6 Months Old

Really? MY baby is NOT the newborn baby anymore?? How did this happen?!

Russell Macfarlane Norris

Growth Stats as of 12/7/2010:

Height: 26 3/4" (55th %ile)

Weight: 17 lb. 6 oz. (50th %ile)

Sleep Pattern: 7-9 hours at night

And he's grown so much just in the past 4-6 weeks especially: changed from resting calmly in my arms to wanting to look around for every sound he hears, from remaining relatively quiet throughout the day to frequently testing-out his vocal chords with boyish baby babble, from keeping to himself when I enter a room to insisting that I give him my full attention, from just looking when an object is interesting to trying to rip each new scene to shreds. My baby is growing at lightning speeds...and no matter how I beg him to quit, he just won't!

As Russell has given me the opportunity to be a mother to more than one, I'm really discovering for myself that no two kids are alike. Besides the obvious physical contrasts, baby Ruh-russ is so different from his brother.

Baby Russell, 6 months old (November 2010)

Baby Taylor, 6 months old (December 2008)

My baby LOVES to eat! I remember having such difficulties getting baby Taylor to nurse, eat from a spoon, drink from a sippy cup. So far, little Russell hasn't presented such stressors. It's been so fun to nurse him without any problems, bottle feed him when I need to, and introduce new tastes to his little palate, as he audibly approves with his Chewbacca-esque baby "mmm, mmm" sounds.

Russell is such a sweet, mild-natured baby. His brother enjoyed discovering new toys and body movements at this age, but Russell prefers spending quiet time with others: being cuddled and talked to, and observing people around him. This includes himself. I love it when I catch him quietly rotating his little wrists around in front of his face, as he loves checking-out his chubby baby hands.

Oh, how I love this little one! I can truly feel that a very blessed, Christlike little person has come to our family. One whom I can feel the Spirit telling me has come to this earth for a purpose. It's a humbling, overwhelming, and touching feeling. I sometimes have to pinch myself that I am his mother!