Anders Update:: 6 Months

Before Anders was born, I started getting nervous about taking care of a newborn baby. Aiden had been in the NICU for the first 17 days of his life so we mostly missed his newborn stage. We were there, but it's not like being at home. We had this huge training course complete with round the clock professionals helping us take care of our baby. When we finally got to take Anders home 9 days after he was born, I realized very quickly I could take care of a newborn. He needed to be fed, changed, and loved. I definitely could do that! 

The reason I tell that little story is because when I think about Anders at six months, I realize he's nothing like Aiden was. So even though I thought I knew what to expect (since Anders isn't our first), Aiden didn't really prepare us for Anders. They're just so different. 

Here he is at six months. He's big. We weighed him about a month ago and he was already 21 pounds. He wears size 9 month and 12 month clothes. Mostly 12 month. He wears a size 4 diaper. He likes baby food and is an ok sleeper. He gets up 2-3 times during the night & only takes short naps during the day. 

Anders is always moving. As I tried to get the photo above, most of them looked like this: 

(He has a smile on his face most of the day too.)

This boy does not sit still! When you change his diaper, he's rolling all over, trying to grab things that catch his eye. When you put him down, you have to survey the whole room to make sure there isn't something he might choke on or get hurt by. (We never really had this issue with Aiden because he never went anywhere! We put him down and he stayed right there.) 

Anders is pretty social. He likes being around us. He'd rather take his nap where he can see me rather than in a different room. I just love how relaxed he looks here! 

He's already undressing himself! (And he spends a lot of time playing on his belly.) Sidenote: this was the first time he wasn't wearing a onesie. Guess he really needs one still! 

Like I said before, he's a super smiley guy! We are so so lucky he's ours! 

When you smile at Anders, he smiles right back. If you have a stern look on your face, he'll usually start crying. I stuck my tongue out at him to see if he could copy me. Here he is, concentrating so hard on copying me. :) 

Last, he is a snuggler! If you hold him upright, he'll grab onto you around the neck and squeeze so tight. :) It's the biggest baby hug and it's so cute! If you hold him a different way, he'll figure out how to grab on & hold tight. He fell asleep like this yesterday. :) 

He's growing and developing so fast! We joke that he's going to catch up to Aiden soon, but in some ways it may not be far from the truth. 

Just don't grow up too fast, Anders!