6 Months Old

Baby Boy you are 6 months old already! As Daddy said the other night you are at such a fun age -- so alert, giggling, interacting.

You are starting to wear 12 months clothing so I think you may be getting longer but you still aren't quite as roly poly as some of your siblings have been. That's okay though you are still a cutie pie! You weigh 18 pounds some ounces.

You are a much happier baby then you used to be and rarely have those times of inconsolable screaming. There are many variables on that -- could be you are growing out of it, could be that Mommy is off of dairy, could be that you are on probiotic drops every day. Whatever it is -- we love it! Everyone always comments what a mellow and happy baby you are and now I definitely agree. I have a hard time catching you when you are moving so this picture is a bit blurry but I love your smile.

You have been sick again this past month and ended up having another chest x-ray which you sat very nicely for but thankfully you did not have pneumonia again, although it sure sounded like it. You were very audibly wheezing for weeks and coughing quite a bit. We were happy it was only a virus but felt bad for you with the breathing problems. But as last time, you continued to be happy and it didn't seem to phase you. So you had breathing treatments for a couple weeks and the doctor did put you on a liquid steroid to open up the airways better. That made you a little irritable for a day or two but sure did open everything up as your nose drained and you coughed up the junk going down to your lungs.

Today you are much better which is great! Having a baby sick for weeks really is time-consuming keeping up with breathing treatments and such.

You seem to really enjoy music. Grandma L. found that when you are crying if she plays the piano with you on her lap you will stop. And when you are tired and just want to sleep if I quietly sing to you you settle down very quickly.

This past month I finally setup your crib and don't know why I didn't do that from the start. The pack-n-play worked okay but you seem to really enjoy the space in your crib. You still sleep in Mommy and Daddy's room simply because at this moment there is no other place for you but that works out fine for now.

You are not like your siblings in that you do not easily fall asleep in your crib although that is because I have held and rocked you so much more. You will from time to time if I catch the timing right and put you down way before you get tired. It certainly makes it much easier when we are out somewhere as you can fall asleep in our arms. And you cuddled up against me softly breathing into my ear is one of the sweetest feelings in the world.

You still have not made up your mind about a pacifier or thumb preference. At this point you will take either or neither it all depends, but on what, I'm not sure. It is a good thing to be flexible, especially living in this family!

You have been rolling for awhile now and can maneuver yourself to where you want to go fairly well. And you are on the verge of sitting alone. You have attempted it and can balance a short time then fall over. But any day you will be sitting without being propped up.

The boys keep looking at their baby calendars to find out when they crawled as they are itching for you to move. It is fun to look back at what they did when and see how similar or different you are. You are unique little guy and probably more "spoiled" than the rest but I can't get enough of you precious boy!

Face Painting

One part I played in the kids 4H production of "Circus Circus" was painting faces. I love art -- drawing, painting, you name it but I rarely have time for it. I have never painted faces but figured it was much like any other painting just on a different canvas.

Re-Pete and Tank were lions and Missy was a tight-rope walker. I found ideas on the internet and kind of went with it. I had a lot of fun using a bit of my creative side in that way. A friend told me I could go into business painting faces. One more thing to add to my list of "things to do when my children are grown".

My lions, Re-Pete and Tank with their friend whose face I also painted. George their lion tamer also wanted his face painted.

Re-Pete as a lion. Being in a hurry this day and painting three -- it didn't turn out as nicely as it had in my practice run. I also was painting from memory and I do better with an example to follow. Next try I would use orange and yellow paint to make it more bold. Here I used some foundation I had that was too orange for my face which gave it a more subtle look. I also forgot a line under their eyes.

Missy's was fun to do. I also liked her practice run better but I was trying to change this up a bit as I hoped to get more red in to match her outfit. She is also kind of particular and has ideas of her own. But this was nice and colorful.

4H Musical -- Circus Circus

Last weekend our children performed in the 4H Music and Drama festival which is one of my favorite activities being in 4H. This year's musical was called "Circus Circus" about a circus whose ringmaster is sick and they need to figure out who will take his place. It is cute and colorful with very catchy music and lines.

I don't know why but each time they perform I get more nervous then the kids do. They did a great job and I was so proud of them as always. It is fun to see how far they have come since our first production two years ago and how each in their own way have gotten more comfortable on stage.

I can especially see it in Pete, my sword swallower/fire eater, as he so easily takes his role and becomes that character. His voice carries so well and he says his lines with feeling. And even when he was in the background he was acting every step of the way.

And my little Miss, a tightrope walker, was excited to say a line this year. She was so cute and spoke louder than I thought she would.

George had a smaller speaking role as a lion tamer this year but he took command of his lions which was a favorite part for many. His lions like M&M's.

Re-Pete and Tank as lions were fun to watch as they prowled around.

All of our hard work paid off as we won the competition for the second year in a row! That means we have the option of performing again at State Fair in the hot month of August. Re-Pete already is dreading the possibility of wearing his hot lion costume and face paint.

One of the parents posted a video on YouTube if you would like to watch it. I embedding part 1 but if you want to view part two click HERE.

Busy Days

It has been quiet here on my blog I know but it hasn't been quiet here at home. We have been getting ready the past few weeks for our 4H Music and Drama festival. That means two hour practices twice a week and running to various stores every chance I get when in town to find odds and ends for costumes, backgrounds, props, etc. all in addition to our normal routine. I don't know about you but when I am not home for chunks of time like that I get so behind on keeping the house in order (not that I am good at it to begin with). We all have been going in various directions lately and eating on the run and I really miss sitting around the table together. And so, I am thankful that we are in the final week of preparation with our first performance tonight for our club and the Festival performance this coming Saturday.

We will be performing Circus Circus and it has been a fun one to prepare for. The songs are catchy, the characters are fun and who doesn't like to wear a fun costume?

The past weeks have also been crazy for John as issues came up at work with the project he is in charge of which meant he worked all last weekend causing him to miss a winter men's retreat that he desperately needed but we did make it relaxing for him when he was home. And this past week he has been the chauffeur for one of the Koreans visiting from Hyundai taking him out eat from time to time with a few late nights and working again part of Sunday. John takes it all in stride as always and makes the best of what he is given and I love that quality in him!

So, off to a busy day of painting children's faces to look like lions, finding the right size tights for my tight rope walker and making sure we have everything in place for tonight. As George my lion tamer says -- "So on with the show to the main event". 

5 Months Old

Five months old already! (I did actually write this on time, just didn't get my pictures edited until now.) I seem to wonder each month where the time has gone. I was talking to a friend the other day trying to recall something from your birth and I had a hard time remembering and she said "It's only been 5 months!" Yes, well, those months sped right past me and I look at you now babbling sounds and can't believe you were a tiny little newborn snuggled up tight against me.

I have no idea how big you are this month but you seem a bit smaller than Tank and Seppy were at this age. Although your rolls seem to be getting bigger you just aren't as chunky yet.

You are over your pneumonia now and the wheezing has completely ended, although it took about two weeks after the antibiotics were done for that to end. We visited the chiropractor numerous times during those weeks which you seemed to enjoy and you certainly brought a smile to everyone's face when we were there as you are Mister Smiles.

You haven't gotten into a good nap routine yet but we are working on that. You still are fussy many evenings and the person that can calm you down the best is Daddy. You get in his arms, snuggle up against his shoulder, feel his hand patting your back and you calm down and usually fall asleep. Ahh!

You periodically wake up screaming during the day as if you are having a bad dream that you can't wake out of. It reminds me of when a couple of your brothers used to have night terrors. Sometimes you fall back asleep and other times we call your name really loud which might snap you out of it. It always seems gas related though.

You are getting to be so much fun! You make noises like "nnnn-ga" and various loud forms of "ahhhh" that go up and down in pitch and you have the sweetest belly laugh.

We pulled out the old exersaucer and while initially you are interested in the toys you often prefer to just hunker down, suck your fists and spin around  to watch the world your siblings go by.

I wonder if you are starting to get teeth as you always are sucking or gumming on anything you can get in your mouth but the cutest is when you "chew" on your lips giving you fishy lips.

You are also at the stage of being able to hold onto toys but still with awkward movements, not always hitting the mark of where you want it to go but you get better at it each day.

You can roll over both directions but you don't do it very often yet.

You have taken a pacifier a time or two this month and you have also fallen asleep sucking your fingers a time or two but still nothing consistent. By this age your brothers had chosen their thumb and stuck with that so I am guessing you may be like your sister and not use anything which is fine with me.

The fascination with having a baby in the house has surprisingly continued and I find your siblings still clamor to hold you. They sure do love you sweet boy and so do we!