Sweet Summertime!

I hope everyone had a great 4th of July weekend! Our little family went to Higgins Lake for a long weekend and it was wonderful. I got scorched, Keith's entire body is sore from riding the jet skis, and little man had his first adventure with water other than his nightly baths and kiddie pools on water days at daycare. We had bought a floating raft with a shade for him, but the water was a little chilly to let him sit in it that long. Instead, Higgins Lake is shallow enough that we were able to walk pretty far out into the water holding him, letting his toes dip in. He LOVED being held in daddy's arms and just staring down into the water as it shimmered and rippled under the sun-light.

(He did NOT want to wear that hat!)

While we were on our mini-vacation, I was just amazed at how much Brody has developed in the last few weeks. He's sitting up completely on his own now, for more than a few minutes like he previously was. He'll be completely content to play with his toys for nearly 10-20 minutes. Of course he's always supervised, but if we try to play with him, we get a look that almost says "Mom, dad, seriously. Let me play by myself!" Also, he now brings his knees up under him when he's on his tummy and starts rocking back and forth like he's trying to crawl. The kid never wants to sit still and I've had a lot of people tell me that he's ready to move. I can tell he is, and he gets frustrated that he can't move on his own yet. I have a feeling it's just a matter of time....

We've gone through nearly every type and combination of baby food that Gerber has to offer with no adverse affects or allergies, so I think it's time to start slowly introducing new textures and foods. I saw a portable food grinder that I'm tempted to buy, just so I can grind up some of the foods Keith and I are eating for dinner, providing they're not too spicy. Brody LOVES grabbing for everything he can get his little fingers on, so I can only imagine how much he'll love trying to feed himself in his highchair. We've introduced the sippy cup, and while he understands it's for drinking, he'd much rather just bang it on the tray of his high chair. When he's not seeing how loud he can bang it or chewing on the end of it, he'll tip it back and drink a little bit from it. I've only put water in it, as I don't want to introduce juice quite yet. Brody has his 6 month doctor's appointment next week (when he'll be 6.5 months) and I'm sure she'll say juice and table foods are fine, but I want to discuss it with the pedi first. I'll also be anxious to see how much our little guy weighs now. Our infant carrier car-seat is getting ready to be retired and we'll get out his "big boy" one!

I just can't believe how fast he's growing. December 31st seems like an eternity ago, but I'm just amazed at how much Brody has grown and developed in those 6 months. It's so rewarding seeing him grow and develop into a little person. If parenthood is already this rewarding, I can't wait to see what the years bring for us :)