Simon: 8 months

I'm, once again, fairly late in this post.  He turned 8 months on our 9 year wedding anniversary almost two weeks ago!  A little before 8 months he stopped sleeping well at night and began waking up every hour after midnight.  Thankfully he's the sweetest, most adorable little baby; even at 3am.

He's become an expert at sweeping our floor with his belly.  As he's on his quest to disgusting shoes or danger stairs he glances back at me to make sure I come to the rescue, which is a sure guarantee of many squeals and laughter.  Instead of crawling he continues to glide on his belly, occasionally he attempts to pull his knees under himself or hold his body in a plank position for several seconds.  (I wish I was strong enough to do that!)

In the last few days he's figured out how to climb over large sofa pillows (that were used to contain him) and up two steps into our bathroom.

He started eating solids in the last month.  I waited a little later than the recommended 6 months because my other kids just spit the food out constantly in the beginning and since Simon seems to have some intolerances to food I thought I'd wait just a bit to start the journey.  I'm so glad I waited.  He was so ready and is a fantastic eater (except for the mixed veggies I tried to feed him last night that resulted in repeated gagging and looks of 'what did you just put in my mouth?!').

He enjoys grabbing hair and pinching my face.  He's giddy and completely goofy when Brian gets home every night.

But the best part of Simon is his smile.  Which, after reviewing our photos, I realize I don't have nearly enough photos of his perma-smile.  He greets us with a smile every morning and almost every moment.  

Simon fills my heart with so much joy!

One thing I've noticed about myself lately is how much I'm soaking in all of Simon's wonderful baby-ness.  If we are blessed to have more children it will be in a few years. I'm learning how special and wonderful it is to have such sweetness in my life.  The soft, plump skin is so tender to kiss and caress.  The sweet laughter and smiles; they melt my heart.  I've loved all my babies so much, but there's something special about this time, right now, with Simon.  I pray those dimpled knuckles stay.