The Great Escape

Our baby boy turned five months old this week. The adage, "they grow up so fast," couldn't be more accurate. He is now 25 inches long, 15 lbs, and itching to crawl. I had a bit of an emotional week this week. I'm not sure if it's how fast he's growing up, how close going back to work is, or just hormonal adjustments --but thanks to an intervention by Sarah, I survived unscathed. Thanks again Sarah.
I guess as a tribute to his five month birthday, I should share with you a few of John Thomas' personality attributes and a few things I love about him.
1. He is a very determined little baby. I think this trait will eventually serve him well when he gets older. For instance, he still loves his baby gym, but he decided his exersaucer was more interesting. He can't crawl, but he certainly can roll to where he wants to go. I know when he figures out how to crawl, he will be all over the place. His "great escape" took about 45 seconds. Maybe we should have named him Houdini?
2. He loves talking to people, especially girls. As you can tell, he inherited great taste in women and maybe even a little of that Kirkpatrick charm. He's already made his first move, trying to hold baby Charlotte's hand. He didn't even try the old "yawn maneuver," he just went for it. I think he must have realized Mckenna was too old for him.
3. He loves to sleep all bunched up on his stomach, especially in mom and dad's big comfy bed.

4. He absolutely lights up whenever he sees his dad. I'm a little jealous of this, but the few times I've left the house without him, he lights up when he sees me again too.

5. Of course, he thinks Chester is the coolest thing ever. We spend countless hours every week playing with Chester. He just laughs, coos and squeals with delight.

It would be impossible to list all the things I love about our little guy, so I'll narrow it down to four in honor of his birthday this week.

1. I love that he smiles with his eyes. Sometimes he's sort of coy and covers his mouth, but his eyes never lie.

2. I love his laugh and his voice. If I could bottle it up and listen to it over and over again, I would.

3. I love that he loves to dance and sing with me. The other day I was doing the electric slide (I can't make this stuff up) and he just thought it was the funniest thing in the world.

4. I love that he actually finds comfort when I sing. I have wished all my life for a beautiful voice, which never happened. But, God did give me a son that thought I had a great voice. I dread the day he actually realizes it ain't too purdy after all.

Even on the tough days, I count my blessing for our beautiful baby boy.