Last week, we were lucky enough to visit my dad and family at North Litchfield. You'll remember our first trip there as a family of three was in March, so the temperature wasn't quite warm enough then for enjoying the sun and surf. On this trip, Camp got to really experience the whole beach thing.
The first day, we made the mistake of putting Camp down on a small towel on the sand. He went straight for the tasting of the dry sand. He was not a fan. The second day, we got smart and put him down in the middle of a big beach blanket with a bunch of new toys. Now, we were getting somewhere. He played for quite a while with the empty watering can. He was very content on the shore. He wasn't so sure about the waves though.
*Note: We had to keep his hand wrapped to protect his burns, and we protected the wrap with a baggie and Gamecock Duct Tape to keep out the sand and water.
Camp was trying to climb on mommy to get out of the water.
On our third and final day there, Camp really settled in as a beach bum. He played for quite a while under the shade of the umbrella with his shovel, watering can, and sandcastle molds. Then, we sat together in a very shallow tide pool. Naturally, he ate the wet sand, too. Now that's a taste he seemed to enjoy. Jon came in from the waves and joined us in making drip castles. It was a good time had by all!
Just chillin' with my dad, eating sand.
Word up!
We headed home on Saturday morning to get back in time for a friend's wedding. My dad was adamant that we get a family photo. Also, I need to give him credit for taking all of these wonderful shots during our trip. Thanks for the memories everyone!
After I wrote the post about Camp's first beach trip, I kept thinking about this song. It's one of my favorites, and I even woke up singing the chorus. Hope you enjoy it!
Glorious Day (Living He loved me) Songwriters: John Mark Hall;Michael Jr Bleecker
One day when Heaven was filled with His praises
One day when sin was as black as could be
Jesus came forth to be born of a Virgin
Dwelt among men, my example is He
Word became flesh and the light shined among us
His glory revealed
Living He loved me, dying He saved me
And buried He carried my sins far away
Rising He justified freely forever
One day He's coming, oh, glorious day, oh, glorious day
One day they led Him up Calvary's mountain
One day they nailed Him to die on a tree
Suffering anguish, despised and rejected
Bearing our sins, my Redeemer is He
Hands that healed nations, stretched out on a tree
And took the nails for me
'Cause living He loved me, dying He saved me
And buried He carried my sins far away
Rising He justified freely forever
One day He's coming, oh, glorious day, oh, glorious day
One day the grave could conceal Him no longer
One day the stone rolled away from the door
Then He arose, over death He had conquered
Now He's ascended, my Lord evermore
Death could not hold Him
The grave could not keep Him from rising again
Living He loved me, dying He saved me
And buried He carried my sins far away
Rising He justified freely forever
One day He's coming, oh, glorious day, oh, glorious day
Glorious day
One day the trumpet will sound for His coming
One day the skies with His glories will shine
Wonderful day, my beloved one bringing
My Savior Jesus is mine
Living He loved me, dying He saved me
And buried He carried my sins far away
Rising He justified freely forever
One day He's coming, oh, glorious day, oh, glorious day
Glorious day, oh, glorious day
Back in March (I know, I know, this post is way overdue), we took Camp to the beach for the first time. My family has spent many great weeks at Indigo Pelican I on the beach in North Litchfield, SC. I have so many wonderful memories of this place where my grandparents gathered their brood for spring breaks and summer vacations. The house and the beach there are truly special places in my heart, and I was overjoyed to share them with Camp for the first time.
As we passed through Georgetown going over the bridges towards Pawley's Island and Litchfield, I could barely contain my excitement. It was an incredible feeling to know that my child was about to experience another big first in his life. I told Jonathan it was better than waiting for Christmas.
We got to the house and got everything unloaded. The kid and the camera were the only two things I cared about getting unpacked at this point. I carried Camp, and Jonathan tried to get the whole thing captured in photos. The three of us walked out onto the deck looking out over the ocean. "This noise sounds like my sound machine," Camp thought to himself about the waves crashing to the shore. We walked down to the beach and put his little feet in the sand. Even though the water was still quite cold, we dipped his little feet in the sea. He was enjoying it and seemed to just be taking in all of the new wonders. What a magnificent day.
Camp has started making some new funny faces. His most recent look is the scrunch face. He started with scrunching up his nose when he smiles, but he has since added the scrunched look to just about every expression. It makes me laugh every time.
The little guy has been slowly working his way to a crawl. So far, he basically just scoots, but he is getting stronger and faster with each day. Today he played a little game with himself for about 20 minutes: Chase the Water Bottle. He has a lot of determination, and his new trick makes his momma so proud.
About a week after Camp turned 5 months old, we introduced solids into his diet. By solids, I mean very mushy, pureed foods that are not milk. Jonathan likes to point out that the term "solid food" is used very loosely. The very first thing he ate was rice cereal mixed with breastmilk. After a couple of months of staring at every morsel of real food with a longing desire, he was so excited to try a new taste and use a spoon. He was a big fan.
Since then, we have tried several more new "flavors" of mush. As I am quite sentimental, I have captured every new eating experience with the camera or video camera. I keep hoping to get a really funny first reaction to the foods, but Camp is very polite when trying new things. I think the first few bites are usually just a matter of him trying to get to the food more than actually taking the time to taste it fully. Here are just a few of his eating firsts.
First carrots
First sweet potatoes
First peas
First time in his highchair
Out of everything he has tried, Camp's favorite food seems to be sweet potatoes. He just seems more eager to finish his meal when he has sweet potatoes in the bowl. He does not seem to care very much for avocado. It's the only thing he has tried that he did not finish.
I had hoped to make all of his baby food with fresh ingredients. So far, I have not. The jarred stuff seems to suit him just fine, and it is fast, easy, and convenient. Homemade baby food is still a goal of mine, but if the fresh avocado that I prepared for him is any indication, Camp might prefer the store bought variety.
The pediatrician gave us the go ahead to give Camp a sippy cup with some water, so I picked out the perfect starter cup and knew Camp would love it! He grabbed hold of the handles and went for it. He seemed to know exactly how the cup worked, but he wasn't so good at getting any water from it. Then, when he finally got some liquid out, he decided that water was just not for him. Guess we'll keep trying!
Dear Camp,
You turned 6 months old on May 11! It is so hard to believe that you are already half a year old. I wanted to push a pause button when you woke up that day because time is going by way too fast. Every day brings new and fun adventures with you though, so I guess we should hit play and just keep enjoying!
A few things about you at 6 months-
Personality:
Everyone asks, "Is he always this happy?" You are such a happy, easy-going baby. You smile the biggest for your mommy and daddy, but you give smiles away pretty easily. You will laugh at just about everything, whether it is actually funny or not. Even at this young age, you get a kick out of me hurting myself and will giggle with every "ouch!" Your laugh is contagious, and I have actually gotten a bellyache from laughing along with you. There are times when you can be cranky. If you are tired, hungry, or need a diaper change, you whine or fuss a little bit. Sometimes you whimper when you want to be held or need a change of scenery. You are still somewhat camera shy, so it can be hard to catch our favorite moments with you in snapshots or video. You still seem very happy to be held by anyone and can easily enjoy time away from me. "Mama" was your first word, but you have since given up on trying new sounds. Traveling suits you well. You sleep soundly in the car and stay content when awake as long as mama can keep passing back toys. I hope you will continue to like sleeping in the car (and your pack 'n play) so we can visit family and friends often. Thank you for being such a laid-back, easy to please baby.
Size:
At your 6 month check-up, you weighed 18 pounds and 10 ounces (75%ile). This time you were able to sit up on the scale! You are 28 inches long (95%ile). Your head has slowed down in growing with a circumference of 45 centimeters (95%ile). Everything is proportional so you are doing great! You wear size 3 diapers, and your clothes right now are 6-9 months. I am glad that you will be able to stay in your car seat carrier and size 3 diapers for a while longer!
Camp at 6 months
Development:
You are sitting up all by yourself!!! You were pretty wobbly for a while, and we had a few bumped heads. I still like to put some pillows behind you, but you are doing really well to sit up and play without toppling. You can roll over both ways, but you prefer to roll from your back to stomach. You are starting to prepare for crawling or scooting by putting your bottom up in the air, but you really don't move forward too much. On your half birthday, you woke up with your first tooth! I didn't even notice it until you were chomping down on my hand, and I felt something sharp. It was really exciting. Then, a week and a couple days later, the second one popped through. I opened your mouth to show some friends your first tooth, and lo and behold, there were two there! You really have been teething like a champ. With tooth #1, there was a lot of drooling and some fussiness in the week leading up to it breaking through, but overall, you have handled these teeth without problems. Yay!
Look at me sitting up!
Sleep:
You are still mostly sleeping through the night. You have one middle of the night wake-up every now and then. Most nights, you go to bed by 8:30 pm, and you wake up between 6 and 7. Napping is your sport, and you do it quite well. You take three naps almost every day. I still lay you down on your back, but you like to roll over to your side or stomach to sleep. Just like any other time, you enjoy having something to bite or suck on when you get prepared for sleep. Usually, it is your blanket. I think you sleep better when the ceiling fan is on, and we are always sure to have the sound machine on "ocean" when you go down for the night (and with naps when we're home). I really love watching you sleep on the monitor.
Eating:
We started feeding you solids about a week into your 6th month. I will write more about that in a separate post. Your favorite food seems to be sweet potatoes and your least favorite that you've tried is avocado. I got you a really awesome sippy cup for water, but it is not a winner just yet. Either you don't care for the taste of water or you are still adjusting to drinking from a spout. You drink milk straight from your mama's milk machine 5 times a day, and you usually have some veggies or oatmeal with your lunch milk. You drink and/or eat every 3-4 hours during the day. The doctor told us to start feeding you solids two or three times a day, so you will soon be using that highchair and spoon a lot more!
First time eating peas!
Playing and Fun:
Things have really changed in this department in the last couple of months! You are full speed ahead with playing and learning. Now that you're sitting up, we are playing with blocks and rolling balls back and forth to each other. So you are mostly just chewing on the blocks, but you can also knock down the towers that mommy and daddy build for you. Another new thing you've tried this month is swimming! We took you to your great aunt Kit's house downtown and dunked you underwater for the very first time. You were mostly just shocked by that part, but you enjoyed mommy "swimming" you through the water. I got you a neat blow-up pool with a toy bar to play in at our house. Everything is a toy and/or teether to you, and you absolutely love water bottles, Solo cups, and anything with a tag. Your favorite book now is Such a Silly Baby by Steffanie and Richard Lorig. It is a library book, but I am going to buy a copy for you since it makes you laugh and smile every time I read it. You love taking a bath, playing in your exersaucer, and watching Daddy's computer screensaver. Another favorite thing to do now is bounce on someone's knee while singing "Ride the Horsey" or "This Is the Way the Lady Rides." If you happen to be a little unhappy, I can quiet you down by singing "The Wheels on the Bus." You will stay happy as long as I keep singing more verses. Every night during the week, we try to watch "Wheel of Fortune" as a family. Your eyes light up and you stay focused on those puzzles like you're really trying to solve them. You get that from your Mommy. You do not like your show to be interrupted by commercials. You get that from your Daddy. It is so amazing that you already have so many interests and enjoy so many different things. I hope your love for adventure and trying new things will last a lifetime.
Our favorite puzzle on "Wheel"
Happy boy
In your short life so far, you have already made us very proud. I have a hard time thinking about how fast you are growing up, but every month with you seems to get better and better. I love you a bushel and a peck and a hug around the neck, all the time, forever and ever.
Love,
Mommy
Sunday is Mother's Day! I can't believe that I am included as one of the "mothers" that is celebrated on this day. A lot of people wished me a "Happy Mother's Day" last year when I was pregnant with Camp, but now there is no doubt that I can participate as a mom!
First few minutes as a mom!
Being a mommy is totally awesome, and I'm not just saying that because my son's first word was "mama." Even though I'm still relatively new to being a mother, I am overwhelmed by the significance of this title. I have always been extremely grateful for the moms in my life, but I have a whole new perspective on this now that I am a mom, too. Motherhood is a huge change and adds a LOT of responsibility (and new worries) to your life, but it is also a truly amazing piece of my life. It's hard to believe that my mom has been doing this for 30 years, but she is living proof that your heart will not actually burst from loving your child too much. I can now appreciate my mom, stepmom, and mother-in-law in a different way. I am starting to know how exhausting, time consuming, and stressful (while at the same time the most incredible and heart-warming experience) raising a child can be, and I'm so glad for all they have done for me (and those other kids they have). These moms are amazing, strong, talented, kind, and loving women who have been role models for me. Now, I'm one of them. They have perfectly prepared me for my most important job. Happy Mother's Day to Mommy, SherBear, Mary Martha, and all the phenomenal mothers in my life!!!
Nonna and Camp
SherBear and Camp
Mimi and Camp
Celebrating at my baby shower with my mom, mother-in-law, and "adopted" mom, Kathy!
