Six months!! That's half a year! Has it really been that long already? Barrett continues to be a happy, healthy little boy with lots of smiles, giggles, and excitement for the world around him. He is such a sweet baby boy, and we love him so much! I just love watching him grow, explore, and learn. Big things are happening here in his world!
WARNING: I am about to overload you with cuteness!!! :-)
"Don't worry, Mr. Monkey. It will be okay. She takes a zillion pictures, but if you just smile and look cute, she will stop at some point."
"Are you ready for me world? Here I come!!"
I like this one because you can see his two bottom teeth, and if you look really closely, you can see the little wispy hairs on his head that are starting to grow in!! :-)
Oh my goodness! What a month this has been! All of a sudden, Barrett has become so much more fun! He loves engaging with the world around him, and EVERYTHING is interesting. And, he keeps himself so busy during the day that he is keeping an awesome sleep schedule. He is in bed between 7 and 7:30pm every night, with very few exceptions, and sleeps until 7:30am. He wakes up happy and pleasant, cooing and babbling in his crib until I go in to get him. He takes naps throughout the day, but that schedule varies every day. We don't mess with his nighttime schedule, but with playgroup, errands, and other activities going on throughout the day, we just can't keep him on a consistent napping schedule. He has adjusted well, though, and sleeps when he can throughout the day!
Here are some of the things we are up to at six months old:
Airplane tummy time...
He LOVES playing on his tummy. His legs are constantly moving and kicking with reckless abandon. He can also tuck his knees up under his bottom - in fact, he sleeps in the child's pose almost 80% of the time now! He can push up on his hands, but he hasn't quite figured out how to combine his arms and legs yet. He also loves striking this airplane pose, pulling his arms up off the ground and wiggling around. This is something that I used to do at this age as well (picture proof below!!).
Mommy's airplane!! Barrett's airplane!! .
SITTING UP, unsupported...
All of a sudden, on Tuesday, February 28th, Barrett figured out how to sit up. We had been practicing with the boppy pillow supporting him all month long, and finally it just clicked. He is so good at sitting now you would think he had been doing this for months!! He spreads his knees out wide for support and can reach around with both hands and play with his toys. If he's tired, he will slump over on his hands, but for the most part, he is sitting up straight without any trouble. He will fall over occasionally when he is distracted by a toy or the fan, but most of the time he is pretty steady!
Sitting in high chairs and grocery carts...
He is able to sit in the chair and look around the restaurant, taking in all the excitement around him. He can also hold his bottle and feed himself while we are sitting with him at the table. He loves the view from the top of the grocery cart as well - there's so much more to see now! His eyes are constantly darting around the entire time we are in any store, and he is constantly reaching out for the items on the shelves. So cute!!!
Eating solids...
We have started eating cereals! He hated the rice cereal we tried first, and it gave him some tummy troubles. So, we waited a week and a half to let his system get back to normal, and then we tried something else. Oatmeal was next, and he LOVES it! He is eating oatmeal every morning now and is a very eager eater. He opens his mouth for the spoon and eats bite after bite after bite. It's fun to watch him eat! We are going to do oatmeal for one more week (two weeks total) and then try some other foods. We are planning to start with sweet potatoes!
Jogging with Mommy...
Barrett LOVES going on walks, especially now that he is big enough to sit in his jogging stroller. He is constantly looking around at everything we pass, and he also loves watching the puppies who run alongside both sides of the stroller. We go for a walk every afternoon with the puppies, right before bath time and bedtime! Also, I have started jogging with Rio again, and Barrett enjoys the ride in his stroller. The stroller glides along beautifully, and Barrett barely bounces at all! Rio is the perfect running companion and has adjusted well to have the stroller with us now too. The longest we've gone so far is 1.5 miles, but we are going to take it slow and ease into longer milages throughout the summer.
Playing in his bouncy...
He absolutely LOVES to play in his bouncer. We had to raise it up one link on the height, since his legs are getting so long! He just bounces and bounces, making the music play and lights shine. He has also figured out how to spin the seat around so he can play with all the toys, and he can entertain himself for 45 minutes - 1 hour in this thing. It's great when I need to wash dishes and bottles, eat lunch, or do other things around the house. He is perfectly content to sit here and play while watching mommy do chores!
Getting too big for his britches...
He has figured out how to pull the mesh netting around his crib down, so he continues to get his limbs stuck between the slats of the crib. He also loves to play peekaboo through the slats! It's almost time to move the mattress down a little lower, before he figures out how to pull himself up...
Also, he has grown out of a lot of his clothes and is now wearing size 6-9 months. He's also big enough to start wearing pants and t-shirts instead of just onsies!
Loving his playgroup friends...
We go weekly to a little playgroup in our neighborhood. There are always anywhere from 3 - 6 kids, ranging in ages from 6 months to 18 months. Barrett is the youngest, but he just loves hanging out with all the older ladies! Above, he is sitting with his friends Molly (13 months) and Sierra (8 months). It's fun to watch them all interact and play together!
And playing with his puppy dogs!
Now that he can sit up, he is eye level with the puppies when they lay down. He absolutely adores the dogs, although I think Percy might be his favorite. His eyes light up, and he just gets so excited when Percy walks into the room! He also loves to sit on the floor and play with Rio. She will come and lay next to him, allowing him to reach out and grab her nose, fur, whatever he can reach. She is so sweet to him and just licks him when he gets too rough. I know she is looking forward to the day he can throw her squeaky for her!!
Well, this post already has WAY too many pictures, but this was a big month for Barrett! His personality is just glowing, and he started sitting up, so I just couldn't resist snapping picture after picture! So, if you aren't weary of his cute face, continue on... :-)
He is now able to sit up and look at himself in the mirror!
Waiting patiently to go to playgroup
Peekaboo!!
Hanging out with Grandma and Grandpa while Mommy and Daddy were out of town
One of his new favorite toys - bouncy balls!
He can pick it up, throw it around, kick it, etc, and he really enjoys watching it bounce!
Eating his favorite book...
...and eating all his toys :-)
What a good Air Force baby :-)
I can sit up by myself now!!
He absolutely loves his Christmas present from Aunt Kelly and Uncle Shane. He sits and plays with this thing for several minutes at a time - he enjoys all the things that spin!
Waiting oh-so-patiently for his milk
Loving his walks!
Somebody took my driver's seat!! :-)
Happy six months to my sweet precious boy!
We love you and can't wait to see what next month brings!!
