6 months old!

Dio is six months old today! So what's new with him? He can sit up quite well without any support.

He topples over every so often.

When he gets really excited or worked up, such as in a noisy crowd, he yells/grunts at the top of his lungs--kind of like a weightlifter. He likes to scratch things over and over by opening and closing his fists. He likes to wave his right arm up and down repeatedly, hitting his leg or whatever surface is available. He's super strong and wiggly. The other, as I was trying to swaddle him for a nap, I thought "this is like trying to swaddle a python!" He's having fun with Zari. I tell her: "your job is to play with Dio and bring him toys." When I need to get some sewing done, I'll bring both kids upstairs and put them on the bed with educational videos (French language DVDs or Signing Time) while I work next to them. Dio will watch for quite a while and sometimes smile or laugh at what he's seeing.

Babies often change their sleep patterns, and at the moment Dio is waking up more frequently. I haven't had a long first stretch for a while; it's pretty much every 3 hours or less all night. He still wakes up just as often even when he's in another room with a fan running...but I am not complaining, really, since I love snuggling with him at night. There are worse things than nursing a baby a few times at night. And it's the best to wake up every morning and see his huge grin. It's as if every morning is the most exciting day of his entire life and he just can't stand it.

I'll try to get some pictures taken soon. We have family visiting for a few days. Zari and Dio are loving all of the cousins. Tomorrow we're going to the children's museum that's an hour away. I also have an (second opinion) appointment with an OB/vein specialist about my varicose veins...more about that later.