One-half years.

Overheard from the other room:
"Mister, what are you doing? What's in your mouth? Why are you eating your band-aids?"

Yep, Elliott had his 6-month appointment today! (complete with shots, and the aforementioned band-aids. And, yes, he eats everything now)

19 lbs, 1/2 oz
27.75" tall
18" head circumference

This kid is so much fun. He went on his first real camping trip last weekend, and loved the attention from his aunt, uncles, cousins, Grandma & Pappaw. I managed to keep him out of the sun enough that he only ended up with a little pink on his cheeks.

Elliott's not cross-crawling quite yet, but gets around pretty well on his belly, and is managing to rock on his hands and knees quite a bit. Everyone tells us it won't be too long. Right now, as I watch him chase blocks around the room, I wonder if we'll be able to keep up with him, as busy as this little guy is!



This month's new trick (besides eating, mostly-sitting, and almost-crawling): blowing bubbles!



Half a year has passed since Elliott entered our lives. It's hard to believe it's only been a few months, since it is hard to remember what it was like before, when our family of three was a family of two. (That could just be the sleep deprivation talking, though.) This baby changes so fast. He learns so much, all the time. I hope he never stops!

On Solid Food

It's been two months since we got the A-OK go-ahead from Elliott's doctor to start solids. She gave the standard advice of starting between 4-6 months with rice cereal, vegetable purees, and fruit purees, with new foods spaced out at least 4 days to watch for allergic reactions. She did emphasize however, "Food before one is just for fun"- Elliott's main nutrition still comes from nursing, the food is just to get used to tastes, textures, and chewing.

There are so many opinions on when to start babies on food and what to start with. This has been probably the most confusing parenting/baby care issue I've had to figure out yet, because all the opinions seem to make sense. I knew I didn't want to start solids at 4 months- we had a vacation planned when he turned 5 months, and I didn't want to deal with toting food for him along. I also thought 4 months was too early. Some studies show early introduction of foods could cause allergies, although the most recent AAP recommendations admit the studies aren't conclusive. With the history of food & environmental allergies in our families, I figured I couldn't be too careful. Elliott will be six months this weekend.

And then, what to start with? Some say rice cereal, because it's bland and soupy. Others say absolutely not rice cereal, because it's a refined white flour, which Americans eat too much of already. Breastfeeding sites often mentioned pureed meat as a first food. The most common foods I read about actual moms starting their babies on were banana, avocado, and sweet potato. I decided against banana as a first food, because Josh is allergic, the above-mentioned inconclusive studies notwithstanding. So, avocado it was.

The readiness signs were there: sitting well, a crazy interest in whatever was on the table, the ability to communicate when he is full, putting everything in his mouth.

"Are you ready?" I asked him


"I'm ready, Mom!" he answered




Casey is a fan of this new experiment, as demonstrated by the dog nose at the bottom of the photo:


I'm interested in the idea of baby-led weaning (but I'm not sure if I'll follow it 100%), so I want to offer chunks of food for him to try to feed himself in addition to, or instead of, purees. However, chunks of soft avocado are slippery to pick up for a baby still working on fine motor skills. He doesn't seem to mind the spoon.



Whether we feed pieces of food or purees- this is going to be a messy, messy venture!

* Since these photos were taken, he's munched on mango and cantaloupe as well. He loves to chew pieces of food! Food before one IS fun! Also, it's requiring a lot more baths.


Fun baby food resources:
yumnums!
Wholesome Baby Food
Real Baby, Real Food
Adventures in Solid Food
More on Baby-Led Solids Introduction (and here and Wikipedia) and a "How-To" PDF

Happy Father's Day!

Gerig Reunion '11

It is always, without fail, so refreshing to see these friends every year. Now, as our families grow, the conversations tend to revolve around parenting philosophies and hardships, but I have no complaints. Just relaxing in the presence of these friends I lived with for three years is energizing. If only we saw them more than once a year! This year, we got to meet new babies and introduce Elliott to everyone!

Elliott's first swim!


Elliott and Alisse


Elliott and Teresa:


Lately, this has been his typical, wild mood:


Elliott and Michelle:


Me and Ashley's Savannah:


Ann and Timothy with me and Elliott:

Funny story here: So, Ann and David had their wedding 2 weeks after ours. Last year at the Gerig reunion, I announced my pregnancy- I was 11 weeks along. Two weeks later, we got an email from Ann and David- they were pregnant too! She was only 9 weeks along at the reunion, so hadn't said anything. Our due dates were two weeks apart. As you know, Elliott came a little early- and so did Timothy, exactly 2 weeks after Elliott! Ann told me to let her know when #2 is on the way for us, so she knows to be ready :)


And, my two favorite pictures from the weekend:

Savannah dancing in the bubbles. This just makes me happy.


Four friends, four babies, feeding together:

I'm so thankful to have like-minded mom friends. Without their example and support, this being-a-mom thing would be a lot harder. I like that we're on this journey together.

All of the reunion pictures

A part of me

So often, Elliott feels like an extension of myself.

Not because he looks like me. He looks just like his dad. Even strangers say so.
Not because he's so attached he never lets me go. He loves playing on the floor, in his crib, in his bouncer, and with other people.
Not even because, just a few short months ago, he WAS a part of me.

Everything just feel more 'right' when he's next to me. He thinks so too, and calmly looks around and eventually falls asleep when being worn next to me. He loves smiling at strangers from his perch. He's not as content in his stroller or in arms as he is in a sling. He prefers to be snuggled. When naptime comes around and we're not at home, the carrier is pretty much the only way to get him to take a nap. He needs to feel safe and connected. So do I. Even when he's fussing in the stroller or car seat, he feels too far away. When I'm working at church, in the yard, or around the house, he's connected and involved (or asleep) when I can wear him, and we're both happier.

10 days old in the Moby wrap:


Three months:


Our recent trip:



He likes being next to Daddy, too:



Also, when hiking, try getting a stroller through this:


I love babywearing!

This was not a sponsored post. I really, really love our Ergo baby carrier, how much easier it makes my life, and how secure it makes Elliott feel. I had two people stop me at church last week to ask lots of questions about the carrier, and I went on and on about how great it is.

Five Years

When a kid in my life has his fifth birthday, I say excitedly to them, "You're a whole hand old!" and they, without fail, beam really big. Five years!

Today, we're a whole hand married!

The wedding seems like a lifetime ago, though I know that five years isn't a long time. When we got married, I was two weeks out of college, neither of us had started our jobs, our apartment was barely set up, and we were both driving Honda Civics. Now, we have a house we're already considering when we might move out of, a dog, and a baby. I've worked the same job for almost 5 years. I drive a family-car sedan and Josh drives a SUV/minivan thing. We're Grown-Ups.

We had our biggest adventure yet this year as we became parents. I always knew Josh would be a wonderful father, but I had no idea how wonderful. Watching him with Elliott has made me melt into a puddle and fall even more in love with him. (But that's a post to save for Father's Day in a couple weeks.)

Five years from now? Who knows what our family will look like. Whatever adventures await us (and, raising a kid is a big one!),  I'm glad to have Josh as a partner as we tackle them. As I tell him all the time, I couldn't make it without him.

Engagement - Wedding - 1st Anniversary - 2nd Anniversary - 3rd Anniversary - 4th Anniversary

Reality of a photo shoot

Karen's Judah is about a month older than Elliott, and her post today of "outakes" from his 6-month photo inspired me to post this series from last weekend on my grandparents' back porch...






He wants to put everything in his mouth already.