Always Something New

Everyone always says they love it when babies reach 6 months old because they are so fun. I have to say that Walker is now 5 months old and I can't imagine him being more fun than now. He is so happy and laughs aloud all the time. Of course, he has his moments, which Matt lovingly refers to as "drama like his mama," those times when he gets mad because he doesn't get what he wants. So maybe he doesn't look like me, but he has my personality. He is so extraverted...always wanting to be where the action is.

I finally put Walker in his "separates." I still prefer the baby pj's most of the time, but I have to admit that it's pretty cute seeing him in his cargo pants.

This was the first time he wore a big boy outfit to church. Matt has the same polo shirt. I have to get a pic of them wearing it on the same day.

Note that this outfit came with a matching belt, a very important accessory.

We've had a few warm days lately, even warm enough for shorts and flops. Luckily, Walker's not afraid to show off those white legs!

Love the wide-eyed look, which he makes all the time.

I can't believe there are flops for babies. They are so precious.

This is Walker's first girlfriend. Really, it's a toy (not allowed to say "doll" here) that Kirra had when she was a baby, and Walker absolutely loves it. She lights up and giggles when you squeeze her, and he talks back and giggles too. He also likes to headbutt her. I guess he's gonna be like his daddy, who likes to do kung fu moves on his sweetie.

The "bumbo" seat cracks me up. Walker likes to sit in it since he's always trying to sit up on his own. I think he feels like a big boy in his seat. I already had a "bad mom moment" the other day when he tried to sit up on his changing table and I let him. Then he rolled over and hit his forehead on the thing that holds the lotion and diapers. He was not happy about that, and then he had this little red dot there for a day. I felt horrible! But it went away pretty fast, thank heavens! I know there are more of those to come.

This is what happens when I don't immediately fold the clean laundry. Belle likes to lay in it to stay warm. She kept her sweater on for days when it was cold a few weeks ago. She also likes to sit in front of the heater.

Love the Jax weather. We went from warm weather (75 degrees) to freezing at night (28 degrees) in the same week. So Walker had shorts on one day and then was all bundled up the next. If you look closely, you'll see a little scratch that he made himself with those razor-sharp nails of his. I wish I could cut them more frequently, but I can only do it when he's sleeping because he's such a wiggle worm.

We went to Deland a few weeks ago to celebrate my nephew Connor's 7th birthday. I remember going to his 6th birthday party right after we got home from Ethio last year. The time has really flown by. Kaylie is so tall! She is only in the 4th grade and will be taller than me pretty soon.

Kaylie is so good with Walker. She isn't nervous when she's holding and feeding him, and she's always anxious to help change his diaper or keep him happy. What a good cousin!

We finally put together Walker's little car (like an exer-saucer, I guess), and he has a blast in that thing. It looks like a little Mustang and even has a fake leather seat that says "GT" inside. I can't get over how big he looks in it! He also spends time in his exer-saucer at Jamma's house, which he really enjoys. He loves looking from side to side at all the different toys and activities.

There he goes, looking at that cute baby in the mirror. Looking in the mirror is one of his favorite things to do!

Walker is 5 months old on February 24! He looks so much bigger in these pictures to me.
He's changed a lot in the last month. How much does he look like Matt in this pic?
And this was how most of this photo session went. Now that he is into grabbing everything in site (especially whatever you are holding, he wants), taking photos is a little more challenging.
Love this fat and happy pic. He has the cutest double chin I've ever seen.
And the famous foot-in-the-mouth photo. Leave him sitting there for more than a minute, and it's inevitable.

Other than life with the Walk-man, we found out that I'm going to be full-time with the church now, which is a huge praise! I was previously working part-time and trying to do some freelance writing, which was a lot of work. I'd still like to write when opportunities come up, but at least I won't have to rely on that to pay the bills as much.

I also had this weird random break out of shingles on my hand. It's been there for a month now and is finally healing. It's the most bizarre thing. Leave it to me to have something weird like that and especially on my hand where everyone can see it. It was really painful for a while, so I'm really glad it's going away now. Supposedly if you get it as a young person, it's caused by stress. It's a form of the chicken pox virus, which is strange since I had a good case of those when I was like 5. I guess I was more stressed than I realized about the whole job thing. While I'd love to stay home more with the Walk-man, that just won't pay the bills. So, I'm really excited about the church work and my new role as worship coordinator.

Last week we got to spend 2 days with James and Jenn (from Ethio) at the beach. It was so nice to relax and hang out. We are getting SO sad because they will be heading back in a few weeks. They are some of our best friends, and we have loved getting to live life with them again. Our time together in E is truly priceless. We are so thankful for their family.