28? The 29th on a leap year? Or March 3? I'm so confused.

Either way, Happy Happy Half-Birthday to my little man! I took him in for his 6-month photos on Saturday, and I couldn't believe how big and handsome he looked! Then I went back and looked at the photos from birth until now, and couldn't believe he was ever so teeny-tiny. All I know is that every single day since he has been born, that baby boy has put a smile on my face and extra love in my heart.

First Day Home from the Hospital

1 month

2 months

3 months

4 months

5 months

The Greatest Grandmas

 

As I mentioned in my previous post, all of Jack's great-grandmothers have February birthdays. My beloved Grandma turns 92 on the 26th, and Marc's grandmothers have birthdays on the 20th and 24th. My dad's mother (who had an October birthday) passed away when I was nineteen, but she's still a part of Jack's life...every single night I rock Jack in her old rocking chair that my dad so lovingly restored. Jack and I are so blessed to have these women in our lives.
 


Happy Birthday Nonnie!

Happy Birthday GG!

 

Happy Birthday Great-Grandma!

Grandma's Little Valentine

February is a special month for the ladies in Jack's life - all of his living great-grandmothers have birthdays in February, as well as his paternal grandma. If February was a normal-lengthed month instead of so darn short, his maternal grandma would also have a February birthday - instead my mom was born on March 2. I always think how lucky Jack is to have so many wonderful women in his life, and how lucky I am to have them in MY life as well. Jack's "Grammy Judy" watches him a couple days during the week, which is no small task considering she also watches his two older cousins. Somehow even after spending her days with 3 small boys, she still has a smile on her face and perfect hair at the end of the day!

When Jack isn't with Grammy Jude during the week, he's at daycare. At first I was completely nervous and afraid to send him off with a bunch of strangers, but now I love it. I know that he's being cared for by a group of women who have come to truly care for my son, and he's close enough to my office that I get to spend lunch with him each day. When I picked him up this past Friday, I was given a special valentine that he made for his daddy and me...

Seriously, how stinking cute is that?! I love it.

I also love my little Valentine, who was not particularly pleased to get all dressed up in his finest red for one of mommy's photoshoots. Thanks to Great-Aunt Patti for the adorable Valentine monkey, he's bigger than Jack, but Jack LOVES him!





The Very Hungry Jackerpillar

At Jack's 4-month doctor appointment, his pediatrician told me that Jack could start on solid foods whenever I felt he was ready. I had planned on feeding him breastmilk exclusively for the first six months of his life, but as with most of my pre-baby plans, Jack didn't agree. He had reached all of the necessary  milestones for starting on solids, particularly "shows interest in others eating around him". This is a kid who can't be bothered to look up from his busy exersaucer activities when I pick him up from daycare, but open a carton of ice cream in front of him and he'll immediately drop what he's doing, stop his adorable (and constant) "talking", and just stare. He gazes at the food I'm eating or the beverages I'm drinking with such longing that I couldn't put off feeding him any longer. So on his 5-month birthday, Jack got his first taste of solid food.

I had been warned by the pediatrician and many other parents that babies usually make funny faces and spit out their first few bites of "real" food. Marc and I had the video camera on hand to capture these funny faces...only Jack didn't make any. This poor baby was so ready for big people food (if big people ate organic, whole grain, brown rice cereal mixed with breastmilk) that he scarfed down the entire bowl without batting an eye.

I think it's safe to say that we made the right decision giving this kid solid food when we did. Not only did he finish the entire bowl, he was grabbing onto it, looking for more, in between spoonfuls from his mommy or daddy. This week rice cereal, next week avocados...by 6-months this kid will have moved onto steak and sushi!