Doctor's Appt

Connor had his 6 month check up today and I'm proud to say that he's doing great. Matt and I have seemed to make one healthy boy. He's in the 84th percentile for height (at 27 1/2 inches tall) and in the 63rd percentile for weight (at 18lbs).

Unfortunately, he also had to have shots today, but I would swear that my boy gets better and better at taking them. This time, he didn't even cry when he got the first one. He did cry after the second and third ones, but as soon as I picked him up, he was good again. As for reactions, so far, so good. No fevers, which is good since we've got him on regular doses of Tylenol right now.

All in all, it was a good visit. Connor's doctor even gave him a present this time...a book about shapes. He likes the book, but mostly to eat. :)

Straws

The family went out to Chili's for lunch yesterday with my dad and step mom. (It's so neat to see Connor sitting up in those little high chairs.) Connor seems to have this thing where he loves to drink water, but never out of a bottle. It will usually come out of my glass, though we've tried sippy cups and that works about half the time. I figured I would see if he could grasp the concept of a straw so I ordered a kid's cup of water, with a straw for him. After trying to shove the straw down his throat a few times, he finally closed his little lips around the straw and began sucking. Unfortunately, it being his first attempt, he got way too much water in his mouth. Though, he was smart enough that when he got too much in his mouth, he simply opened his mouth and let the excess trickle down his shirt. (Good thing it's hot in the Summer.) I'm looking forward to his many more attempts at drinking with a straw.

da-da

At the risk of sounding like every other over-zealous parent...we think our boy just said his first word! Last night, he looked straight at Matt and said "da-da". It wasn't mushed together with all of the other sounds that he makes, it was very much stand alone. Unfortunately, Matt didn't hear him the first time, but as soon as I told him what happened, we waiting to see if he would repeat it. And sure enough, he did. Again, it was a stand alone "da-da" and again, while looking at Matt. He said it once more before the night was out as well.

You have never seen a more proud parent than Matt when he heard his boy say "da-da". I am so proud of my boy. (Though mildly annoyed since I've been coaching him to say "ma-ma" since he was only days old.)

As a new parent, it's difficult for me to know when his first word is actually his first word. For instance, he's been saying what sounds like "hi" since he was a few months old. It's always been very drawn out and random. So when can we consider his first word to actually be his first word? I'm guessing though, that this is the real deal, since it was said on it's own and while looking directly at Matt. Now if I can just get my boy to say "ma-ma"

A boy's best friend

Connor received his first, of what will likely be many, cardboard box. I brought home some plain oatmeal from work and the box it came in. Connor thought it was just amazing how his toys could fit inside of it and everything. Funny as it looks, this box has taken a semi-permanent place next to the rest of his toys. Give him a few more years and the only thing that will make a box better is duct tape.

Serenaded to Sleep

I just tried to put Connor down for a nap, but he wasn't quite feeling sleeping in his crib. So I brought him out in the living room with his blanket and just laid him on the floor next to Matt, who was playing with his guitar. A few minutes later and he was asleep. You've never seen a more proud daddy than Matt knowing he could put his boy to sleep with his guitar.

Working on Getting Up

Connor is fairly proficient at sitting up on his own, and is now attempting to master getting to the sitting position. He doesn't quite have it yet, but he tries to roll to one side and lift his head up in hopes that the rest of his body will follow.

In the bathtub that he has, he's also taken to trying to stand up. He leans forward as far as he can go and pushes up with his legs. Unfortunately, he's not holding on to anything higher so he ends up on his stomach over the foot of the infant tub. When I take "big baths" with him, though, he grabs on to the metal bar in the tub and works to pull himself up. He could probably do it too if he would learn that one foot does not go on top of the other one.

First Ride

At Cana's birthday party last weekend, Connor got to go on his first amusement park ride. He seemed to like it...even though it only went back and forth.

Pics with Grandma & Grandpa

Shower Water

One of Matt's favorite things to do these days is bring Connor in the shower with him. Connor absolutely loves the shower water that streams down. If you bring his face just close enough that he can feel the water, he'll open his mouth and stick out his tongue to taste the water. It's really funny to see.

ABCs

Connor's favorite song is the ABCs. I started showing him the alphabet in sign language one day, and ever since he gets all excited over the song. One day he was being pretty fussy in the car and so I started singing the ABCs and he fell asleep within minutes. Lucky for me, though, Twinkle-Twinkle and Baa-Baa Black Sheep all have the same tune so I can rotate the songs instead of singing ABCs 100 times.