Ethan had his 6 month checkup yesterday. I can't believe he's already a half a year old! Time sure does fly! Ethan is sitting really well, still wobbly but has some pretty impressive balance. He's not getting the crawling thing at all. He wants to but can't figure it out in his head which just frustrates him. Once he gets it, there will be no stopping this one. He's always on the go!

He is also holding his own bottle now. It figures. He's a take-charge kind of guy. Especially when it comes to food. He is trying so hard to say "Mama." When I say it, his eyes light up and he smiles, then tries to form his mouth to make those sounds. It's adorable and makes my heart melt.

His stats are: 18 lbs, 14 ounces and 26.5 inches long. He's in the 50th percentile. The dr. is slightly concerned about his growth. She said he was in the 90th percentile on his first checkup after birth, then at 2 months he was in the 80th, he was in the 70th at 4 months and now the 50th. She said it could be that he is now where he'll be at for a while and no need for concern. But we have to go back in a month and track it. Let's hope he doesn't drop into a new percentile category! This is all new territory for me, because Aden was always in the 90th to 110th percentile. (Yes, there is actually a 110th percentile. I scratched my head over that for a while.)

Now that Ethan is trying to stand on his own, she recommended that we hold Ethan from behind to offer him strength, not hold him under the arms to help with balance. That way he learns the balance that's important for standing. She also advised getting a sippy cup and taking out the stopper so that he can practice with a cup and realize that there is something to drink in them. Even put a little ice in it so it clinks like a toy. And she said that the next three months are all about food exploration. She said to offer as many different tastes as possible so that he learns to like different types of food. I think this part will be Ethan's favorite thing to do.

Since Ethan has been doing so well with sitting/rolling/sliding and playing, we pulled out the play pen. He loves it! I know once he's more mobile, he won't like it as much, but for now it's something new that he adores and helps me keep him in one location (and away from Aden's toys). Here are a couple pictures of him in his play pen...

I picked the boys up from school the other day, while it was a crisp 31 degrees outside, and Ethan was wearing a onsie. No pants. The teachers had felt sorry for him and covered him in a white terry cloth coverall so that he could stay warm. Then I went across the hall to get Aden and he was wearing pants (thankfully) and a short sleeve polo shirt with three buttons at the neckline. None were buttoned. His whole chest was exposed. So we left daddy a little note on the door.

Adam had dropped the boys off at Lola and Papa's for a couple hours the other night and I guess on the way, he must have been playing a Bob Marley CD. I say that because when I picked them up, Aden started singing on the way back, "Every little thing's gonna be okay..." It made me smile. That's the only line he knows, and he sang it over and over a few times. Then, he said, "Every little thing IS okay, momma, but the big things are not okay. They are hard."

Wow. I hear ya kiddo.

After a much needed naptime (the boys were suffering from excitement overload in a bad way), we continued our Christmas at Lola & Papas. Here are some more pictures - we had a great time!

We have been extremely blessed this year and we give all the praise to God. We are so thankful that He is in our lives and that He gave His son, Jesus, to us so that we can spend eternity in heaven. I really hope that in the midst of all the fun that my boys have every single Christmas, they never forget the "reason for the season."

After a little family Christmas morning, we headed over to Josh and Lisa's house for some more fun. Don't make me pick a favorite picture or two. I just can't do it. So here's a BUNCH. Enjoy!

(Best I could get of Aden seeing the tree when he first woke up)

(The boys admire the mountain of gifts)

Aden was such a sweetie, he made sure to involve Ethan when opening all of his gifts. He really takes care of his little brother.

("Mom... not until I can fix my hair please...")

(Seriously... how SWEET are these two? Melt my heart!)

(Anything Ethan could grab at went straight into the mouth)

Aden had asked Santa for a blue dog, a choo choo train and a green computer (Leapster). This lucky boy must have been on the "Good" list because he got all three!

The blue dog has gone everywhere with him, and had to check out all of Aden's gifts.

We hope you had a Merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve was so much fun this year with the boys. It was Ethan's first, and Aden's first to really "get" that Santa would be making his way to our chimney. (Which honestly really disturbs him, but he's allowing it because of the gifts.) Here's Adam and my little puppy getting ready to brave the (cough, cough) snow storm to go to Gigi's for dinner...

And once both boys (okay, all three boys) were tucked soundly in bed... Santa DID come!