Seven months!

Gabe, you turned seven months old yesterday and so much has happened!

Let's start with the latest and most exciting news...you have two teeth coming in! You have been making this repetitive moaning sound for the last week and a half...it is borderline obscene! Anyway, we finally realized it was your teeth and started giving you oralgel to help with the discomfort. Poor kid, you have needed a few doses of baby tylenol also. Your best friend has become a frozen teething ring. You also like it when your dad rubs your gums vigorously...and I mean vigorously! Your whole body shakes while he does it, but you seem to find comfort in it. Whatever works, right? Aside from some moaning you have weathered this like a champ. Your two little nubs were discovered on Friday. You can't really see them yet...partly because you have become so squirmy (more on that later) that it is almost impossible to get a good look, but you can feel them. They are both in the front, one on the top and one on the bottom. The top one is farthest along. I am very excited about your teeth, but will miss your gummy smile.

**Update...I got a better look in your mouth at our lunch visit and I think you actually have two more teeth coming in! You can't feel anything yet, but it looks like little blisters on your gums. Ouch!! If that is the case, you will have two teeth coming in right next to each other on the bottom and two teeth coming in right next to each other on the top. Very exciting!

On the squirmyness front...your dad and I have decided to stop changing you on top of your dresser. You twist and turn and push off of the wall. We are so afraid you will squirm your way right off of the changing pad and onto the floor. It is a long way down so we are on to Plan B which is to put the changing pad on the floor. This is much safer because you couldn't get any closer to the ground, but I must say it is kind of a hassle. Totally worth avoiding a horrible accident, but still kind of a hassle. The changing pad has staps and also came with some screws to secure the pad to the wall or the dresser, but I don't know if that system would be a match for this level of squiryness. You are hella squirmy! Anyway, we will get used to the new set up. Again, totally worth avoiding an accident.

As for eating, now that you are seven months old you will need to have two meals of solid food a day. That means that one of those meals will have to happen at school. I talked to Miss Maria and we will begin tomorrow. I am going to have to step up my baby food making!

You are one lovable kid! You have started to reach for us when we pick you up. It makes me smile every time. And you have the best laugh. You are ticklish under your chin and on your chest. We try not to tickle you too much since you are pretty defenseless, but just a few seconds can't hurt, right? You are laughing so it can't be that bad. You also laugh really hard when bounced on my knee to the tune of Bonanza. What gets the best results, though, is when I take your socks off of you before we get in the car to go home from school. It is so hot outside I thought I would let those little toes breath. I whip your socks off and wave them around...you laugh soooo hard!

Gabe, you are such a sweet, loving boy and you get cuter by the day. You love to play and cuddle with us. I've never seen a more content baby (or daddy) then when you are in your daddy's lap after a long day of playing. Speaking of playing...your favorite toys are your music table, your Gymboree wiffle balls, daddy's glasses, and mommy's necklaces...especially the one with the big beads. You have a one track mind when I am wearing that necklace. You grab it in your little fist and shake it like crazy. It is a bit of a strain on my neck, but it makes me laugh. However, I don't think I will be laughing when that necklace finally breaks so I guess I shouldn't encourage that behavior. As for the glasses, you can whip the glasses off of your daddy's face in nothing flat. They go straight into your mouth (Nice work with the hand/eye coordination!) Again, there probably won't be much laughter when those finally break.

You are also a champion sleeper. I hope I did not just jinx us, but I would like to thank you for mastering this skill so easily. That is not the case for a lot of babies, so thank you!

We love you so much, Gabe. We couldn't be happier!