Month 6 & Month 7

I can't let another month go by before making another update... so here goes trying to catch up! Now I know why it seems baby books are so overrated and why there are always missing parts or pages in so many of those cute little books! Luckily it is so easy to capture all of the moments with our iphones... and I know it may seem we share a TON of pictures on facebook and instagram, but trust me when I say we have a MILLION more photos from where those came from!

I can't even believe it when I say this, but in order to catch you all up to Landon's 6 month mark I have to go all the way back to Thanksgiving! It seems like Thanksgiving was so long ago! Wow... now I wish I hadn't put this off for so long!

So right before Thanksgiving we had Landon's 6 month follow up at the NICU. As much as I was super nervous for the appointment and our visit with the nurses (more nervous for me as I knew Landon was going to do great!), we had a wonderful day! We had a nice little play date with two of Landon's NICU buddies and it was so great to see them! After a short visit we had our appointment in which they assessed his muscle tone, coordination and cognitive skills... which basically was playtime with tummy time, bells, whistles and lights! Landon did really well and they were so pleased with his progress. Afterwards we headed into the ICN and saw a few of his biggest fans. I am so glad we were able to do that because after our 52 day stay, some of the nurses and the LC truly became like family. I spent about 8 hours a day with Landon so it was such a great experience to talk to the nurses throughout the day as well. They loved seeing Landon and reminded me of how much trouble I am in store for with his baby blues! We are scheduled to go back again for his 1 year assessment to continue to monitor his development.

About a week later we also had our first night out as new parent's at our friends wedding... a big milestone for mommy and daddy! We have yet to have another one, but I think the time is coming! We just hate leaving his side!

So here goes for Landon's 6 month milestones (if I can remember correctly)...

LANDON LOVES...
... Miss Wendy! She has been a savior in helping me return back to work without worrying about Landon in daycare by helping out with him here at home. Landon adores her and has been developing leaps and bounds because of her!
... Smiling at the phrase "what are you doin'?"
... Carrots! We started with feeding him homemade baby food!
... his first snow!

LANDON CAN...
...  jump, jump, jump! It was finally time that we invested in a jumperoo and he loves it!
... pet his doggie... we have been allowing more playtime with Hunter-boy and Landon loves to feel Hunter's hair.
... try to sit up on his own, but it looks more like he is attempting his 100th sit-up in a row!

Month 6... better late than never!

Once we got past the 6 month mark, it seemed like we all hit a really good stride! We were all getting into a really good routine and Landon seemed to finally be over the major reflux issues. His feedings became much easier and he also began napping a bit better as well. I'm not sure why but it took us a while to get into a bedtime routine and we finally created "the 3 B's" as Lance would call it... bath, bottle, bed. Sometimes we add in other "B's" for when we're feeling wild... books, beer (not for Landon of course!), etc. :)

We were also getting excited for our first Christmas as our little family. We had a great visit with Santa and enjoyed a lot of great company with family and friends around the holidays. This was the most hustle we've had since Landon was home and it was exhausting but so worth it! I truly never knew how much preparation it takes to get a baby out of the house as much as we did... I'm pretty sure we could've spent a few nights away from home with everything we had packed for him.

Christmas day was Landon's 7 month birthday exactly and the greatest gift was him sleeping through the night! He has been sleeping through the night consistently since then and it is a marvelous thing to wake up feeling refreshed again! We didn't splurge on gifts for Landon this year and I'm glad we didn't because he ended up liking the tissue paper in the wrapping more than anything! I am so excited about the HD camcorder that I got Lance for Christmas as pretty soon we will be using it more frequently when Landon begins to "talk" more and of course once he is on the go!

LANDON LOVES...
... kicking his feet like crazy in the bath!
... Butternut Squash & Pears
... grabbing onto our nose, chin & hair
... raspberries and kisses on his belly
... playing "eyes, ears, nose, chinny chin chin" and "patty cake patty cake"

LANDON CAN...
... touch his toes!
... giggle like crazy (although mommy ends up giving him the hiccups half the time)
... sleep through the night!
... munch on his fingers (no matter what his fingers are always in his mouth!)

There he goes with those fingers again!

Probably our 2nd only family picture

Christmas Morning!

Wow, what a relief to finally catch up on this! Now only 9 more days until he turns 8 months and I hope I can continue to keep up with it! He is just too much fun to play and snuggle with than to sit at my computer! :)