7 Months Old

Rusty hit the 7 month old mark on Tuesday. I feel like this month he really grew up, if that makes any sense. It seems to me that he went from being a baby to becoming a little boy. He is so much fun, such a true delight for us. He is getting into such a fun stage and we must laugh at or with him at least 20 times a day!

Some highlights of the last month of Rusty's life:

• He continues to eat more and more! Just this week we have added a "noon meal." This usually consists of one veggie or fruit cube followed by milk. He is always hungry when I give it to him. He also has tried a few new foods and seems to like them...we still struggle a bit with peas, but I am getting more and more of them into the mix. I did try a new recipe today that he hated, and he actually shook his little fist in the air in protest...I think I'll put that one on the back burner for awhile. It was chicken, apple, sweet potato, onion, etc. mix.
• He is so into peekaboo and hiding games lately! This comes from his dad. Kevin is always playing "find daddy." When Rusty is eating Kevin will hide behind his high chair and go from side to side, switching it up and never being quite where Rusty expects, he's getting good a figuring it out though! The other day I enjoyed a game of "hide and seek" with Rusty. I was sitting on the floor in the living room and he was rolling on the floor. He grabbed a blanket and hid beneath it. When I would say, "Where's Rusty, where's Rusty?" he would try to peek his head out. It was so cute!
• He likes blowing through his lips...it's a bit different than a raspberry, and he makes a bit of a buzz sound. Kevin does it with him all of the time, and he loves it. In fact, he loves it so much that he has spent most of today doing it.
• He is getting very good at playing on his own. We will plop him down on the living room floor with some toys around him and he is often quite content for some time. He also LOVES playing in his exersaucer and will bounce away for long periods of time, perfectly happy. Most mornings Kevin spends from 7-8 with Rusty while I catch a quick nap and I can often hear them "talking" while Rusty jumps away in the exersaucer.
• He loves to stand! He likes to grab our hands and pull himself to a standing position. He often dances with us. We have many music stations on our cable network and we put them on and dance around with him. He kind of moves his feet along as we jig him around with his hands.
• He loves to wake his daddy up in the morning. I will usually get him up and feed him and play with him for a bit, and then we go in around 7 and wake daddy. I lay him on top of Kevin and he rolls around, bounces, and smiles so much. He loves this time with his dad!
• He is really into books! I read him one or two books before every nap, and we usually read him one at night before bed. His FAVORITE books are "Hooray for Fish," which my sister's family gave him for Christmas, and "I Love You Through and Through." I have read them so many times that I have them memorized and sometimes if he is upset, I can start reciting them and he calms down! He loves those books. The last page in "Hooray for Fish" has the little fish finding his mommy fish and they say "Kiss, kiss, kiss!" Every time I read that page I kiss Rusty on the cheek with each word, which has led to his next new trick!
• He kisses me on command-usually. Of course kids will NEVER perform for others, but most of the time when I look at him and say, "Kiss, kiss?" he will put his little mouth on my cheek and give me a big wet one...I love it! I can't get enough of these big, sloppy, wet kisses.
• He has started to really know who Kevin and I are, and that we must be important. He's a big flirt and when we are out he still goes pretty well to other people, but he is often looking around trying to find either Kevin or I. Kev is always saying, "Rusty loves you SOOO much, he's always looking for you, and he smiles when he sees you." Aww, that makes this momma's heart happy!
• He has his first tooth! It just popped through a tiny bit the other day. At first I was really excited, and then I got a little bit sad because it made me think of how fast he is growing up. I really am trying to just cherish every single moment with him.
• His sleeping patterns are really evening out. He usually naps from 9-10ish in the mornings, and from 2-3 or 3:30 in the afternoon. He has figured out that when we go into his room, read him his book, sing his song and turn on the noise machine it's time for a nap. He rolls over, babbles and sometimes squawks a bit, and then falls to sleep. It's the same thing at night. He usually sleeps for 6-8 hours at a time, although we still have an occasional wakeup in the middle of the night. One time, however, is nothing compared to those early days! We have rough spots every now and then, but I thinkk that he loves and craves the routine, as do I. We usually try to get out in the middle of the day and after his afternoon nap and he loves to be out and about with other people.

Yep, little Rusty is growing up. He is a smiley, happy, content little boy. He loves to be around people, he enjoys going on adventures, and he delights in all time he gets with his mom and dad. He is growing especially fond of his "Dada" lately, and whenever I ask, "Where's Dada?" his eyes search the room until he finds him, and then a huge smile often comes to his face.

We still pray for our little man every night when we put him to bed. We pray for him to know and love the Lord, we pray for him to be sensitive to the needs of others, and we pray for him to bring joy into people's lives...he certainly brings joy into ours! We are thankful for these last seven months, little Rusty is a light in our lives! We love you little man!