This last month has just FLOWN by!!  I can’t believe that Christmas was just over a month ago.  (I’m still trying to get my thank you cards done!!  ack!)  But so much has happened in the last month too:

• Kieran continues to do wonderfully at Daycare.  (We call it School.)  His teachers are really getting to know him, and he has made friends in his class.  Most mornings, he barely notices when Paul kisses him goodbye because he’s already engrossed in playing!  He’s still the biggest diva in the class, but he’s slowly learning to be patient and to entertain himself.  (He just really really likes company – he doesn’t like to feel like he’s alone.)  Watching the other kids is really helping Kieran grow and learn – he wanted to get up in the high chairs at lunch time, which lead to him having his biggest solid meal each day at school.  He’s starting with Cheerios this week after watching the other kids with theirs.  (His teachers are great about helping him try these things in a very safe way.  Paul and I trust them completely.)
• Kieran is rolling over from front to back and back to front.  He can log-roll around if he wants to.  He doesn’t seem to want to do that very much yet though, mostly because it would mean rolling away from whoever is on the floor with him.  When he topples over on his play mat, we don’t rush to help him up anymore.  And he’s all over the place in his crib.  We’ve had to move all his stuffed animals out from the far end because he’s actually moving around in there now!
• Kieran likes to play on his belly now too.  He’ll push himself up on his arms while on his playmat and laugh and laugh.  He does a flippy/spin thing on the changing table that would be amazing if it weren’t quite so annoying during a diaper change.  He’s always trying to roll over during a diaper change, so keeping a hand on him is vital these days.  (No, we don’t think his cloth diapers make it any harder at this point really – he’s be just as squirmy with disposables too.  But we are all the more glad that we don’t have to deal with sharp diaper pins though.)
• SOLID FOOD!  Kieran has gone from 0-60 on solids!  Oatmeal with applesauce is his current favorite.  If presented with plain oatmeal, he just blows raspberries.  He’s also tried avocado, green beans and carrots!  I’m making all his foods from scratch so far, and plan to continue doing so.  It’s easy with my immersion blender – making a half up at a time, and freezing tablespoon portions in the freezer trays Kelly sent me.  Kieran tolerated green beans (I think I needed to puree them a little smoother) and absolutely loved carrots.  I’m loving the bright colors and knowing his food is totally fresh.  Next up this week will be peas and maybe squash.  I want to continue with veggies before introducing fruits.  (I hadn’t wanted to put applesauce in his oatmeal, but he won’t eat it at all unless there’s something else in there.)  Once I try him on another veggie or two, I’ll start adding herbs and spices, one at a time.   This kid is gonna have a well-versed palate if I have anything to do with it!
• Kieran’s vocabulary continues to expand.  He chatters to us on the way to and from school, during bathtime, playtime, anytime!  He sings to us too!  It’s so cute to have conversations with him, or to hear him talking to the cats.  He’s always been a happy little guy, but now he’s becoming a gregarious dude too!  (He’s starting to offer his pacifier to Paul and I – and the cat on occasion.)
• Sleeping is improving a bit too.  Kieran is napping more frequently at school (not necessarily with any regularity, but that will come.)  We’ve managed to push his bedtime back a bit – usually to around 6:00 or 6:30, but some nights he’s still crashing by 5:30.  His wake ups are still terrifyingly early (between 4:30 and 5:00) but last week I was able to get him to sleep until 6:00am or later twice!  We’re going to keep working on it, but in the meantime, about half the time, Kieran is down to just one wake-up during the night.  (The other half is 2-3 times a night though, so he makes up for it!)
• Kieran loves playing with toys now.  He got several new toys for Christmas, and we keep them in rotation in his room and the living room.  He loves his stacking tower of rings, and his new pop-up toy.  It’s nice to see what he likes to play with at daycare so we can mirror those type of toys at home!  (Because honestly, we’re clueless as to what to get him – that toy aisle can be so overwhelming!)  Kieran loves his books too – although it’s board books and Indestructible titles for now because he LOVES to rip up any paper his gets his hands on!  It’s just awesome to watch him play though – he actually *plays* with stuff now as opposed to just looking at it or whacking at it.
• Still no sign of teeth, and while he acts like he could take off at any moment, there’s no real signs of imminent crawling either.  We’re OK with this – the log-rolling is enough mobility for us right now.

We’re still just as besotted as ever.  If anything, Paul and I are loving our time with our little man all the more now that we’re both working.  Weekends are our special time together as a family.  Kieran cracks us up all the time, as much as he cracks himself up.  It’s so amazing to watch him as his world grows around him.  He takes such joy in everything, you can’t help but smile with you’re around him.  (Unless you have long hair or glasses, in which case you might want to keep a step further back… those little grabby hands are quick!)  We live for hugs and kisses (which he gives now: big wet sloppy open-mouth kisses) from our little man.  As trite as it sounds, we’re just a happy little family.

The Monthly Comparison gallery has been updated with Kieran’s 6-month and 7-month pictures!

New random pictures have been added to the main gallery as well!