7 Months

Dear Benjamin, 

It's only been a couple of weeks since I wrote your 6 month letter but so much has happened in this short time!

PHYSICAL GROWTH + DEVELOPMENT

You are on the move! Your army crawling is really fast and there is nothing that is off limits to you. You're into anything you can get your hands on. You love to climb over Mommy-(and Daddy)made barricades. Just as I told Daddy I should sell your Exersaucer for the next toy you began crawling into the bottom of it to play. It's hilarious! The first time you did it I thought it was an accident but you keep going back for more. You think it's pretty funny too! On your 7 month "birthday" you pulled yourself up to a stand for the first time. You and I were taking a bath together after a trip to the pool when you grabbed onto the side and started to move upward. Normally I would never have let you stand in the bathtub but since I was in there with you I allowed my curiosity to get the best of me. I couldn't believe it! Since then, you've pulled yourself up quite a few times. You can't stand unassisted without toppling over yet but I know it's coming soon. You haven't developed a sense of fear yet. Nor do you understand gravity. Imagine my surprise when Daddy told me he came into the bedroom from getting ready [for work] in the bathroom to find you on the floor, playing with the vacuum. You'd crawled right off the bed without making a peep while I kept sleeping! Mommy won't be winning the Mother of the Year Award this year, that's for sure! 

Edited to add: I should mention that your hair is finally starting to fill back in. You are no longer resembling Bill Murray, thank goodness. You wear size 4 diapers and we recently started using the Target Up & Up brand. Why nobody told me to use these before, I do not know, but they're great and at a fraction of the cost of most brands. You haven't had a single blow out yet. *knock on wood* I should also mention that you're quite the chunk, fitting quite nicely in size 12-18 months. Yeah, buddy! 

FAVORITES

You love to play and you've developed quite the personality. It's really easy to make you smile and laugh. Better yet, you like to make Daddy and me laugh too. You make the silliest faces and I'm SO glad that your silly sniff face has made a return with a vengeance! These are some of your current favorites:

1. Uncle Goose Lowercase ABC Blocks - Up until recently, whenever we would stack up your blocks you couldn't knock them over fast enough. Now you like for us to stack them and a lot of times you only take the top one off without knocking over the stack. Daddy has started leaving stacks for you at night to wake up to and play with in the morning.

2. Every night, before bed, Daddy reads you Goodnight Moon. I use the term "read" loosely as he mostly raps or reads it to you in a sing song voice. I need to get a video of this.

3. Giraffe is still your favorite stuffy, although you also love your new Sully from GG (yours doesn't talk). I used to let you bring him everywhere but now he stays in your crib. 

4. You are still teething like crazy. Your first 6 teeth are pretty much all the way in now. Your 7th tooth (your top, middle, left) broke skin a few days ago and the one next to it isn't far behind. Your gums are really puffy. One of your favorite teethers is this RazBaby Teether that works like a pacifier. With the big handle you have no problem pulling it in and out of your mouth while you chew on it.

5. Probably the most fun [new] development you've had is mastering your two popper push toys. You love to repeatedly push the button down to see the balls pop around inside.

EATING

You still nurse 8-10 times a day and I imagine that will stay the same until you're at least a year old. In the last couple of weeks (days, really) you've gotten infinitely better at eating [chewing and swallowing]. You pretty much demand to eat whenever we do now so I have to think ahead of what I'm going to give you if ever I'm going to eat a meal in front of you. Sometimes that means you get to try what we're having, like hummus-crusted chicken and wild rice, or eggs and pancakes. You thoroughly enjoy the eating process and I think you also like to be included. You like fruit a lot (especially apples) and the mixed fruit pouch with plums, berries, and barley is your favorite. I saw this great tip on Pinterest to freeze what you don't finish into little frozen bites and you love these. I think they feel good on your gums.

The other day we went to your pal, Henry's, first birthday party. One layer of his circus tent cake was pound cake for the babies and so you had your first tastes of cake. It's safe to say that you loved it!

SLEEPING

You have settled into a predictable schedule which makes you and Mommy so much happier. I am not opposed to waking you if we have plans and you're still really good about sleeping in the car if that's where we are during naptime. You're a very flexible baby. I like that about you very much. This is what your schedule [give or take] looks like now:
 

Wake up 7:00/7:30 AM

Playtime/ TV (Mickey Mouse Clubhouse is your FAVORITE)

Breastfeed then nap 9:00 - 10:30/11:00 AM
Breastfeed 11:00/11:30 AM  

Playtime/ Read/ Music

Lunch with Mommy 12:30 PM

Breastfeed then nap 1:00 - 2:00/2:30 PM

Playtime 

Breastfeed then nap 4:00 (You nap anywhere from 35 minutes to 2 hours depending on how our day went.)

Playtime

Breastfeed then Dinner with Mommy + Daddy 6:30 PM

Play with Daddy/ Bath with Mommy/ Read with Daddy/ Pray with Mommy + Daddy

Breastfeed then Bedtime 7:30 PM

Nighttime Feeding 10:00 PM, 12:00 (after which you come to bed with us), 3:00, and 6:00 AM

You are my Chunky Monkey. My Peanut Poo. I love every single thing about you. 

Always, 

Mama