It is hard to believe that Caleb is actually half a year old! I tell my husband, that means it is time to plan his first Birthday Party! (Bekah and I are already putting together ideas). 6 months is a fun time, it is when I begin to see my baby have his own personality and start to really be Fun instead of just nice to hold & cuddle. So let's see where he is in his 6th month! 
- Caleb can now (and has been able for a while) to roll over from front-to-back and then back-to-front. Caleb spends most of him time on his belly, it is easier to play and get around that way. And blankets on the floor have become useless as he never stays on them anymore. I defiantly have a mover on my hands! Caleb also prefers to to sleep on his tummy, it is rare that I walk in to see him sleeping on his back where I placed him.
- Unfortunately, we are still pretty dependant on the pacifier, we have them everywhere in the house. At this age Brendan had given up the pacifier on his own. Caleb seems to need/want it more. Even after he is done eating sometimes he wants to continue to suck, but doesn’t shows signs that he is defiantly not hungry. I give him the pacifier instead and he is happy. I’m not too worried about it, we will give it up when it is time.
- We are still breastfeeding! I find this a huge accomplishment, originally I didn’t think I would continue after returning to work, it is a struggle but I wanted to at least make it 6 months.
- Caleb has been able to sit independently for a couple weeks now. Many times he flings himself forward so he can get to where he wants to go, but is able to sit up for a while if the toys are within reach. Last night I noticed he was able to get into the sitting position on his own after laying on his tummy, this morning he was sitting up and laying down whenever he pleased. He is growing so fast I just cannot believe it!
- Caleb’s movements are now everywhere. I can guarantee that if I put him somewhere, he will not be in the same place 5 minutes later. I thought he would be crawling by Thanksgiving, but we are not technically crawling yet. Caleb get up on his knees and then flings himself forward until he gets to the toy he wants. He is still learning to move his arms and legs at the same time but he has no problem scooting around the house. (This means I need to mop more often if my baby is going to be moving around the floor.)
Interesting enough, in the same way that Caleb flings himself forward to reach objects on the floor, if there is something on the table he wants while sitting on my lap, he will throw himself back (into my chest) and then fling forward as if to get a running start in order to reach the object (usually my dinner plate).
Caleb has now been started on “solid” foods. We tried rice cereal for the first time last Thanksgiving week. He really gobbled it up! He would open his mouth anytime the spoon came near and was not too messy. He really mastered the skill of moving food to the back of his mouth quickly.
Caleb's fingers are always in his mouth, everyone tells me, "oh he must be teething!" But since Brendan didn't break out his first tooth until 9 months, I'm not holding my breath!
I honestly believe that Caleb is the happiest baby I have ever met. Much happier than his brother was. He smiles at everyone and is rarely fussy. When he is fussy or cries, you know there is something wrong or he isn't feeling well. Otherwise, he is pretty happy-go-lucky. Although lately he is happiest in the middle of the action. Yesterday I went to go feed him at daycare and I walked in to find the entire front room covered in toys (dinosaurs, cars, blocks, you name it, it was out since it was too cold to play outside) and there was Caleb, right smack in the middle of it all, playing with the big kids.
- We have his 6 month check-up tomorrow and his 6 month pictures appointment on Saturday. Updates from both of those will come later.
Then she tried to spell out "T-W-O" with Brendan, which I thought was a waste of time since I told her I was only purchasing one shot. It was pretty cute, but you can see she was only able to get the "O" and "W", never the "T". So much for that! She did make an adorable Thank You card, but I didn't need any of those...
Finally she got him to play with some boxes, she stacked them up and told him to stand next to them...umm...hello? He's two! You just stacked boxes, what do you think I 2-year-old is going to do with those? He tried to sit on the bottom box and they all fell over, this was a fun game for Brendan! She re-stacked them and he knocked them over about 6 times. I finally asked her for a stool or something that he could sit on so he had a defined spot.
This is the shot I ultimately ended up with, as you can see I didn't really have many choices. It was this one (with the random Orange box on top) or the first one with his cheesy half-smile (although I really do love the picture of him in the "O" it just didn't seem to be the right pose to choose!)
My mother says, some years are better than others. Here's hoping 3 is easier than 2!
