6 months

Dear Jack,

Today you are 6 months old. A half a year has passed since you were born and I know I say this every month but you have so completed our family that I have no memory of what it was like before you were here. Except I think I recall sleeping a lot more.


This month you have changed so much, it's hard to keep track of all that you have accomplished. The biggest change for me is that you have begun rolling as a means of transportation and the amount of times every day I have to pick you up off the floor or out from under a chair or table is incredible. Luckily I bought these soft mats for you to play on just in time and you spend the better part of your day rolling around and playing with your toys. It's hard to believe that you are the same little boy who hated being on his tummy for even a second and complained and cried every time I forced you to do "tummy time" just a couple of months ago. You even roll onto your tummy every single time I put you on your changing table and I have to thank you for the upper body workout you give me during these diaper-changing wrestling matches we have 5 times a day. In keeping with this theme, you also have begun sleeping on your tummy and oh yeah, you now sleep every night in your crib! That is the one change that is so big for your papa and I because we finally have our room back to ourselves!

One of the most bittersweet changes for me was when I started giving you solid food. It's one of those things that I didn't think I would have to do for a couple of more months but you're such a little peanut that the doctor thought we should give you a few more calories every day so we started it and I was secretly happy when you hated it. But then we both got more used to it and you eat a little bit of something every day now, though you prefer "real" food inside a mesh teething thingy to those silly baby food purees. Yes, Jack, you like to do things your own way and though it sometimes leaves me frustrated and confused, I love that about you and I hope I can always nurture and encourage that side of you. You are your own person who does not do things the way all those books I read says you should and that is why I have stopped reading those books and just let you be the sweet happy little boy who likes to roll around and never sleep.

And now a half-birthday message from your papa:

John (er...Jack):

You sure have grown a lot since we first took your tiny little body home from the hospital. I didn't want to leave because I thought we couldn't care for you like they did. It is amazing how much you can do now and how much smarter you get each day. Not too long ago you didn't even smile and now you smile every time you see me (almost). Oddly, you slept better as an infant but slowly you are getting used to this sleeping thing and maybe it isn't something you have to fight off all day.

Once you are old enough I will ask you the following questions:

why do you make extremely annoying loud noises at 6 am and won't stop unless picked up?
why don't you have any hair?
why don't you nap?
why do you like the cold hard dirty floor when we got you soft, clean foam mats?
why is the remote so fascinating?
do you hate chewy's breath like we do?
why are you trying to throw yourself off the changing table?

i am sure the answers will make a lot of sense so i will wait. until then, promise you will smile and laugh the moment you see me first thing in the morning when you wake up.

love,

your papa

p.s. you have the best momma in the world