7 Months

Davis is 7 months old. Two very monumental (yes, monumental!!) things to report that have happened just in the past few days:

*Today at music class, he sat up all by himself for several minutes. I was right behind him, so I'm not sure he even knew what he was doing. We haven't been practicing this much (bad mom!!), so I'm surprised to see how stable he was.

*The night before last I noticed Davis doing a kind of army crawl, using only his arms. He would move his little arms forward, put his head against the ground and scooch with all his might. He only ever got an inch or so, but that's forward progression!!! Last night, we practiced a bit more by putting toys in front of him to go for and he's really getting pretty good. Next thing you know, he'll be on his way! Wait, why am I so excited about this??? Mobility and lack of knowledge of danger don't mix well...we'll have to re-babyproof the place.

These days he is also:

*Eating real food 3 meals a day: cereal/fruit for lunch, veggie and fruit for dinner, and whatever I grab for lunch. He's down to about four 7 ounce bottles a day.

*Trying to move his bedtime and waketime up a bit...bed around 7:30 or 8, and up around 6:30. He was sleeping until 7:30, so this is NOT a welcome change!

*Getting a new tooth on top. He still only has the two on the bottom, but chewing like crazy on everything...more must be coming!

*A BIG, BIG boy...not sure how much he weighs now, but at his 6 month appt. he was 18.8 lbs. I think that's much more now since he's since started solid food (and LOVING it!).

*Cuddling up every night with his little stuffed froggie...so cute!! He doesn't take a binky much, so this is his night-night friend. When we go to check on him, he almost always has his arms around him:)

*Getting a more consistent napping schedule: 10-12 and 3-5. Parks sleeps from about 1-4, so Mama doesn't get out much!

*Still super happy most of the time...such an easy smile. I love, love, love those sweet dimples!!

*Still in love with Big Brother...we all pale in comparison!

At the zoo...

Daddy came home early last week and took us to the zoo. We've been several times in the past, but not since last summer and Parks just LOVED it this time!! We had fun walking around (although every elementary school kid in SA was there...note to you all planning a trip to the zoo: go around 2:30 when the school kids are gone!!). There is a new Africa area of the zoo with hippos, lions, zebras, etc...pretty neat! Davis was content just strolling along and chewing on his monkey. Parks was pretty taken with everything...have to make many more trips this summer.

Parks and Katelyn

One of Parks' very favorite people in the whole world is Katelyn. They met when they were about 9 months old at a class at the zoo. They really took to each other right away, and its been fun to watch them grow up together. Ashley, Katelyn's mom, and I always laugh at how they are so "monkey see-monkey do" when they are together at Little Gym or in music class. Whatever one does, the other is pretty close behind. This has been great for Parks, given his cautious nature...no risks made by this boy (might be glad of this later in life!!). Katelyn is not scared of anything, so when they are together, Parks gets a bit bolder...just to keep up! I remember once we were all at the Park while the daddies were playing basketball...the kids had to have been barely 2. Katelyn was wondering off from where we were pretty far (yes, we were watching!!! We were curious to see how far she would go...all VERY safe:) Well, Parks was right on her heels. I kept saying that he'll turn back because he wouldn't DARE go too far from Mama...WRONG!! He followed Katelyn all the way around the corner of the school (seriously...this was within 100 yards and fenced in...we WERE watching!!!) and we finally had to go bring them back. Doesn't seem like much if you don't know Parks, but he is pretty much a rule-follower and, again, NOT a risk taker...Katelyn brings up his confidence level, and I love that! The other night, Katelyn and her family came for dinner. We set a little table special for the kids, and they LOVED it!!! It was so funny watching them bump their glasses and say "CHEERS!" I love looking back at these pics...Ashley and I joke about how cute they will be in their wedding video:) Such good times with such good friends!