It's the Qualleys!: December 2011

We've made it! Barrett is halfway through his first year. It's shocking to think that at this exact time six months ago, Grant was watching our newborn get his first bath & shots in the nursery as I happily wolfed down a well-deserved dinner of Chinese food. The night of Barrett's birth still makes me giddy with excitement and thankfulness. In fact, I'd happily do it all over again for the moment I laid eyes on my sweet baby boy.

Some noteable developments of the "Big Bear":

*Barrett has officially cut his first teeth. He has his front two bottoms. He had a couple of grumpy days, but nothing compared to the horror stories I've heard! Nothing a couple of (glorious) teething tablets can't fix.

*Bear is sitting up on his own and starting to reach for toys in front of him.

*Now when he floats on his back in the pool or bath, he kicks like a crazy baby. His kick is pretty strong, which means the bathroom ends up getting totally soaked. And he does it all with a huge smile on his face.

*Barrett has added sweet potatoes to his list of foods. And HE. IS. NUTS for them! He gets excited and starts flapping his arms when he sees the good stuff come out. He opens his mouth like a little baby bird and lets me know how delicious it is with lots of "hmmm's".

*We bought Barrett an exersaucer from another mom on Facebook. She bought it in 2006 and this Baby Einstein piece-of-heaven was in great shape. $20! Bear loves "going to his office" and working on different toys and puzzles. And it buys me enough time to take a quick shower or make a meal. Win-win!

*We seem to have FINALLY moved away from swaddling the boy. Horray! We've been told by several people for the last two months that it was time to give up his cozy wrap. Well, it's fair to say that Grant & I now appreciate Bear's strong will. We tried to force the issue and he made us pay with many angry nights. We gave in and let the little man run the show with his beloved Miracle Blanket...out of sheer exhaustion. Then out of the blue about two weeks ago, Barrett decided to put on his big-boy pj's and skip the swaddle. What a relief to see him curled up in his crib with sweet little clasped hands. Phew! Glad I won't have to swaddle him at 16...

*Finally, our boy's sense of humor seems to get bigger every month. Barrett likes to pick up on any audience and run with it. He spits when he's happy and if he gets a laugh out of it, he'll wiggle his eyebrows and continue to do it. In public, he'll watch for strangers to check him out and then he'll start gabbing at them and rolling his tongue. Little clown.

Here's to the next half of one amazing year!