Florida + 6 Months

 I can't believe how big Noah is getting. It seems like he grew a month in the week we were visiting my dad in Florida. I am getting super excited for each milestone, but at the same time I don't want them to come too quickly. 

We had such a blast in Florida! 

We got to visit one of Craig's favorite mission areas, Dothan, Alabama. We stayed with a family that Craig adores. It was so neat to see Craig in that element as he had flashbacks of his missionary life.

The Hughes Family. The missionaries lived with them for a while.

Trying out my dad's pool for the first time

Excited for Disney World? Meh.

Papa D and Noah looking at the animals on the Safari

Craig couldn't be prouder.

First Timer button!

Ponce Inlet Lighthouse

This is my grandpa Greenlee. I haven't seen him since I was much younger, so it was so neat to have lunch and spend some time with him.

SISTER DURR!

It was so neat to visit with my dear friend. She comes home in August! I can't believe it!

Beach Day

Noah LOVED the beach. He would try with all his might to get to the sand just to eat it. I kept him on the blanket as best I could, but I'm not surprised to see sand as I'm changing his diaper this past week being home.

Hogwarts Express

HOGWARTS! I was giddy. Really giddy.

Frozen Butter Beer

Awkward hover hand, but we had such a fun date day at Universal! I was so nervous  to be leaving Noah for that long, but boy I'm glad we did! 

This ride was insane. This ride is also where I lost my phone. Boo. I had so many good pictures and video of Noah on it. 

Another time he ate a bunch of sand...

My dad would just take Noah's diaper off and throw him in the kiddie pool. Noah has a new love for water. I can't wait until Seven Peaks opens up so we can use our Pass of All Passes!

I love being able to see my dad. He was SO nice to have bought our plane tickets and rented a car for this trip. He even got us First Class. I don't know if I'll ever be able to not fly first class with a baby. It was heavenly, and I think it made a huge difference with Noah's first experience flying. He, of course, flirted with the flight attendants. He seriously loves the ladies. It's so funny to see. 

Noah's personality is definitely showing now. He laughs and smiles so much. I love it! He is sitting up by himself (for the most part...he falls over every now and again), eating solids like crazy, and he has figured out how to move from one side of our apartment to the other. It isn't crawling per se; he commando crawls/rolls over back and forth. It's fun to watch him figure out how to get to a certain toy or book. I think he'll be truly crawling within a month, though. He has a huge desire to just move right now! I think it may be because of all the 2-3 year olds he is with so often. 

 Noah loves to make lots of noise. Whether he hits his toys on a hard surface or grunts, he is always trying to be loud. He makes the silliest noises now. He totally responds to his name now. He grabs at anything and sticks it straight into his mouth. I am going to need to REALLY baby-proof this place coming very soon.

He has only rejected one food we've tried: green beans. Like father, like son I suppose. I'll try again in a few weeks. He loves pears, sweet potatoes, and mango. We recently discovered the food net:

I always thought these would be so gross and have a ton of clean up, but after trying it I think it just depends on what you put in it. We've done watermelon and cantaloupe so far. Noah loves it. The cool fruit on his teething gums probably feels fantastic.

At Noah's 6 month doctors appointment, we discovered he needs a big boost of calories. At 15.6 lbs, he is only in the 10th percentile. I could tell he was thinning out, thinking it must be because he was becoming so mobile. I was right. He still has a big head, though, being in the 68th percentile. This time around the shots had a big effect on the poor little guy. He slept a ton afterwards, but when he was awake, he wasn't a happy camper. He got a low grade fever, and all he wanted to do was nurse.

Before shots

After shots

The next day he was back to his usual self. I am grateful this was the last set of shots for a long while.

We have been struggling with figuring out a good nap/sleep routine for Noah. In Florida, I realized we needed one badly. A friend suggested the book "Secrets of a Baby Whisperer" to me, and I decided to go full on with the suggestions this book gives. This week has been heavenly. Noah has been a catnapper since birth, but after doing a few things differently, following this book, Noah is now taking two 2 hour naps a day. I can see there is a huge improvement in Noah's attitude and demeanor. He goes to bed without having to be nursed and rock/paced-SO GRATEFUL. My back wasn't going to hold out much longer. We are still working on eliminating his habitual waking at 3:30am, but I can tell it won't be much longer that he will completely sleep through the night. I suggest this book to anyone! I also want to thank those of you that have given advice on the subject. I finally am starting to feel less sleep deprived. 

Eating away...

I can't believe this baby is mine. I still look at him and am filled with love and gratitude that I get to be his mom. Where did half a year go?! I have the feeling I will need to start planning his first birthday party before we know it. My baby isn't a little fragile infant anymore. I will look back with fondness of that little guy, but I look forward to see how he grows and becomes the person he will be. 

Noah the one week old