Happy half birthday, Richard!

Richard Allan has brought such joy to our lives the past six months.  He has truly fit right into the fold of our family, and made our transition from a family of four to a family of five much easier than we anticipated.  Since I was absent from the blog-o-sphere during the majority of the last six months, I thought I'd provide a quick recap of our son's growth and notable milestones.

At birth.  8 pounds 7 ounces of pure, screaming joy.  His delivery was the easiest of my three.  And he was super sweet from the beginning.  I love baby burrito pictures!

One month old.  Despite having a hard time getting rid of his jaundice, this big boy was on track for growth his first month!  He had a busy first month of life with his first portrait session for family photos, first trip to bible study with momma and first trip to church.  Oh, and who can forget his first "outing" to Costco.  (Does Costco qualify as an outing?)

Month two brought Thanksgiving which was celebrated with lots of extended family in Buckeye, his first smile, first birthday party (for Kendall Rovey), and the start of the some tummy trouble which was alleviated when momma removed dairy from her diet.  He weighed 11 pounds 5 ounces and measured 24 inches long at his two month well check.

Three months.  Met his Papa Jim (Kelly's dad), had his first cold, celebrated Christmas and went to his first livestock show.  He made some new friends in the church nursery when he stayed for the first time and most importantly, he had his first full night of sleep this month, woohoo!  

Four months old and full of smiles! We visited Aunt Anna and her crew in Maricopa this month, had our first play date at Chick-fil-A, started grabbing toys, traveled to Cottonwood for the first time,"played" at the park, and laughed for the first time!  He weighed 14 pounds 3 ounces and measured 25 1/2 inches long at his 4-month well check.

Five months.  Richard is getting stronger and stronger, which is totally evident in this picture.  He is trying to sit up on his own by grabbing at everything within reach, especially food on people's plates. He has finally started getting in the groove with our night time routine and is ready to fall asleep right after HB and Katherine go to bed.  (Praise the Lord!)  He also got his first haircut and handled it like a pro!

Six months.  Brother bear cut his first two teeth (on the bottom) at the same time.  He has been grabbing at food while sitting on momma's lap, so he started eating a few purees (green beans and sweet potatoes so far) and loves them.  He is proficient at rolling all over, and occasionally ends up on the tile and off his blanket.  He loves to be tickled and kick his legs when is sitting in his bouncy chair.  

Richard Allan, aka little bear, we are so in love with you and rejoice daily that you are our son.  You are a bright ray of sunshine to our family and we delight in hearing your giggle, seeing you grow and know it's only a matter of time before you're trying to keep up with your siblings.  Happy half birthday, sweet boy!