month 5

i've been working forever on your 5 month slideshow, michael david. it's killin' me!! i usually like to post individual pictures but being so far behind has kept my posting motivation to a minimum. i figured i'd upload slideshows of your past two months and move right along. your 6th month post is due in 14 days! :( i finally had to put the pics in two different slideshows and post them both on here. whew. i finally got them both made and saved (after 4 attempts and hours of frustration).

your fifth month of life has been so so fun for me! we celebrated your first christmas in which santa brought you a blue bumbo. sitting in that thing is just about your most favorite thing. you also started to love your play mat. you pull toys towards you all the time. you love to chew on your burp towel (which is more often used for your excessive amounts of drool). if you so much as glimpse the towel near you, you grab it, pull it to you and stick it in your mouth. it's pretty cute.

your hair has really started growing back in and it's a beautiful blond color. it looks amazing with your incredible blue eyes. jenny explained them perfectly when she said they looked so "textured". man, they just take my breath away sometimes. i put your hair in a mo hawk. it's stinkin' adorable.

your bedtime routine has been the same for as long as i can remember: bath, eat, swaddle, bed. all i have to do is put you in bed and you fall asleep on your own. you stay asleep until around 4 or 5. i feed you then and you go back to sleep until around 9am. sometimes it's earlier, sometimes later. it's nice. you also take great naps in your bed. you're like your mama, i guess. give me my bed and my fan and i'm happy. the best part of you sleeping, though, is when you wake in the mornings. the monitor in my room starts lighting up as you start talking to yourself. you entertain yourself with squeaks and giggles. you squawk and squeal, and twist your head back and forth. when daddy or i finally sneak up to your room and turn off your music and fan, you get so quiet. we peak over the side of your crib, you look around for just a second before your eyes meet ours. you break into the sweetest smile in the world. oh, md, we are so in love with you.

update on sleep: the past 4 nights, you've been going to bed at 9pm. you sleep until 5 or 6. you eat and go back to sleep until around 10am. my fingers are crossed that you just keep getting better at sleep. :)

oh sorry, back to christmas...we met the family in san angelo for christmas. with us, pa, mamo, uncle lando, aunt sarah, ellie, gray, uncle mattie, aunt mush, laney and jules, we had a pretty full house. we happened to open presents right at your nap time. you were swaddled and sleepy while daddy held you and i helped you open presents. you were much happier in your bed just a little while later.

your aunt mush has some kind of magic power over you. one afternoon, we were getting ready to head to town. she was holding you under your arms, sort of up in the air. your bottom was sitting on her chest and she had this little bump and sway thing going. i looked up at you and you were ASLEEP!!! you were hanging in the air, your head limply hanging down. you were so content with her bump and sway. also, one night i was exhausted (that week you were not sleeping well at all!) and fell asleep after i fed you. daddy had taken you out to hang with the family and i stayed passed out in the bed. you were very fussy and mamo told aunt mush to work her magic. she swaddled you, picked you and up and i don't know how, but you somehow ended up asleep in your bed in the room with me. i never woke up and you slept pretty well that night. she's amazing and i'm trying to convince her and uncle mattie to hurry and give you more cousins! :)

while we were in san angelo, you had your first tastes of something other than milk. your aunt sarah fed you rice cereal while you sat in your bumbo. you did so good! you LOVED it. i knew you'd been ready to eat something for a while. every time i ate something, you stared at the food with such focus. you watched the spoon or fork all the way to my mouth and back to the plate. you watched daddy and i drink anything. you were super ready! when we got home i tried other foods like green beans, peas, sweet potatoes, carrots and butternut squash. you love them all! after we got through all the veggies that you did well with, we tried pears, applesauce, prunes (...ahem...) peaches (they aren't your favorite) and bananas. you are an amazing eater. uh...you must get that from your daddy...hehe:)

you are an awesome baby! you are so happy to be out and about or play with mama at home. i think you may be getting a little attached to me because you cry when i leave the room sometimes; however, our friends said that little attachment thing happens first around 6 months. you're there! you've also started teething a little more. when i first started trying to look in your mouth, you would turn your head and cry. with a little positive reinforcement, you now open up wide and giggle. you are so proud that you are making me happy and you think you play quite well at our game. smartie pants! when daddy comes home from work, your eyes twinkle and you stare at him with such awe. i think you wanna be just like him when you grow up. i'll be one lucky woman, for sure.

you love jules and she's even started letting you "pet" her in your way. you watch her at every opportunity.

i almost forgot...you're sitting! yes, for a few weeks now, you've been doing this perpetual sit-up thing. it's hilarious. while laying on your back, you lift your head and shoulders off the ground and do a sit up. you hold it forever. you have some pretty strong stomach muscles! i've tried sitting you up several times and you handle it well for a few seconds. you get excited and topple over. jenny came to see us this past weekend and would sit you up and play with a toy up in front of you. you would watch that toy high in the air and sit. even when she put that toy down, you'd sit. you're doing great. you love her too, btw. you little flirt. no matter where jenny went in the house, your eyes followed her. you would sit in the chair with her and lay your head against her. you'd just cuddle away, which you don't normally do. in fact, when you started laying your head on mine or daddy's shoulder just a few weeks ago, we got so excited! you love jenny and she definitely loves you too!

you're a sweet, growing boy and we love you dearly!