The Ferberization of Jack

Well, we finally decided that it is time for Jack to start being able to sleep without the Mommy crutch. We tried some of the "No Cry Sleep Solutions" with no real success. We started the Ferber method and it really seems to be paying off quickly. He seems to be better equipt to put himself to sleep. Yea!!! The next step to ween off the middle of the night feeding. The other night, he actually slept from 7:45 to 5:15. I was thrilled.

Visit to Charleston

We went to Charleston (Jack's first big long car ride) in the middle of June and had a wonderful time. Jack's Godparents, Mandi and Jason were kind enough to let us take over their home while they were in California. We surprised Jack's Grandma Charlotte, who was also visiting Charleston that weekend. It was SOOOO hot the entirety of our stay. At one point we had to strip Jack down to his diaper. He did great, though.

We spent the first morning at Folly Beach where we sat on the beach and Jack went for a dip with Dan. We hid in the shade of the fishing pier. It was very nice. We had to leave because there were closing the beach due to a storm coming with waterspouts. We were ready to go by then anyway.

We went to the Charleston Aquarium and had breakfast with the otters. That was great. I love otters and they were very active while we were there. They were swimming around with their fishy ice blocks and we got some cute video.

We went swinging at the swings on the pier at the Downtown Waterfront Park. Jack really enjoyed the shade and the breeze down there on the water. What a great place!

We also met up with Katie, Ben and Andrew. We had lunch together at 82 Queen. Yummy!

I sat in the back with him on the ride home and he seemed to enjoy that. Mommy can be such a clown!

Miserable Tooth

Poor little man cut his first tooth (bottom front left) the weekend and since then has been absolutely miserable. Sleeping seems to be impossible (for all of us) currently. I just wish that I could hold him all night. I think that he would prefer that as well. It is always the worst at night. I guess he has nothing else to do but dwell on the discomfort. *sigh*

Pictures from the Baptism

Blessed Baby

Jack got baptized on May 4th. He, and all of the other babies scheduled for baptism, were so good! I think only one cried during the actual baptism. When his turn came to be baptized, Jack just looked at Dan and me as if to ask, "What is this guy doing? Is this OK?" He is so expressionate.

We practically had to stuff him into his baptism outfit. But once he was in, he was adorable! I don't have any pictures of his baptism on my camera, but I am anxiously awaiting copies from friends who were taking pictures that day.

These are from today. Jack and I just hung out most of the day, including swinging on the back deck eating Cheerios. The faster and higher the swing, the better for our little dare devil. Lily provided the clean up...

It has been a while since I have posted anything, so here is a quick Jack update. Jack is almost 7 months old now. He is doing wonderfully. He weighs just over 20 pounds and is about 27 1/2 inches long. He is laughing, razzing and being all kinds of cute. Today he actually flipped over from his back to his tummy for the first time. Actually, he got his foot stuck in his crib when he did it. I rescued him. We also took Jack swimming at the pool for the first time - completely did not phase the little man. Fat definitely floats.

The only person who can seem to put Jack to sleep NO MATTER WHAT appears to be my dad. It is the weirdest thing. I don't know how he does it. He must be a baby whisperer.

Here are some pictures from our time at the beach around Memorial Day:

This was Jack's first trip to the beach. Sleeping was an issue, but he seemed to love being outside so much. He went for a ride on the boat, too. All was lovely, except the life jacket. He hated it. We took it off whenever we were not underway. As you can see, he is quite the little captain. Look out seagulls!!

Sittin' Pretty

It's really hard to believe that the little man is almost 6 months old. He is sitting on my lap trying to help me type. He loves to hammer away at the keyboard. I think I am going to try to find a dead one somewhere, clean it up and let him go to town on it.

He is getting pretty good at sitting on his own without falling over too much. He can all but roll onto his stomach from his back now. In fact, I am sure that he could with proper motivation. He just prefers to roll from side to side and twist the rest of the way.

He seems to have a blast in his bouncer. I think that he loves being able to stand and move around a bit on his own accord. He is able to turn and spin around to check out everything going on. He is most interested in Lily. He loves watching that dog. Every little thing she does cracks him up. She can be a real distraction during feeding time. Even watching her yawn or wag her tail is great fun for him!

Life is pretty fun at the moment!

Five Months Old And All About The Feet...

This week has been all about Jack's feet. He has discovered that he can grab his big toes and pull his feet almost to his mouth! I am sure that he would like nothing more than to chomp on those little porkchops. His bottom back teeth are still on their way in. He seems to be taking it in stride, though.

Jack tried a new food today - bananas! So far he has had apples, pears and bananas. This child LOVES to eat! He is putting away about 4oz of solids a day in addition to his regular milk. We are holding off on the peaches because Dan had a bad reaction to them when he was little.

Dan has obviously grown out of that though because he requested peach pie for his birthday!Speaking of Dan's birthday, we celebrated it tonight with Grandma, Grandad, GiGi, Michael, Jenny and Caroline. It was quite delicious. Dan got a very nice wheel barrow for his birthday from the family.

Jack also got to visit a new place this week - Lexington. Dan and Jack strolled all around while I was in a conference there. We stayed in a pretty nice place. It was a little noisy though when the trash trucks came around at about 4:30 am.

Jack and I went to the park recently and had a little picnic. It is amazing how much he loves being outside. He just soaks up the fresh air. We had a fun playdate with Ava and the two just rolled around and had fun on a blanket in the backyard. Very cute. I think Ava has a crush on Jack, and vice versa.

All the time we were doing yardwork last weekend, he was happy and content to hang out inside of his sling and just sit and watch like a little dictator. He has management written all over him. :) Mommy is so proud!