First tastes....

Yesterday, October 22nd, was Gracyn's 6 month birthday. Is that possible? On the one hand it feels like she has always been a part of our family, but on the other hand I can still feel her warm, sticky, heaviness as they plopped her on my belly just after birth. Our lives will never be the same. She's so much fun. I think that I have always been a fairly relaxed mom, but with Gracyn I have progressed to enjoying my children more. They are less "work" to me now, because I have learned to enjoy the journey so much more. Its not that I didn't enjoy the other kids...hardly! Its more like I've finally come into my own and realized that being a mommy is one of those things I was created to be, so I embrace it fully.

With Gracyn, I decided to wait until 6 months of age before introducing solids. Both Rylee and Noah began at 4 months, but I knew that nursing was meeting all of Gracie's needs, so we waited a bit. I know she is definitely ready, though. The last month she has been trying to grab utensils out of our hands, reaching for our glasses, etc. Last night, on her 6 month birthday, we tried some cereal out on her. She was very eager, and managed the food really well, but you can tell the taste was just so different than what she is used to. She would open her mouth, take a bit off the spoon, let it sit on her tongue, then shudder wildly. It was hysterical. The faces were so entertaining. Matt and I and the kids were all laughing. Sorry about the closed eyes in some of the pictures, but you would blink too if you had a flash going off every other second.

Gracyn's personality is still easy going, laid back and super happy. She generally has one mood: Happy! She smiles non stop. She even stops nursing just to look at me and flash me a giant smile, then she'll go back to nursing. She loves attention and being held (what baby doesn't?). She already knows to react differently with different people. For instance, when Matt gets home from work, he scoops her up and she immediately starts "playing" and gently hitting his face and smiling. I think it must be a baby girls version of wrestling. With me, she tend to just smile and snuggle. With Rylee and Noah, she flashed these quick, engaging smiles to them that just beckons them to come play with her. She now says, "mama" with regularity. I think she even knows what she is saying because when she is tired or hungry, she'll cry "mama" over and over. Last week she started saying, "Hi!". Its not just any "hi", but rather a high pitched, drawn out "Hiiiiiiii!!", complete with hand wave. Imagine yourself saying "Hiiii!!" to a baby, and this is how Gracyn does it. Its pretty funny.

Gracie had definitely worked herself so completely into our hearts and lives that we just could not imagine our life without her. Happy 6 month Birthday, little one!