7 Months

Happy 7 months to Jackson! The past month has flown by! Jackson is all over the place these days. He started army crawling around the middle of November. Now he is getting up on his hands and knees and rocking. He moves a tiny bit then winds up back down on his tummy. It won't be long before he is crawling all the time. It is time to really start babyproofing! We bought the gates for the stairs but haven't put them up yet.

Jackson is nursing 5 times a day and has been eating 2 solid meals a day - oatmeal in the morning and veggies and/or fruit in the evening. I am just now about to add in a third at lunchtime. It has taken a while for him to get used to eating solids but I think he's finally getting the hang of it. He has had sweet potatoes, green beans, bananas, apples, butternut squash and peas. Sweet potatoes have definitely been his favorite!

He is such a happy guy these days. He loves to smile at us and everyone around! Jackson is so ticklish under his arms and on his tummy. I love hearing his laugh when we tickle him.

Jackson sleeps from 6:30 or 7 to about 6am. I'd rather him sleep to 7 but I'll take what I can get - it's better than waking up in the middle of the night! He is still taking 3 naps a day. I'm thinking he might go down to just 2 a day soon.

Jackson is wearing 3-6 and 6-9 month clothes and size 3 diapers. He is just over 16 lbs.

He is sitting up unassisted but only for a little bit. He prefers to roll himself onto his tummy and then start moving.

He was trying to come get the camera!

Every month I say how I love this stage and how fun he is but it honestly just keeps getting better! He really shows excitement when he sees people, toys, Cooper and Annabelle and more. We are so fortunate to have such an awesome little guy. It is such a joy to watch him learn and discover new things. We look forward to the new adventures this next month will bring.

Solids

We started Jackson on solids on when he turned 6 months. We did rice cereal and oatmeal each for about a week or so. Around middle of November we began fruits and vegetables. I am making his baby food and we started with sweet potatoes. I bought a baby food cooker called the baby brezza. It steams, blends and defrosts. It is so easy and quick! I am sure I will make some by roasting and then pureeing if I need to make a large quantity, otherwise I will just use this machine.

Wash and peel sweet potato

Slice and cut into cubes

Put the diced sweet potato in

steaming

pureed

 All in 25 min! :)

Now for the taste tester...

He liked them and ate them really well the next few evenings. Next up...green beans

Going to work with daddy

We go into Rising Roll at least once a week to eat and visit with daddy. Jackson even has his own uniform! A onesie with the logo embroidered on. Here are pics of a couple of our visits.

Ooh what can I get into now?!

Now that Jackson is moving all around he has discovered lots of new things. He's figured out if he gets to Cooper's bed there are toys in it (just not toys for him to play with!) and he wound up on his changing mat and used it to help slide him around the floor. He always heads for a pair of shoes laying nearby and loves to look out the door onto the deck.

Seeing Santa

We went to see Santa earlier this month. In order to not wait in line I made a reservation with the Santa at Phipps and we chose an early date. It was great! We walked right up and Jackson sat with Santa and told him what was on his wish list (ha!).

Connor's 1st Birthday

Wow, time sure has flown! I can't believe Connor is already 1. It feels like yesterday that Gretchen texted us and said they were headed to the hospital. We were at the lake and didn't even see our phones until the morning. Luckily we got home and got to the hospital just a little after he was born. He was such a cutie! He has changed a lot over the year. He started off at about 8 1/2 lbs. and is now around 25 lbs. He loves to clap and gives a big grin to you. He started walking around 11 months old and now is off running!

A few pictures from the beginning...

About 1 week old

Maybe 2 months old

Now on to the birthday party!

The cake was too sweet for him - he kept making this face!

There were some kids willing to help with the smash cake

The other kids ate most of the cake and left a nice pile for Connor to smash around