A baby in a bow tie

Becoming a six month old is a big deal. Samson can check off all the boxes on the long list of accomplishments the pediatrician will tell you to watch for. We are so proud of every milestone he reaches & we gladly cheer him on & coax him to the next one. However, I'm still in total disbelief that we are halfway to having a one year old! It feels as if Samson has been a part of our lives forever, but it also just feels like he just got here! Time just blurs together, managing to both crawl & speed by in the blink of an eye. But, I wanted to pause it for just a moment & capture some of the sweetness to hold on to. In honor of his half birthday I snapped some pictures of Samson, aka Sam, aka SamBam, aka SammerJammer, aka Baby Bear, aka Squirrel (he has daddy to thank for thank one), aka Cash's brother, aka he cutest baby who ever lived. Without further adieu...

Sweet little birthmark on his back & his fluffy cloth diaper bum.

And just in case you think you can turn your back on your baby for even a second...

Reality: can't even put him down without Cash being right next to him.

Favorites : Month 4 & 5

Fox – Stuffed animals are definitely Samson’s favorite toys at the moment. I honestly think it’s because they mimic Cash’s fur but are less likely to move away when he starts chewing on them. This fox was a gift from my friend Holli, and Samson has loved it for months. The black and white face provide ample amounts of contrast, while it’s life sized shape have proven to be the perfect cuddle size. It’s so sweet looking and is a nice compliment to his nursery full of moose.

Fresh Baby Trays – So far, I’ve made all of the fruits and veggies that Samson has eaten. I assure you it isn’t as daunting as it may seem. I just put the prepared food in my regular blender (not a baby bullet, not a Ninja, not a Vitamix… just a plain old Oster brand blender) and then pour it in these trays, cover and put them in the freezer. Once the food is frozen, I put it in a labeled Ziploc bag and put it back in the freezer. I can’t take credit for discovering these, I just happened to be visiting my brother & sister-in-law at their new home a few months ago when she sent these home with me. However, I really enjoy using them. There is no need for measuring or precision pouring, I just dump the food in the middle & use a rubber spatula (or scraper if that’s what you call them) to spread the food into all of the cubes. So easy!

Sunglasses – Protecting little eyes from UV radiation, assisting stroller naps and looking cool at the same time. Fantastic. Get them in every color. ;)

Hello Ninja– I love reading to Samson and so far all he loves is gnawing on the books, but this was a fun book to add to our (still measly) collection. We often referred to Samson-in-utero as a little ninja because of the quick kicks and jabs he would deliver and also because of our growing fascination with the TV show American Ninja Warrior, so now it’s fun to help him become accustomed to the ninja ways of life. This book moonlights as a bedtime story, so it’s almost always on our reading list.

Oball Teether – I’m really drawn to this brand. I love the bright colors that they use and the little beads that they use make the coolest (least annoying) noise. While these keys don’t have the brands token beads, the do have bright colors and cool textures for Samson to gnaw on and the key ring seems to be the right size and shape for his little hands. So far there are no signs of teeth, but everything goes in his mouth anyways. Samson gives them bonus points for making a cool sound when he drops them from the highchair tray twenty times at dinner.

Jumperoo – Hands down one of the most used baby items we own. We have a smaller doorway jumper that is easy to move around, but for day-to-day use this one is definitely our favorite. Besides being great for jumping, it has lots for Samson to look at and play with. We usually don’t turn the sound on, because he seems to like it just fine without it and the days of quiet play are truly numbered when you have a boy. Downsides : big size makes it more difficult to move from room to room and it takes up a great-deal of floor space.

B. One Two Squeeze Blocks – Samson was really starting to take an interest in the wooden blocks that my friend Rachel had made for him, however, since he’s still a little guy, I cringed every time he accidentally dropped one on his face or poked himself in the eye with sharp corner. These soft blocks were the perfect solution. They are the perfect size for little fingers and all 6 sides of each block have a raised image for exploring. They make a small squeak for interest, but not enough to be confused as a dog toy, which is an important quality in our house.

Boon Highchair – I know there are a hundred different highchairs out there to choose from, and honestly, I’m not sure you can go wrong with any of them. I do love our highchair though. It is SO easy to clean (zero crevices or hard to reach places). It’s easy to adjust the height (it has a pneumatic lift, like a hair dressers chair, but easier). It’s on easy-to-glide wheels and it has a one-step brake. Plus, it looks like it belongs to the Jetson’s. Win.

Samson : 6 Months

Age : 6 months

Height : 27 ½”, 85^th percentile

Weight : 16 lbs 8 oz, 45^th percentile

Clothes : 3-6 months, some 6-9 months

Diapers : We use cloth diapers almost full-time. However, for night time (because no matter how much I stuff them, I can’t keep him dry for 12 hours) and longer trips away from home (a diaper bag full of dirty cloth diapers isn’t my favorite thing) we use size 3 up&up. I just bought some Honest diapers to try out, I’ll let you know how I like them.

Eating : 6.5 oz/5 x a day, and an assortment of homemade fruit and vegetable purees. Usually 2 oz/2 x a day.

Sleeping : 7:30pm-7:30 am, and usually two 1½ hour naps.

Pacifiers : We switched from 0-6 month mam pacifiers to 6+ month Latch pacifiers (what we had on hand) and so far so good. They seem a little easier to keep clean, with fewer crevices for things to get trapped. The clear middle of the Latch pacis are weird, but strangely endearing. 

Likes : Snuggling things right next to his face while sleeping, which terrifies me & I do everything I can to prevent him from accidentally suffocating, but the boy loves to snuggle. Which is directly related to another item on this list: Nap time with mommy is a favorite activity for the both of us. Sweet Potatoes are hands down his favorite food, but he still will turn down food in favor of his bottle. He is absolutely fascinated with the silkie tags on all of his toys. Chewing on 2 fingers at a time is at a dead even tie for chewing on his feet.  Being outdoors is one of his favorite things & he is his most content going for walks in the stroller or sitting in the yard with Cash. He loves laughing with daddy.. Who can make him giggle & scream better than anyone. And finally, pulling mommy's hair and spitting up all over daddy.

Dislikes : 6 month shots probably top his list of least favorite things this month. Followed closely by eating vegetables that aren't mixed with apples or sweet potatoes (butternut squash, green beans... the horror!) Being tucked into the mamaroo, the highchair or even the jumperoo instead of being held by mommy all.day.long. Sippy cups. Anything he can't chew on. Water on his face (not to be confused with rain or a shower because he loves those). Getting an arm or a leg stuck out of his crib. And finally, the blender a.k.a. Samson's arch nemesis.

22 weeks

23 weeks

24 weeks

25 weeks