7 months

Weight: I'm going to guess around 18-19. Carrying him around in his 15 lb car seat is quite the chore now, so it only goes in and out of the house. We just carry him in everywhere else we go unless he's asleep.

Health: Still rockin' it on the healthy train. He's had a runny nose and a small cough, but I'm 99.9% sure it's due to his mean tooth coming in. 

Sleep: IN HIS CRIB!!! Putting him to sleep has been getting better and easier every night since we moved him in there and taught him how to put himself back to sleep. Saturday night was really, really bad in the middle of the night, but I'm chalking it up to the tooth. He's even napping alright in there now. I'm weirdly proud of him. Oh. And he TOTALLY slept through the night two different times. It was like mom-heaven. 

Social: He celebrated his first Grandparent's day!

And he's been out and about more and more. He loves sitting in high chairs and "talking" to waiters when we're out to eat. The kid seriously doesn't know a stranger. Takes after his daddy.

Diet: 95% breastmilk. It's still mostly out of convenience. Solids take a while and I love how easy nursing is. I've started giving him pieces of what I'm eating though and he seems to really like it! The other night at Carrabbas, he ate a little of everything I had! He also loves black beans, yogurt melts, and banana flavored mummums. If you don't know what a mummum is and you have a little baby, check them out!

Clothes: I officially packed away all of his 3 month clothes. There was no more squeezing him into them. As much as I hate putting away some of my favorite outfits, it's really nice to know every thing in his drawers and closet fit him. No more digging through trying to find something big enough. I'm really excited about some of the 6-9 month clothes I got out for him. They're so darn cute!

Baby Gear Love: He's finally understanding his Johnny Jump-Up. Maybe not the actual jumping part, but he's loving to stand in it. And he could care less about this, but I'm LOVING his monitor! Having a video monitor gives me so much peace at night because I can see exactly what's going on.

Crying: A little more than normal this month. He's starting to realize I can leave him and he does this really whiny, fussy cry when I walk out of the room. Teething cries are becoming more and more common, too. Those things are really, really horrible.

Likes: Chewing on everything. I mean everything. Wearing shoes. Being tickled by my hair. Being thrown up in the air. Standing. Eating people food. 

Postpartum: I feel like I'm just about back to normal. Him sleeping longer at night is throwing my hormones for a loop, but physically I feel normal.

  

Milestones: He's got two teeth now! His smile with those little nubs is just too cute for words. 

And he stayed overnight with my parents while Clint and I were at a staff retreat on the other side of Nashville. He did SUCH a great job, but I was really ready to see him by the next day!

Reuben,

These months are FLYING by. I feel like I just wrote your 6 month note. Your personality is growing by the day. I can hardly stand how cute you are. You smile at the drop of a hat. You don't know a stranger. You bring incredible joy to me and your daddy. 

You've started to realize I can leave you. In a way, it's really sad to see you frustrated when I walk away, but in another, I love the smile you get on your face when I walk back. You've started reaching up for me when you want me and you leave my heart in a little puddle. You're finding your voice more and more and learning to make new sounds. I cannot wait for the day you finally decide to say "mama" and "dada" even if you don't know what you mean!! 

Mama and Dada love you more than you could ever know little man!

Love, 

Mama