6 months with our boy!

Papa and his boys

Gary, Jay, Carrie, & Mom: meeting for a visit on the way back to Columbia

Eli loving on Mama Ross

Aunt Carrie

Playing with Papa

Bonking heads...Who knows why Jay thinks this is fun...

Who needs to work out with these two around?

Jay and Brooks playing in Jake's cage...by choice.

Pictures before church

Ross men: three generations

I'd say Wes has another "mini-me"

What a little cutie!

What a life this child lives

And this one....passed out after church

Cuddles in the morning

we wondered why there was chocolate milk all over the floor until we looked at jay's face

These are mostly pictures taken by Mama Ross during the trips in May. She can catch some precious expressions with Eli!

This week we had VBS at church so we've had a good time with all the festivities. Jay has missed going to preschool since it ended for the summer so is loving this week with his friends. Eli has been in nursery since I'm a volunteer so his picky little self wonders where the quiet morning routine went but is adjusting ok. He is my little homebody, for sure.

His 6 month well-check went well yesterday. He weighs 17lbs (about 40% percentile) & 26.5inches long (50% percentile). So he definitely had a growth spurt in the last month.

He rolls both ways but gives up very quickly when trying to get off his tummy and I usually end up helping him roll back over, very annoying at 2am!

He sits without support for only a few seconds until he tumbles over, which is just hilarious to Jay.

He grabs at everything, all the time, which has made my job considerably more difficult lately...why I can't remember to keep all drinks and breakables away from him is beyond me.

He squeals (crazy loud!), says several sounds (ba, ma, oh, ah, aw) over and over until he gets someones attention. When he's hungry he almost always goes with "ma ma ma" which is just precious to me since Jay said the "da" sounds way before "ma." I have a theory that Eli will say "mama" before "daddy" since he hears it all day long with Jay around. Hopefully I will be correct! When he's tired he "sings" himself to sleep ("baaa baaa baaa baaa...") and it is the sweetest thing ever!

He laughs, smiles, and watches us all day long. He is very observant and turns immediately when he hears something to check it out. If we leave the room he knows it instantly and screams until we get back...he can't stand to be left out!

He laughs so hard at Jay, especially in the last week. I've caught the two of them cracking up several times, which is just so adorable. Jay loves it too, now that Eli is big enough to "play" with. There have been several times I started to fuss at Jay for being too loud or rambunctious only to realize Eli is laughing hysterically at his crazy brother. As far as Eli is concerned, the crazier Jay acts, the funnier...typical boys, right!?

 He eats food two to three times a day. I have to push the rice cereal but he would eat bananas and pears all day if I let him. He also will eat applesauce and oatmeal but with less enthusiasm. He takes two long naps a day (1 1/2 to 2 hrs) and a small one in the early evenings.

He has dropped the late night feeding and now sleeps from about 7p to 7a without waking.....so wonderful!  He still is great at going to sleep by himself, will just nuzzle up to his lovey and drift off within minutes. As grateful as I am for this, I do miss cuddling like I did with Jay when he was a baby. Sometimes I will just try to cuddle Eli for a few minutes at night and he frets the whole time until I lay him down and let him stretch out in his own space.

Overall, he is still such a content, calm baby and we are so incredibly thankful for these past 6 months with our boy.

Lastly, this weekend is both Father's Day and Wes' 32nd birthday (I know, I'm married to an old man). Wes and I don't "gush" about each other...we would rather just make fun of each other. But I have been thanking God for him a lot lately (now that I'm sleeping again, have a baby instead of a newborn, and am not too exhausted to think straight!) and I am just in awe at how wonderful he is to us. I complain about my difficult days and how hard it is for me when he works so much but, honestly, my life is so easy compared to his. He works  (non-stop, high stress, and exhausted) all day, sometimes all night, and comes home to a wild bunch of crazies who then give him endless orders...and he takes care of every one without blinking an eye. I cannot even begin to describe what he means to me and how much I love what we have, both in our marriage and in our kids. Jay completely idolizes him and loves doing anything daddy is doing. Wes doesn't see it, but Jay is a different type of happy when he's home...a more complete and confident happiness that results from knowing your Daddy will always take care of you. And even little Eli at 6 months literally lights up when Wes walks through the door. He smiles and talks to him more than he does with anyone else. He is the ultimate example of love, devotion, and provider.

Happy Birthday, Happy Father's Day, We love you more than than words.