6 months

We are coming up on 6 months with our sweetest little Sterling and oh my heart.

The 'inexpressible and glorious joy' we have in our Maker is manifested through this little joy of mine. 

Sterling is sitting up.

Rolling and tumbling all over.

Putting everything in his mouth.

Talking over anyone in the room.

Will jump until the day he sees Heaven.

Loves to stand and can stand for a moment by himself holding on to something.

Smiles at everyone like they are his inexpressible joy.

Loves me the most.

Thinks the dogs are the funniest thing.

Does the sweetest belly laugh at nothing at all.

Loves to splash all the water out of the tub.

Loves to take showers and dip his head in the water stream.

Loves to be out in the rain.

Loves to be outside more than anything.

Is grabbing everything in reach.

Says 'mumum' (i know he is addressing me...)

Engages better than most adults.

Loves to be naked.

Eats his toes and talks all the while.

Is starting to love shaking rattles.

Is so wonderful in the car.

Can be happy as ever despite robbing him of all his naps and taking him all around.

Is the sweetest to bring anywhere.

Can hold his own bottle.

Will go down without any soothing from me for the most part (goodbye lullabies)

Wakes up chatting and squawking.

Kicks and smiles every time I come for him.

In his first 6 months, Sterling has...

Flown to Maine twice.

Driven to Florida and back.

Been on a boat multiple times. 

Taken a ferry to stay on an Island.

Flown to New York for a wedding.

Has assisted in his cousin Pippa's birth.

Been to Ikea and slept the entire time.

Is building a tiny house.

Currently Sterling is not...

Sleeping very well. 

But I forgive him because he is this cute.

The best week

 This past week I went down to visit my family and surprise Emma for her baby shower brunch and hang out until the baby was born. Emma hadn't met Sterling yet and is off to Toronto for so long this week and so the window of opportunity was very small. My trip was spontaneous and so wonderful, despite it raining almost the entire time, I got my fill of family love. I spent most of my mornings at my parents drinking coffee and most of my afternoons with the Perkins gang. 

Good Morning Sterling! 

We spent a few rainy hours at Summer House with my mom, looking at (and buying) pretty things while drinking sparkles.

 Sterling took a nap on the most expensive piece of furniture in there! 

Seaside on the hottest day...nothing these two knuckleheads and a mimosa from Modicas can't fix!

 We spent a morning with Remi while Mk and Mike took Rocco to get ready for school...Sterling's number one fan of all time! All he does is say "baby, baby, baby" with a smile that is going to explode and smothering hands that can't contain his joy and love.

Emma came down on a Thursday for pedicures and started to go into pre labor! So I drove her back to Pensacola and stayed until the baby was born Saturday morning! (we love our pedis)

Just waiting for our baby to come! 

Champ of all champs! Sterling slept almost the entire time Emma was having the baby and a couple hours after so we could get our uninterrupted fix of Pippa!

Pippa Darling Bloom

Sterling and Pippa! 

 Dagny and Pippa

Pippa and Me! 

My babies!

 To add to the joy, J surprised me the morning before I was to leave and got to spend an entire day in the sunshine, meet Pippa, see Mark, and help me with the much dreaded drive back! Can you believe his sweetness!

And just some more sweet photos...

Hello eyes!

My mom's last few snuggles before she and MK get on a plane to Paris...rude

Sterlings new crib, my new art, and my favorite new site...

An abundance of photos of not the greatest quality but overflowing with joy!

The Peaceable Kingdom

"She had a good many things to be thankful for. She had a strong back and a good stomach. She had work. She could get a good night's sleep at night, peculiarly as she went about it. Besides, her children were al straight and normal, not one of them with a hunched back like their father's. There was coffee in the world. There were loving friends to drink it with. And though times were hard and her wages so small she would have been ashamed to tell to the penny how much she got for her hard work, still she kept her family clothed and fed. Not like princes of course, but adequately, and she sent them to school. She could be as Linnea told her many a time, proud of herself. She could hold her head up with anybody."

My grandmother, mother, and sister have been urging me to read The Peaceable Kingdom by Kennelly since I could read. I think I have three or more copies from numerous people, creating a pressing reminder on my book shelf. I have just started it and with Sterling, it is taking me three months to read and I have only read half of it but every time I pick it up I read something like this and understand why it is an absolute favorite. Oh Linnea, to have your state of mind and solidarity. 

"If a person wanted to be perfectly honest, the good things in life probably came in this order:

Health. What good were servants in knee pants if your fingers and toes were dropping off with leprosy?

Good Looks. What use were gold doorknobs and being able to fry a chicken in butter if you looked like the devil before day? 

Intelligence. What good was taking a trip in a red plush Pullman car and having a sealskin coat, if you didn't know enough to pound sand in a rat hole and everybody had you tagged as a goof  the minute they laid eyes on you?

There would not, by the way, be the slightest use for any of these things in Heaven...All the talent in the world for money wouldn't be worth a snap of the finger there. Health? Anybody who flew around in the fresh air all the time and maybe sipped honey from the heavenly flowers like some kind of hummingbird would naturally be as strong as a horse. And suppose you were the best-looking angel that ever stepped foot (or flapped a wing) in Heaven, what good would that do you? About as much good as a sack of salt out on the salt flats...and what would smartness do? Suppose you were the smartest angel that ever added up a column of figures in his haloed head? Was God going to step down and let you take over? No, in Heaven the only talent you needed was the talent to get there in the first place..."

3 months of Sterling

Three months later and Sterling is a king

He is 14.5 lbs. 24" long (being in the 83 percentile). Has a normal size head and bright eyes.

He is sleeping through the night for about 7-8 hours.

In the mornings I drink my coffee while he lays on his back next to me kicking, talking and smiling more than I thought possible.

Usually his first morning nap is somewhere next to me whether in bed, on the couch or on the screen porch swinging day bed. 

He makes me feel like I am the most loved and treasured person in this world with his endearing smile and sparkling eyes ever on me in approval.

He loves to sing along with me, squawking in all his glory every time I start a melody.

He has discovered himself in the mirror and is his own biggest fan.

He alternates between the best days of solid naps and happy awake times to scattered mini naps and losing it by five o clock when J walks through the door.

He is getting better in the car if I plan it right.

He is only ever fussy if he is tired or hungry which makes it so easy to take him everywhere. If we take him out on a date, he usually will sleep on the booth or in our arms while I drink a margarita.

He still spits up like crazy causing us to change our clothes at least three times a day. 

He absolutely loves his daddy and loves to tell him all about everything.

When he smiles it goes ear to ear with one dimple and his eyes sparkle.

He is so strong and able to stand so well for so long and when on his belly has started to hold his head up high and happily look all around. 

He has discovered his laugh and every now and then if we are really awesome he will give us a big belly laugh.

He is a flirt.

He loves to take baths.

He loves to be naked.

Going outside will calm any storm.

He has started to pet gunner.

He is able to follow movement and look back and forth between me and J.

When he is falling asleep in my arms he will slowly close his eyes and make little cooing noises that melt my heart.

At night when it is bed time, I love to lay him on his side with his belly against my chest and his forehead in perfect kissing range...he usually falls asleep within minutes. 

I don't think there is anything sweeter than when he is so heavily asleep with his big lips open and hands up by his face. 

I just love this little boy so much more every day.

1 minute with Sterling

 

Can you handle it?