6 Months Old

Today marks the day that our boys turned 6 months old. They have come such a long way in 6 short months. They are miracles and such incredible little people. I thank God for giving these sweet babies to Thomas and me. I don't know what we did to deserve them, but the good Lord smiled down on us when he gave us these blessings.

The boys are only 3 months adjusted age. Although it is a little confusing, we have to think of them in their adjusted age when it comes to size/weight, development and milestones. So far they are really doing so well. We take the babies to lots of appointments to make sure we stay on top of any issues that arise and keep our finger on the pulse on their development. We try to do a lot of "tummy time" based on the suggestions and homework given at basically all of our appointments. They continue to progress and I truly believe they will "catch up" to babies their age at some point.

The last six months have gone by really quickly, which apparently is a recurring theme when you have children. A dear friend of mine always reminds me to think back 30 days at any given point in time to take a second to realize how far they've come. Each week gets easier and easier as I learn more about how to be a mom and they learn well, pretty much everything. These babies are taking in the world and learning so much. They are so very loved by their parents and all their family members and friends they've met over the last 6 months.

William
William went from being the smallest baby to the biggest...by a pretty good margin. It's crazy to hold him after holding one of the others to feel the weight difference. He is sturdy! He's currently wearing 3-6 month clothes and is in size 2 diapers. He is a GREAT eater and finishes his bottle each time and is taking about 5-6 oz per bottle. The more ounces we put in the bottle, the more he drinks. I swear, I think we could put 10 oz in his bottle and he would finish it! He still spits up a good bit, but it doesn't seem to bother him very much, thanks to his reflux medicine. He gets generic Prilosec twice a day. William has found his mouth and loves to suck on his fingers. He makes the sweetest noises when he's sucking on his fingers. It's a soothing thing for him. His hair is getting thicker (especially in the front) and is still so dark. He has such an adorable smile and smiles the most when he's on the changing table. I don't know if that means he likes getting his diaper changed, or whether he just likes the angle of having his Mom or Dad looking down at him! He has the softest skin I've ever felt and I really enjoy putting lotion on him. He will put his hands around my hands when I am feeding him and every now and them he will grab his bottle. He has even held it himself for a little while a few times! He has stopped crying so much and is much calmer than he used to be. He loves to snuggle and it's awesome to hold him and let him nuzzle in my neck.

Stokes
I think Stokes is our little comedian. He is so funny and LOVES to smile and laugh. He is really quite charming as well. Everyone that is around him just falls in love with him. He has these big, intense eyes and will look into the eyes of whoever is holding, feeding or playing with him. His eyelashes are so long and thick and beautiful! It's so easy to get him to smile, which is so rewarding. He is still wearing 0-3 month clothes and size 1 diapers. He typically drinks about 3-4 oz per bottle. He's taking generic Zantac medicine for reflux 3 times a day. He has a very high pitched, shrill cry and some days he really likes to use it! We still call him pterodactyl when he does that. We continue to swaddle Stokes at night, although we've stopped swaddling his brothers. Stokes tends to wake up a few times throughout the night every so often (including the last 3 nights) and the swaddle seems to help. He loves kicking his legs and moving his arms around when he's laying on a blanket. He kicks pretty hard and makes thumping noises when his heels hit the floor and his Dad called him Thumper the other day. His hair is starting to come in a little more and is also pretty dark. I love it so much when he sneezes because 1) it's adorable and 2) the noises he makes are hilarious. He has begun "talking" to is and making sounds. He actually said Mama last week! I had several witnesses that heard it...or at least heard something that sounded like Mama.

Ryan
Ryan is so super sweet. He is quiet and a little more reserved than his brothers. He doesn't smile a whole lot yet but has given us a few grins and they were extremely cute! Ryan looks the most different out of the three and has lighter skin, eyes and hair than his brothers. Speaking of hair, he has a lot less than the others as well. He was struggling with eating for a while but is taking reflux medicine and seems to be doing better. He typically drinks about 4-5 oz per feeding and gets his Prilosec twice a day. He wears 0-3 month clothes and size 1 diapers. He is long and lean and we are still working on getting more rolls on him! I think he just has a different body type than his brothers though. Ryan is so strong and can hold his head up really well. He rolls over often and loves to move. He will bicycle with his legs and wave his arms around when he's playing. I keep thinking he might grow up to be athletic. He naps and sleeps really well and I hate waking him up from his nap to eat each day. He's so groggy when I wake him up but he's so sweet and cute. He has a laid back demeanor and I just adore holding him. I tend to worry more about Ryan and I am very protective of him.

Their Dad and I love each of these boys to the moon and back. They are the best thing that's ever happened to us. They are doing great but still have some hurdles and obstacles that they need to overcome. Please continue to pray for them as we do daily.

Here are some outtakes of our photo shoot from this morning. I love the outtakes too because they make me laugh. :) They are getting too big to really fit in this chair in their nursery so I had to basically lay Ryan on the top of Stokes and William. I don't think he was very comfortable...haha. Sorry, Ryan! They're in A, B,C order: Stokes, Ryan and William.