5 months old!

Jacob, believe it or not, is 5 months old! Here are some of his favorite things:

• He loves to sit and stand with a little support from Mommy and Daddy.
• He is no longer angered by tummy-time, in fact he kinda likes it!
• He is now eating cereal twice a day, and in a couple weeks will start on pureed fruits.
• Naps in the stroller are a thing of the past - this kid wants to see everything!
• Jacob's mouth is his primary investigatory tool. Everything within reach goes straight into his mouth, which is frequently gushing drool.
• Stella! But he knows enough to stay away from Hank.
• Daddy is always good for endless giggles. Always.
• Blowing bubbles is the highest form of art-making, and Mommy's fake sneezes are the funniest jokes in the world.

Some accomplishments that make Mommy and Daddy very happy and proud:

• His tummy-troubles seem to have eased up for the time being. I still don't eat dairy or soy, but the constipation and resulting colicky moodiness have disappeared.
• Jacob has finally established a nice sleep routine which have let him start falling asleep for naps and at bedtime without crying and needing to be rocked. We did some sleep-training that involved a lot of routine-building and a little fussing-it-out, and after a couple days of wondering if we would ever have peace again, he suddenly started going down without a fuss. FOR NOW. For we have learned, painfully, that all phases are temporary, even the good ones. This week we are working on sleeping through the night - he's done very well the last couple nights and we (so-far) haven't had any of the horrifying scenes that one hears about.
• Jacob is still on the low end of the growth charts for his age, but his rate of growth is perfect, so his doctors are well-pleased. He is a perfectly happy, healthy and growing little boy.
• Miles of smiles, morning noon and night. Frequently I go in to get him at the end of a nap and am greeted with smiles and bubbles.
• Jacob is a very quiet young man. He giggles and grouses, but not a lot in between. But for someone so quiet, he is very, very social. He has smiles and cuddles for everyone!
• His eyes are starting to change colors - they are still blue, but much more toward the gray end of the scale, more than even two weeks ago. I predict they will either be green like Mommy's or gray like Grandma's.
• Jacob loves books. We read several times a day and he loves to help turn the pages.
• He is just flat-out beautiful.

Here are some pictures from his 5-month birthday: