Nate

My mom says I should do a blog about Nate. It got me thinking that I have rather neglected Nate in this whole blogging realm (although one could suggest that I have neglected my blog in general and I certainly wouldn't argue against that). Now I have been feeling horribly guilty about leaving Nate out of the stories. Unfortunately, poor Nate doesn't stand much of a chance for material at the moment while being in the shadow of his toddler sister. He starts cooing and she starts talking in 10 word sentences. He smiles his gummy-smile and she falls to the floor in hysterical laughter. He learns to roll over and she adds consecutive summersaults to the list of living room acrobatics. He fusses and she has a full blown tantrum. It's not Nate's fault; it's just the nature of 2-yr olds to be high energy, explorative, attention seekers. 

But that's not Nate's only problem: he is also just a sweety through and through. Which is not an obvious problem per se but, in my opinion, doesn't lead to the necessary elevated stress level which requires relief by writing humorous posts about the craziness of being a mother. He truly is an easy baby with a good disposition. He is very laid back, loves being held, and seeing the world from your arms. He is a little cuddler and really manages to snuggle in. He rarely cries and generally only if there is something that needs fixing. He enjoys long walks and world-watching on our errands. He dons all sort of attention from people by giving his toothless grin and batting his long eyelashes over those big, bright, blue eyes of his. My dad says Nate can charm the socks off of anyone and, as far as I can tell, we are all barefoot over here!

I mean, don't get me wrong; he is certainly not perfect by any means and I am not one of those mom's who sees no wrong. For example, he still spits up several times a day, usually saving the brunt of it for me when I am post-shower and freshly sporting laundered clothes. He has a problem sleeping for longer than 3 hour stretches and, trust me, I have the bags under my eyes to prove it. He is also beginning to understand object permanence, which means he cries any time I leave the room (even if it is just for mere seconds--like when I realize that I haven't emptied my bladder in the past 8 hours and it's on the verge of exploding). So you see, there is no reason to hate me just yet for being one of those mother's with the rose colored glasses. But minor flaws aside, he is a good baby and, more importantly, I am crazy about him. 

What I can not believe is that, today exactly, he is 6 months old. Half a year....half a trip around the sun...which has incorporated three trips half-way around the world and one trip half-way across the USA. Phew! How can that be already? He is doing all the things babies do at 6 months: sitting a bit, grabbing for everything within his chubby arm's reach, exploring the world using his tongue as a frontline, eating 'smooshed' foods (as his sister likes to accurately describe it), babbling, laughing. So these things tell me that it is true, but it doesn't feel like 6 months. It never ceases to amaze me how dramatically the world can change in a year. So, dear Nate, happy half-birthday to you! It has been a big six months with numerous ups and downs but you have managed well. Hang in there; there are many more good things to come. Here's to you and wishing you more sleep adventure in the next 6-months!

Newborn

One Month

Two Months

Three Months

Four Months

Five Months

Six Months