Seventh Inning Stretch

Where has April disappeared to? We've been busy doing battle with sleepless nights, food allergies, and teething pains, so it's all a bit of a blur for us. But we've missed you, bloggy friends, and hope this post will make up for the tiny time-out we took from blogging.

It hit me hard last week that Aaron is seven months old. Closer to his first birthday than the actual day of his birth. Can you believe we've gone from this...


To this?


He's hit the fast-forward button this month, crawling all over the place with his funky comando crawl, and is working hard to get the hands-and-knees version down. He spends most of his floor time rocking back and fourth on all fours... just can't figure out how to propel forward.

We've had some other firsts this month - first fever and first food-induced rash. Both are related to the teeth that are trying to come in (we can't see them yet, but the drool all over everything is a good clue that they're coming soon). We tried sweet potatoes early last week, which he LOVED, but they, unfortunately, do not love him back. He spiked a fever later that evening, and was covered in hives by the next morning. Yes, we'll pass on the spuds for a while.

Here's one more of this month's portraits. Springtime in Chicago can only mean one thing... BASEBALL! I actually had both a Cub's hat and a Cincinnati Reds cap for this shoot, but Aaron wanted nothing to do with the Reds. He knows he's a Chi-boy. :-)

Delightful Details

First foods

As a child, I had a strong dislike for veggies. Green beans in particular (we only ate the canned variety - yuck!). I would go to great lengths to get out of eating them: sharing with the dog, stuffing them in my pockets, volunteering to do the dishes so I could quickly shove them down the garbage disposal, or even pretending to go to the bathroom and flushing them! So when the pediatrician gave me the thumbs-up at yesterday's check-up to start solids with Aaron, I knew what I had to do. Maybe it was my way of making amends - a small apology to the green beans of my youth.
That's right...
Aaron's first solid food was....
you guessed it....

green beans.

He did well, thought he clearly wasn't too sure what to make of the homemade mush dad shoved in his mouth. We only gave him 2 tiny spoonfuls (and sentimental mom used one of her old baby spoons, of course) and he'll have green beans all week, just to be sure he's not allergic to them. Then it's on to carrots. How exciting!

Of course, the upside to all my childhood veggie-hiding antics is that my kids won't be able to get away with any tricks of their own - I know them all. :-)

Aaron's dedication

Friends and family gathered on Saturday afternoon to help us dedicate Aaron. We had such a special time asking God's blessing over this little life! The service was so sweet, with many standing to offer Aaron a special bible verse, prayer, or piece of wisdom. We saw how truly blessed we are to have so many that love us so well.

One of the most meaningful parts of the afternoon were the six covenants Mike and I affirmed about the kind of family we'll be for our children:

• To received Aaron as God's gift to our family.
• To to be parents of commitment to each other. When we grow together as husband and wife, we will provide a loving, stable, and secure environment for Aaron to mature. We committed to continually strengthen our marriage relationship.
• To be parents of personal faith, recognizing that Aaron is more likely to accept Christ as Lord if we do; more likely to respect people if we do; more likely to pray, read the Bible, and attend church if we model those activities.
• To be parents of patients: to recognize that our desire to shape this gift of God, with his inherent strengths and weaknesses, is a task that requires time, prayer and God to produce in our children what He and we hope for.
• To be parents of praise. It is easy to find fault in children who surprise us by their insistence that they are unique people. We will look for ways to affirm in them the positive qualities they possess while building in them confidence to deal with the shortcomings they will discover as well.
• To be parents of play. Tomorrow will arrive sooner that we can know. Then Aaron's automatic desire to play will be replaced with and tendency to work and to worry. We will love, laugh, and play together and not wait for tomorrow.

To see all 131 photos, click here. (thanks, LeAnn, for being our official photographer!)