1/2 year old

My how fast a 1/2 year can go by.  Donovan turned 6 months old, well now...it's been a couple weeks ago.

I always intend to write so much more often, but somehow time slips away from me.  We have been crazy busy lately re-doing the back yard, getting ready for Zoe and Jason's wedding and enjoying time together as a family.  My parents came out to visit a couple weeks ago as well which was so wonderful to have them out here again as always.

We got a ton done outside and we are so thankful for all of their help.  Our backyard now has the grass area I wanted, a larger garden area, a peaceful covered lounge area and a picnic eating area.  And I must not forget the drip watering system for the garden this summer as well.  Oh how I can not wait to spend all of our days and nights out there. 

Donovan's six month check up was pretty uneventful which is always a good thing.  He is in the 60th percentile for weight, 30th for height and despite his monstrous cheeks, his head is in the 15th percentile.  She said he looks good and healthy and we don't need to come back until a year if we want.  She also gave us the go head to start solid foods so I got right to it and whipped him up a variety of lovely veggies to accompany his rice cereal.  It has been so fun watching him explore all the new tastes.   The doctor suggested that we start with the green veggies and then move onto yellow and orange so that he doesn't develop a preference for the sweeter ones and so far that has worked.  He loves broccoli, doesn't seem to mind spinach and has so much fun eating his avocado.  He has also tried banana and he gets rice cereal (usually with more spinach mixed in) every day.  I kind of don't want to introduce anything sweet because he loves his green veggies so much.  He says "hmmm"  with just about every bite.

Donovan is so interested in everything in sight right now, I could just watch him explore his world all day every day.  He whips his head around with every sound and just can't seem to get enough of the world around him.  He is learning new sounds and pitches to make with his voice as well which can be so sweet and so entertaining.  We were at Mommy and me yoga the other day and he was screaming with joy for just about the whole hour.  He had all the other moms laughing and talking about what a happy baby he is.  The teacher probably asked me a dozen times..."is he really always this happy?"  And I must say he pretty much is!!!  I mean don't get me wrong, if he is tired, hungry, dirty or you set him down and he didn't want to be set down he will certainly let you know but all in all he is so fun to be around.  He is a boy who defiantly knows what he wants though and he will also let you know that.  Just tonight while we were at the store all he wanted was the plastic bag.  When I gave it to him he put it in his mouth so I took it away and ooooh was he mad!  I gave him a different toy but he did not stop screaming until I gave him back the plastic bag.  Just too smart I tell ya :)  He also does things over and over that he thinks is funny such as dropping something and then laughing and, as bad as it sounds, he thinks he is hilarious when he lets out a loud fart.  You can't help but laugh with him but I don't know how cute that is going to be when he gets a little older.    All in all I think he is right on track with what he should be doing developmentally such as rolling, sitting, grabbing at everything big or small, babbling and he can scoot a good 3-4 feet across the room on his back if motivated.  I don't know when he will be crawling because he still isn't that much of a fan of tummy time.  He will roll over to get a toy or move closer to something he wants but he doesn't stay on his tummy to play for any good length of time.  I guess I don't mind because I don't know if I am ready for my baby to be on the move but I know how good crawling is for the brain so on the other hand I would love for him to crawl as long as possible.  As I learned the day he was born, he will do things on his time...no need to try to hurry him along :) 

Let's see, am I missing anything else from the last time I posted?  We had a ton of fun at Zoe's bachlorette party when my mom was in town as well.  We gathered at our place for the opening of the langerie and then headed out to a winery for some wine tasting, on to quick bite to eat and ended with a comedy show.  All in all I think everyone had a great time and Zoe is going to be looking pretty cute...uhumm...in all of her new outfits :)

We also had a small Easter gathering at our house as well.  I can't believe I haven't posted about Easter.   It was really nice to keep it small and simple.  Our cousins Jerry and Kelli came over and Grandpa Dick came down as well.  We hung out outside for a little while while Donovan opened his easter basket and then headed inside for a scruptsious lamb supper prepared by the wonderful chef Kevin.  Zoe and Jason stopped by later in the evening as well.  You know I will not pass up any time with family!

XOXO