Milestone: 6 Months

The little one is continuing to grow (albeit slowly) and interact with the world around him. His day consists of going outside to the park or the college next door at least 3x a day, morning alone time with daddy, evening alone time with mommy, crawling along a comforter we've laid out in the living room, playing in the exersaucer and activity mat, banging his activity box, reading books, singing, his bath ritual, and of course, eating and napping.

We had a doctor's visit at 5 1/2 months and he weighed in at 14 .4 lbs. He's still on the small side but he has had no problem excelling at the typical milestones. He had his second set of vaccinations at this last visit and his reaction was much better than the first time. He cried immediately after the 3 vaccinations but calmed down rather quickly. When we left the doctor's office shortly thereafter, he was quietly observing the trees and cars outside. We decided to walk home since he is so enamored by the outside world and he fell asleep before we reached home and napped for the next 2 hours. He didn't have a temperature or any grouchiness. Good boy!

He's using his hands to reach (or lunge) for objects. He reaches for toys in his path or at my hair and glasses. My husband just bought an extra pair of glasses because one set is sure to get destroyed. He has a keen interest in taking newspapers or magazines out of your hands and ripping up the pages.

The little one is crawling with a purpose. Before he was balancing on his hands and knees and lunging forward because he had not figured out how to move the two in sync with each other. Now, he is slowly moving his right arm when he moves his left knee and left arm with his right knee. Thus, he is face planting less, which is a relief. So, he is officially crawling at 6 months. He is determined to make a break for our TV stand.

He loves to verbalize his thoughts. He's "reading" aloud with me and "singing" with me. He has a lot to say and sometimes he will scream (ah, the piercing scream) to get it out. He loves listening to Hindi music with my mom. I've compiled a selection of highly recommended board books and baby nursery rhymes. My husband thinks I should write a children's book because they're so simple. I realize there's a lot involved in publishing, but seriously, some pages don't even have words on them!

He is seeing the world with a new perspective. He's sitting up while balancing himself with one arm. At moments, he sits up without support. I imagine this is an eye-opener compared to lying flat on one's back at all times.

He's learning to eat and drink like a little man. Luckily, my mom had taught him to drink water out of a spoon so we did not have to train him on using a spoon for food. Yesterday, we started solid foods with mashed sweet potato. He made a face to show how disgusting he thought it was. Somehow, my mom got him to eat a good amount. He didn't seem tolike it any more on day 2, but he ate enough. We haven't seen a rash or bad reaction so we're looking to move on to carrots after one more day of sweet potatoes. Also, I introduced water in a sippy cup before 5 months and these days, he's drinking water out of his sippy cup and a glass.

And, no, he is not yet sleeping through the night. We need to tackle that one next week because my husband's mother is coming into town this week.