6 Months!

It's hard to believe, but Jasper is 6 months old. Today he had his checkup and everything is going well. We are excited that the little guy is thriving, and he seems to be a pretty happy baby. His restlessness is now translating into a very active baby. He seems to constantly be in motion. He can get around quite well by rolling, and he has a funny leaping motion he makes when he's on his hands and knees. Sort of inches forward, froggy-style. He's still all over the place in his crib, but alas, we've come to know him well enough to know that's just his normal. Here's how I found him after his morning nap today:

6-Month Stats:

Age: Six months
Weight: 17 pounds, 3 ounces
Length: 27.5 inches
Percentile: 40th
Size: 9 to 12 months
Foods: Started rice cereal about three weeks ago, and we've made it part of our breakfast routine. He seems to like it quite a bit. He has also eaten butternut squash, oatmeal, sweet potatoes and avocado. Oatmeal was his least favorite, and he really seemed to like the sweet potatoes and avocado (his mommy's favorite!).
Likes: Rolling around, sitting up on my own, standing with help, bouncy toy, peek-a-boo, the tags on anything, seeing myself in the mirror, eating books, playing in the bath water.
Dislikes: The first bite of any food, being away from Mommy and Daddy.
Tricks: Mastered the roll, from either side. Now moving quite quickly around the room simply by rolling. Can sit up without help. Likes to go from tummy to hands and knees and then begin rocking. Fine motor skills are improving and can easily reach for and grab toys, passing them from one hand to the other.
If I could talk I'd say: "I don't know why adults don't just roll around everywhere. It's so much fun."
My social calendar: We haven't been around our friends too much in recent days because we've been sick. We did go to a neighborhood brunch recently where I played with neighbor Kelwyn, who is about to turn 1. If my mommy feels better, we'll see some other friends later this week. Mom, Dad and I spent a lot of time together this weekend, and I had my first ride in the baby swings at the playground!

Snapshots from our world

Update

We can hardly believe it, but Jasper will turn 6 months old this weekend. Amazing how quickly the time seems to fly.

We are doing fairly well, I'd say. We are all recovering from yet another cold. Yeah for Spring! We've had a few sunny, dry days and with a little more daylight each evening, we are certainly itching for the change of season. Of course, it is now officially Spring, and the temperature is slowly creeping up, but we have lived in this corner of the country long enough to know not to get too excited just yet.

Last week Chelsea visited during her spring break. I think she had fun visiting Jasper, although I'm sure she was not thrilled to fly half way across the country to visit the sick ward that was our house last week! Nonetheless, we enjoyed seeing her, and we know Jasper had fun with his Auntie Chels.

With March Madness over (at least here in Portland), Seth is finally getting some much-needed rest. We're looking forward to his vacation time in April when we plan to do some fun family things such as hit up the zoo or the children's museum.

I think most everyone who reads this blog has heard me jabbering away about Jasper's latest accomplishments, but for anyone who is feeling left out: The boy is getting up on his hands and knees! I can't believe it. At first I thought it was a fluke, but I have found him in his crib after a nap multiple times on his hands and knees just smiling away. He's also become quite good at rolling and now is using it to move around pretty good. He can spot something he wants and make his way toward it by rolling. He's also started solid foods, and so far he has liked the rice cereal and butternut squash. He actually gets excited when he sees it coming!

I'll add some pics to this post ASAP, Grandma, and I'll give a stats update after Jasper's 6-month check up next week!

St. Patrick's Day!

Today we went to the Paddy Hough St. Patrick's Day Parade. It was fun, if a little rainy! Mr. Hough is the namesake of our neighborhood and the elementary school just two blocks away. The Irish teacher helped found schools here in Vancouver.

Aunt Chelsea is visiting, so we all three walked down the street to see the fun.

Our friends Luke and Jonah joined in the fun with the other preschool kids! The big boys let Jasper sit in their wagon for a quick pic!

Another One

Yet another toy we're apparently too big for now!

How you know when...

As a new mom, you're constantly wondering when something is age appropriate. You quickly learn that the specified age range for a given toy may or may not be OK for your kid. I'm going with my gut now. There's just this thing inside that tells me when a toy is inappropriate for Jasper.

Maybe I'm being a little boastful, but I am proud to say that I determined Jasper is too big for his bouncy seat anymore. Agree?

I get it.

You know that idea that Mom is the resident cook, nurse, housekeeper, gardener, mechanic, etc.?

Today I feel like I understand that completely. Jasper had a diaper blowout that required a trip to the tub. And then after I got him bathed and changed and in new clothes, he spit up everywhere. Other than that, he's doing great, though. He enjoyed playing with some friends today and continues to laugh at just about everything!

Wiley, the first born you might say, is not so well, however. He's developed some skin problems that we think are related to anxiety. Bet you can't guess why he's stressed out, huh?

Well I had to load both of them into the car for a trip to the vet because Wiley has two sores that he won't stop licking and they are looking painful. After bathing Jasper, I bathed Wiley. Then I had to a put ointment on the wounds and then put an Elizabethan collar on the poor guy. He does not like it, and I am quite sure it alone causes a certain amount of anxiety. I gave him lots of treats and slipped in some Chinese herbal pills the vet gave us to calm him down.

So, for now we'll work on getting Wiley well and then we need to work harder at making him feel part of the family. The good news is that the vet said this is not uncommon and often cures itself once the baby can play with the dog. Then the dog will see him as a playmate and not his rival. When that happens, I think you'll have to add "toy police" to my list of titles.

We hope this works.

And amidst all of this, we did have an WOW moment today: Jasper was on his tummy when I picked him up to scoot him back onto the blanket, keeping him in the tummy-down pose. When I set him down, he'd bent his knees. For about five seconds he held himself up in the crawl position on all fours. Not believe what I'd seen, I did it again, and he once again held himself up. I can't believe it! I'll try to get a pic of it soon!

Standin' Tall

Today Jasper amazed me. Well, OK, he does that every day, but today he had a "first" moment. He likes to grab mom's fingers while he's on his back and he can very easily pull himself up to a sitting position. Well, today, with no warning, he just kept pulling and pulled himself right into a standing position. He's always liked standing, and he can hold his own weight for quite some time. He just has absolutely no balance. So I let him lean against the ottoman this morning, and I was surprised when he just stood there banging on it.

Here's a pic. Can't believe it. Of course moments after I snapped a pic he went boom on his butt. But nonetheless, still a big deal!

Here are a few more from recent days:

Fun times in my bouncy toy!

Chillin' on the couch with Mom.

A quick hop on Dad's bike before he heads out the door for work!