Half way there.

His first snow fall- it's hard to see but it really is snowing

Happy half-birthday little guy! Six months has come already and he is just seizing life by the handfuls.  He loves to stand with the assistance of Mom or Dad, is learning to sit on his own and discovering the joy of new flavors of food.

Sitting unassisted!

 We first tried oatmeal cereal. I think most of it decorated his face but Edgar was ready for a quick and speedy clean-up.  Since then he has learned that apples, squash, bananas, and sweet potatoes are awesome. Peas are ok, but pears are not, and neither is pumpkin. Actually, he LOVED pumpkin, but then proceeded to vomit it up for the rest of the night.

Mmmm, cereal.

Pumpkin is delicious. We will have to try again later.

 He has a jumperoo that he loves, but only when in the mood. However, when he is in the mood he will bounce himself to sleep.

He has been a big help with the yard work! I was actually really impressed with him.  He loves it outside and as long as I could protect his face from the sun he had fun just watching what I was doing. I was also able to figure out how to do the back carry with the Ergo carrier.  I think this will become very helpful!

He fell asleep :)

Jackson at 6 months of age

"It's ok Teddy"

 This seahorse is awesome. It gives me 5 minutes to use the bathroom, finish a task, or shower.

Month 7 brings the holidays. Bring it month seven!

I. am. Mom.

I have a baby. I have joined the sleep deprived, milestone marking, spit-up covered, diaper changing, clothes changing (mine and baby's) club.  I no longer own a piece of clothing or blanket or carpet that has not been christened with baby spit-up. I have also developed a tolerance for spit up that leaves me shrugging off a non-pre-determined amount of spit up and going to work sporting its sour aroma. Poop does not faze me.

My living room floor is covered in baby toys, quilt and play mat.  There is now a highchair and car seat that decorate a corner of living room.My freezer (and my mother's and in-law's) is full of milk and now home made baby food

I Am Mom.

I am learning to let go and prioritize.  It might be two weeks before I get to run the vacuum through, but we have clean clothes every week and clean dishes to eat off of each day. Also, there is usually food.  The neighbors will just have to deal with our lawn being longer than theirs and a tardy leaf pick up.

I am learning the value of teamwork and support. I would be lost if it wasn't for the help I get from my friends and family. I have to fight the urge to do it all. The fighting is getting tougher with Jackson going through a mom phase. But then I feel my knees weaken; I feel as though I'm about to fall. Sometimes I have to relearn the value of breathing and knowing when to say "when".

I am learning. I am learning the need for patience beyond what I had ever imagined. I am learning the value of sleep and how much that can impact the amount of patience I have. I am also learning how well, or not so well I can function with x number of hours of sleep.  Also, family nap times are priceless.

I am also learning that I have no idea what I am doing.

Happy Halloween Charlie Brown

Last night was Halloween and even though Jackson had no idea that anything was different we made him partake in it anyways. Since one of his most prominent features seems to be his round head a friend suggested he be Charlie Brown for Halloween.  Thanks to Esty I was able to find an adorable Charlie Brown onesie.

Front

 

Back

Dad was able to do his "make-up".  He had the genius idea to use eyeliner, whereas all I could think of was to use a Sharpie and I really didn't find it necessary to leave a permanent curl on his head. As a side note, Dad also knew the best way to remove the eyeliner.

Jackson also got to play with some of the candy:

He already has his mom's sweet tooth.

And we found a football for him to play with, or chew on as the case may be.

However, Halloween would not be Halloween without pumpkins! And Charlie Brown would not be complete without the Great Pumpkin.

We had gone to Power's a few weeks ago to get a pumpkin.  That place is really neat because they have all sorts of animals and hayrides and giant teepees.  Unfortunately, timing of our trip was interrupting a nap time that he originally didn't want to partake in. He also takes after his mom in that chickens are awesome but people are not.  He seemed really interested in the chickens, but all the other animals were too surrounded by people, which he was not fond of.  We were able to snap some pictures before we went home for a real nap.

A nice man offered to take a family picture. Clearly Jackson is excited by this.

Feet are awesome

In front of one of the giant teepees

 While we wound up replacing the pumpkin we got at Powers I look forward to it becoming a family tradition.  The pumpkin we bought there wound up with a saggy bottom.... and no one wants a saggy bottom, so Chris bought a new one for us (and by us I mean him- although I helped by drawing the face) to carve.