7 Months Old & 1 Month Together

As of the 1st, our family has been together 1 month! As of a week and a half ago, Elias is 7 months old. I am behind. Very behind. Life is great. This week marked another change for us. I went back to work three days a week and Brian is taking a month off to be Mr. Mom. We have been really busy and have not quite gotten into a routine. A couple days after getting home we went to my parent's house to watch my brothers while my parents were in Ethiopia. Then we went home for about a week and turned around and took duty #2 with my brothers. My parents live close and we are up there a lot anyway but since being home things are getting a bit more into something resembling a schedule.

Elias is doing so well. He is a very happy and fun baby. He is extremely flexible with us which is great. Since being home Elias has improved in so many areas. He has started baby talk. Really the only thing he says is "Da da da da...." all day long. Despite the avid practice with "Ma ma ma ma" nothing slightly resembling an "m" has ever been spoken.

Elias can scoot. He hasn't mastered the whole knee part of crawling but he does like to be on his tummy, get rocking, and then use his feet to scoot. One early morning I was snoozing on the couch and he was playing on his back. Next thing I know I look down to see Elias on his tummy right next to me. He still would rather be held but if he feels inclined to do so, he can scoot.

Another new thing is Elias is eating solid foods. He hates plain rice cereal but will eat it mixed with other things. By far his favorite food is sweet potatoes although he also eats squash, bananas, and mangos. We were told one new food every 5 days so we have only tried these 4 things in the last 2 weeks.

Here are 7 things I love about Elias:

1) His cheerful, loving, and overall good-natured personality

2) The way he burries his head in my lap when I tickle him

3) How his face lights up when Brian or I walk in the door after being at work

4) The way he sings himself to sleep. Elias loves to be bounced to sleep. I grab his favorite minky blanket and head to a dark place. Then I sing. Brian thinks it's funny. I don't care how bad it sounds...it works. Each night is a combination of "You are my sunshine" and "I love you Eli." Within a minute Elias is singing with me and eventually he sings himself to sleep.

5) I wouldn't say Elias laughs or smiles easily. He is obviously always very content but he makes you work for a giggle or smile. His laugh and smile are so sweet that they are definitely worth the little bit of "work."

6) His soft whispy curls

7) His kisses. Elias loves to give and receive kisses. Many times if I am kissing him on the cheek he will turn his face so I kiss him on the lips. Then he opens his mouth and starts sticking his tongue in and out to give us "lizard kisses!" It's a bit wet but worth every ounce of slobber.

We finally got a new video camera cord so we will be posting videos soon. Also, I will finish our daily journal of our trip as well as updates since we've been home...so stay tuned!