6 Months Old

At 6 months, everywhere we go, everywhere, people comment on SS's big, blue eyes.

Everything goes in his mouth. SS can pull his pacifier out of his mouth and then put it back in. And he just started grabbing his feet.

SS rolls from tummy to back and back to tummy and ends up in a completely different spot than we left him, but he hasn't quite realized that he can transport himself to places and things that he wants yet. Although I hesitate to say that, because the other possibility is that he just doesn't want anything that badly yet - he really is a content little baby. Perhaps if there was some kind of machine that doled out kisses and cuddles, he would be more motivated to move himself, because he does love kisses, like breaks-into-big-smiles-when-you-kiss-his-cheek loves kisses, but as is, he is happy to lay on the floor and grab his feet and roll around just for fun.

SS is getting loud. He makes loooooong loud sounds when he is heading towards sleepy, not unhappy sounds, he's just chatty. It's hilarious. One night at dinner J said that SS was being loudly talky, and BB laughed - when BB stopped laughing, SS made the same noise, and BB laughed again, so SS made the same noise and BB laughed and J told me and we thought Oh no! We have two of them! Because BB loves to get a laugh too and will repeat himself to keep us laughing. I had assumed that SS and BB would be very different in personality, but this is something that makes me think they actually might be a lot alike.

Though one definite difference between BB and SS is that SS will smile at anyone who smiles at him - he is such a smiley baby, while BB made you work a little more for a smile. BB would take his time to observe people before he warmed up to them, but SS just grins right back.

SS remains a cuddler. His whole face just lights up in response to physical attention.

SS is still a comfort sucker - he loves his pacifier and falls asleep with it. He went through a stage where falling asleep for the night was a good hour-long saga of drifting off, pacifier falling out, baby freaking out, pacifier reinserted by mama or daddy, repeat, repeat, repeat, until J and I figured out he hates the dark. Even the nightlight was not enough for him. (He also cries at night when we are in the car because it's dark.) So now we turn on a soft lamp and he falls asleep much more easily. And we also remembered that BB had a little crib attachment that played music and lit up (like this) - it had broken in storage, so we had tossed it and forgotten about it. So we went to a resale shop and got SS one for $10 (LOVE resale!), and he is falling asleep easily again.

I feel like SS is right on the edge of so many developmental changes - soon he will be sitting up, babbling real sounds, teething, and tonight we are going to feed him his first ever solid food. But right now he's still just my tiny baby, all mama-milk fed (which I am very proud of because with BB we had to supplement with formula starting around 4 1/2 months). He's still soft and cuddly when you pick him up, not muscular yet.

Today at the doctor, he measured

27 inches long - 75th percentile

13 lbs 8 ounces - 2nd percentile

Yes, he is down to the 2nd percentile for weight. I laughed a little, because BB did the exact same thing and now he's really big for his age (everyone thinks he's already 3), but of course part of me worries a little too. He only gained 1/2 pound in 2 months, but he grew 2 inches longer. Our pediatrician said that he'd rather see this than the other way (overweight) and didn't seem concerned. I told him how many ounces I think SS drinks a day (based on how much I pump/he eats on days that I work) and Dr. Bean said that's the right amount for his size. Plus, SS is happy, plays, naps well and even has some chunk on his thighs - he is a healthy boy, it's just genetics. I reminded myself that today he wore his first 12-month outfit, because the length is perfect for him. He's a noodle, just like his brother and daddy were. I always say that my babies look different than other babies because they have necks, and when I told J's mom she said "Awww, that's how J was when he was a baby, he was my little turtle guy".

So that's SS at 6 months old! I am so excited to feed him his first bites of food tonight!

Happy 6 months Boo Boo Bear!