manning at 7 months

manning is a busy little guy. you almost can't hold him because he never stops moving and talking. it is surprising that he isn't crawling yet because he is so busy all of the time. he seems to have mason's contentment about being where he is when on the floor. i don't think he will be much longer though. he gets around when he wants to with a sort of army crawl or inch-worm up and down.

he isn't small. tall like the rest of the kids, manning is also the chunkiest! although, i think he is thinning out a little. he eats a lot (just like the rest of them) to the point we will cut him off because we can't imagine there is physically any more room and we expect it to just start coming back up any minute. especially with yogurt. he loves, loves yogurt. he even gets excited when we mention it. i have started making his yogurt and it is working out great. i think i am going to order another set of jars and see if i can make flavored yogurt that the others will eat. it has been pretty easy. so now i can make 100% of his food, not that i do, but i could. things like peas are more work to make than they yield or there are foods that aren't in season so i buy some foods so that i don't make myself crazy.

he is wearing 9 and 12 month clothes and 18 month sleepers. manning is in a size 4 diaper. i think he should be in these for a little while. well, at least longer than the other sizes.

it is hard to believe that he is closer to one than a newborn now. although, i am excited to think that in about 5 months i will be done with nursing - forever!! i don't mind nursing, but i am completely done with nursing bras and having to wear 'easy access' clothes. how i long to wear whatever i feel like without a thought about how i am going to be able to nurse. it is a blessing that i have been able to nurse everyone to one year and i have been very grateful for (almost) every minute.

manning babbles almost all of the time. when we went to the library last week, the ladies were just oohing and ahhing over him. and he was eating it up just chatting and laughing away for them.

he is a thumbsucker and has lost some of his interest in holding fabrics. he does hold the top edge of his crib sheet sometimes though while sucking his thumb.

he loves his brothers and sister. he laughs at them regularly and can't seem to wait to see what they are going to do next. he has started to crack up when they run which the other two boys did too (madelyn might have but she didn't have an older sibling running in front of the stroller ever).

he is now riding in the umbrella stroller (i always love this change from the carrier and bigger strollers) and we are going to change up the carseats in a few weeks. he will still be rear facing just in a 'big kid' seat - the one maddux is now in.

he sleeps 11-12 hours a night and takes about a 3 hour nap each afternoon. he is starting to toy with dropping his morning nap. if we are out and about he doesn't always fall asleep and does fine until after lunch when i put him down for his afternoon nap (he will go down a little earlier than normal). if we are home he generally takes the morning nap and it can range from 40 minutes to 2 hours. with the sleeping changes, he can have one or two 'snacks' each day too. some days it feels like i feed him every minute he is awake! i am trying to introduce 'puffs' so that he can start feeding himself a little. this kid has no patience when he is eating. he wants it shoveled in as fast as we can go. he starts to cry if we take a bite of our own food before he is done eating his!

overall, he is just a joy. and we are happy to have him. love.

(i took these pictures because he had gotten the magna-doodle over to his blanket and actually did the 'drawing' you can see.)