Five months

Sweet Andrew,
You are five months old! Just between me and you, I think you are starting to look more like me as you get older. I used to only see your Daddy when I looked at you, but now I catch glimpses of myself in your big blue eyes. I like that.
You are so precious these days. Of course, you always have been, but now you are starting to interact more and more with the world around you and I love how you are becoming this inquisitive, funny, loving baby.
My favorite thing about you at this age is how you put your head on my shoulder or my chest while you pat me with your chubby little hand. I just swoon everytime. It gives me so much happiness.
You wake up smiling these days. You are a world champion overnight sleeper. You usually go to bed between 5:30 and 6 p.m. and you usually sleep until 6:30 a.m. You don't have to be fed at night. On the rare occasion that we hear from you during the night, it's usually just a sleep cry (or sometimes a laugh) and you settle down quickly and return to peaceful slumber. We are eternally grateful for this!
You aren't such a great napper. You usually take four brief naps during the day, some as short as 20 minutes and some as long as 45 minutes. This doesn't give me much time but I'm learning to just go with it. Right now, you tend to get a little crabby in between your naps. I'm hopeful that in the future you will begin to nap longer and that those naps will give you the rest you need to be happy when you're awake.
You have started eating solid foods twice a day. You really love to eat! No surprise there! You love to feed yourself these baby rice cakes that probably taste like cardboard. I have tried all your baby foods but didn't have the courage to take a bite of that rice rusk. I'm pretty sure it tastes a lot like a communion wafer. Yuk. But you love it! You cry when your bottle ends. You cry when your baby food ends. You cry when your rice cake is gone.
Otherwise, you are a pretty happy boy. You love to watch Brody and you like to get your hands on him. You love anything that is musical -- a toy, the radio, the television. You sometimes enjoy watching Barney on TV when he is singing but you turn away when the music stops. There is a show called Super Why that has a little princess on it. You laugh out loud at her sometimes.
Not that you watch a lot of TV. You are usually playing with your toys or interacting with me. You still like your swing, but I'm afraid you're about to grow out of it. We just bought you an outdoor swing, but your dad hasn't put it up yet. I think you are going to love it.
You're a big boy. You wear 12 month size footed sleepers and 9 month body suits. You have nearly outgrown your infant car seat, but we have been reluctant to move you up to the convertible car seat because you can't sit up by yourself yet and I'm just not quite sure of what to do with you when I go shopping or to a restaurant if we don't have the portable car seat.
You laugh out loud at some point nearly every day. But it is odd what you find funny. Daddy is pretty funny. Brody is hilarious. Mommy is not very funny at all though she tries really hard to make you laugh.
You find some words or sounds pretty funny. Words that start with the "Z" sound usually get a smile from you, so we often say things like "zebra," "zuchinni" and, your dad's favorite, "zipper head." You also like the "p" sound like in the word "hop" or "flip flop." I think you take after me -- you like words and you like music.
You have started making a very high pitched squealing sound and your dad tells you it sounds like a girl but I think it's a beautiful noise! Everyday, I say "mama and dada" to you in hopes that you will mimic me, but no luck so far.
You don't see a lot of other faces, but when you do, you smile and coo and are usually pretty happy. I know this will soon change.
You can roll now, both ways but you tend to get stuck on your tummy when you're sleeping and you will scream bloody murder. So, we have started sleeping you in your sleep positioner again so that we all get our rest. Soon, I think you will become accustomed to being on your tummy and you might even turn into a tummy sleeper like your dad.
You have started to move around quite a bit on your changing table, so I have tried to make it more interesting for you. My friend Anna once gave me a "feel good" button that sings James Brown's song "I Feel Good." We play it while you're getting changed or dressed. You love it!
You spend your days playing, eating, catnapping and cuddling. You are a beautiful boy. Everyday with you is a blessing and I thank God for you all the time. I am so thankful that you are here, that you are happy and healthy and that you are you.
Each day, I fall a little deeper in love with you. I can't wait to see what this next month holds in store for you, my sweet baby.
Love,
Mama