7 months old!

Matthew is 7 months old! 

Weight: 16 lbs. 10 oz
Length: Not sure...we didn't have a doctor's appointment this month and he never sits still so it is hard for us to measure :)
Matthew's new "tricks":  He is officially crawling now, he can get into a sitting position from crawling or laying down, he can pull himself up onto his knees and is working on pulling himself onto his feet!  (He pulled all the way up once in his crib...so we promptly moved the mattress all the way down!)  He is starting to "talk" and squeal more and just starting making a funny clicking sound with his mouth. 
Matthew loves:  to crawl and chase Bailey, to bounce/run in his doorway jumper (he runs forward and then swings backward), to tear up newspapers and magazines, to play with his music table, to play in his exersaucer, to play with his toys (especially his stacking rings, rolling snail, anything that lights up and plays music), to chew on his alligator lovey, to pull hair, and to give "hugs" and big wet "kisses". 
Matthew eats:  all the same foods as last month plus we have added yogurt, turkey, chicken, and corn.  This kid loves to eat!  He gets so excited about his food and slams his hand down on his high chair while he is eating...maybe he is demanding more?!? 

He is getting a tooth!  We can feel 1 little bottom tooth coming in.

Matthew loves to get out of the house and be around other kids.  We are lucky that we have so many friends with little ones...he has lots of little buddies already.  He is super active and loves to watch the big kids.  Now that he is getting mobile it won't be long before he is chasing them! 

Sleep update...we are finally making some progress!  Matthew has started to sleep between 7 and 10 hours at night.  He goes down around 7:30 and has been sleeping until at least 3am and has even made it to 5am a few times!  He is still not a great napper but he is starting to stretch some of his 30 minute naps to an hour or longer so hopefully he will continue to improve and take better naps :)



Here are some fun pictures from the last few weeks! 

Uncle Mike came for a visit

 

So sweet!

 

 

 They are very interested in each other right now!

 



This is the view we are seeing more and more of these days...he is on the move!

 

Reading some books at the Children's Museum

 

 

Matthew with some of his little buddies at a birthday party

 

More of his cute friends at a St. Patrick's Day Party



So BIG!

We can't believe how big our little guy is getting! 

 

 He loves to jump!

 

 He stands (with a little help) and plays with his music table

 

Facing forward in his stroller now 

 

 Sitting up all by himself

Crawling around (and chasing Bailey)

 

Matthew has changed so much this last month!  He sits up, doesn't need his carrier anymore in his stroller, can sit in high chairs (at home and at restaurants), jumps and stands with help, picks up his pacifiers and puts them in his mouth, falls asleep by himself in his crib, plays independently (for a few minutes), rolls and is starting to crawl to move himself wherever he wants to go!  He is able to do so many things now and is getting mobile...this is a little scary!  He crawls like an inchworm - he pushes up on his hands and knees and moves forward a little, then falls flat and pulls himself forward a little more, then pushes up again and moves forward a little more...it is pretty funny to watch but it gets the job done! :)  He can get to us, Bailey (if she stays still), his toys, or anything else he can find on the floor!  Time to start babyproofing...!

Busy Weekends!

Our weekends have been filled with family visitors lately!  We have gotten to see Brandon's parents, Nana (my grandmother), the Wallis family, and Uncle Bob and Jamie (my cousin).  We have been busy but it has been fun catching up with everyone and seeing Matthew interact with our families.  He has quite the little personality these days and puts on a show for everyone who pays attention to him :)

Eating some veggies with Grandmother

Play time

Hanging out with Grandad

Matthew loves his grandparents!

Entertaining Nana

Matthew is so lucky to have such a sweet great grandmother

Showing off his new Aggie jersey from the Wallis family...and Seth was trying to make him smile ;)

Showing Ben and Zach all of his toys

Spending time outside with Norma on a beautiful day

 Meeting his cousin Jamie

So cool...

 



6 Months Old

Matthew turned 6 months old on February 19th.  Here is an update on our little man...
Weight: 15 lbs 9 oz (15th percentile)
Length: 27 inches (70th percentile)
Matthew's new "tricks":  He can stick out his tongue, he can get up on his hands and knees and is trying to crawl, he can scoot around a little on his tummy, he smiles and giggles, and he makes lots of noises and squeals. 
Matthew loves:  to play with all of his toys, to bounce in his doorway jumper, to eat, to grab everything he can get his hands on, to play in his exersaucer, to be read to, to be held, and to take baths. 
Matthew eats:  squash, green beans, peas, sweet potatoes, carrots, prunes, apples, pears, peaches, bananas, rice cereal, and oatmeal cereal.  He loves pretty much everything so far!  He gets so excited every time he sees his bottle or his bowl of food and always opens his mouth wide for every bite.  He sits in his high chair and always eats everything we offer him. 

We take him to restaurants, on long walks, to the park, on all sorts of errands, to birthday parties and play groups, to his grandparents' houses, and he even visited the Wallis family in Austin at the end of January.  He loves to get out of the house and does well in the car...as long as we are moving :)

He is happy and healthy and such a joy to be around...the only thing we need now is for him to sleep!! ;)

 

SOLID FOOD!

Matthew loves to eat!  He has now tried rice cereal, carrots, squash, and sweet potatoes.  Squash seems to be his favorite right now but he has eaten everything we have offered so far.  We are about to try a few more veggies and some fruit and we are hoping he continues to like everything! 

He opens his mouth wide and often says "Mmmmm" in between bites.  It is really funny!  We try to hide his hands down by his side so he doesn't reach up and grab the spoon or put his hands in his mouth...he loves to suck his thumb in between bites for some reason!  It looks cute but makes a huge mess! 

Here are pictures from a few of his messier mornings!



Carrots for the first time...not so sure about this!



I think I like it...and definitely like to make a mess with it :)

I love squash...even though I refuse to smile!

Mmmmm!

 

5 Months Old

Matthew turned 5 months old on January 19th.  He weighs almost 15 pounds now!  He gained 2 pounds this last month because he is such a good eater!  He loves his rice cereal and has now tried squash, carrots, and sweet potatoes.  So far he likes it all!  He opens his mouth wide and eats every last bit :) 

Matthew learned to roll over from his back to his tummy this month.  He loves to roll now and spends most of his time on his tummy.  He is reaching for his toys and trying to sit up.  His little legs are constantly moving so I think we are going to have our hands full with a very active little boy! 
We have gotten out the exersaucer and the doorway jumper.  He is still a little small for them but really starting to like both.

He is starting to reach for our faces...and everything else he can get his hands on!  I love it when he reaches up and pats my cheek like he is just making sure it's me :)  That is much nicer than when he goes for Brandon's glasses or my hair! 

We are starting to get into a routine with him...sleeping is still not his favorite thing to do so we are working on that! 

Our photo sessions are getting more and more difficult!  He was not in the mood to give a good smile and definitely didn't want to sit still when we took his 5 month photos...I am sure this will just continue to get harder!  We love this active little guy :)

 

 

 

 

One last Christmas post

We were lucky to spend Matthew's first Christmas with so much family.  We spent Christmas Day at our house and my mom's house.  Matthew was spoiled by his aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, great aunts, great grandparents...he is one lucky little boy!

Sweet cousins...Matthew loves Ben and Zach :)

Me with my Aunt Ann

Christmas Eve at our house...Matthew was asleep and missed the picture!

Christmas Day with Mimi and Papa

Matthew with Mimi and Great Great Aunt Ann

Matthew loved playing with his Great Aunt Ann