Month Seven

Dear Xavier,

Seven months doesn’t sound nearly as exciting as six months or half a year old did. But another month has gone by and you just continue to change by the day. I packed away all of your 6 month clothing and much of your 9 month stuff and with the thought of my little boy getting so big, I just started to cry. You looked at me and started whimpering, so the moment didn’t last long. But it’s hard for me to even remember what you were like a few months ago when you started wearing those clothes.

You are still not officially crawling, but that doesn’t keep you from getting around. Why bother learning to crawl “for real” with the speed you have picked up with your army crawl?! Well, one good reason might be the red scaly patches you have on your forearms! I haven’t been smart enough to completely babyproof the house yet, so instead, I spend my days saying no and chasing after you. Some of the things that interest you the most are the coffee table (ouch, I bumped my head!), the kitties’ water bowls (hey, I’m all wet!), cords (how did this get wrapped around me?), and my camera (your mommy will be the one yelling if that gets broken!). In fact, I’ll have your blanket laid out on the floor with a nice arrangement of toys and what do you do…inspect every inch of the room instead! I’m considering writing a few books to add to the Tails Are Not For Pulling series…something along the lines of Stroller Tires Are Not For Licking or Running Shoes Are Not For Eating.

You are doing a great job of sitting up on your own and sitting up very tall! Your grandma says that you have great posture. It makes it a lot easier to take your picture sitting than when I had to be prepared to catch you at any given moment. When you are sitting up, you love to play with your toys that have mirrors and give yourself kisses! You are a fine looking young man, but maybe a little less tongue would be more appropriate.

You and I traveled to Missouri together to celebrate your great grandparents’ 65th wedding anniversary. Your daddy was so excited to sleep in for a couple of days, but I think he really missed you…especially since you started saying “dada” right as we were leaving! All of your aunts and uncles and cousins were smitten with you and you did a great job with the responsibility of entertaining everyone for the weekend!

This month, you made big strides in eating solid foods. From rice cereal and oatmeal, you have moved on to avocados, sweet potatoes, butternut squash, bananas, green beans, carrots, and peas. Apart from the faces you make, we can also tell whether or not you like a food by how covered your daddy’s shirt is with your food. I’m telling you…you won’t have many dates as a teenager if you continue to spray your food everywhere!

You seem to have regressed in the sleeping area. Xavier, it is okay with your mommy and daddy if you sleep past 5:00 am! Really, it is. Yes, we love to see your face in the morning, but seeing it a little later would help us all out. Sometimes, one of us will get up with you while the other tries to sleep. It’s hard even then to get much sleep when you’re bouncing your exersaucer (which, by the way, is not intended to bounce) and shaking the whole house. Your daddy claims that this intensity comes directly from me… (?!?!) Well, maybe…

And maybe I’m glad that you have that stubborn and independent streak in you…at least most of the time.

Love,
Mommy