The long post

Zoe is now 6.5 months. I've been meaning to do a post for weeks. There were so many things to write about that I've decided to just include as many as I can. So prepare yourself for a lot of pictures and videos. There continue to be a steady stream of "firsts." This past month and a half she's begun experimenting with her consonants (mamamama, papapa, even a little dada, though it sounds more like thatha). She's had her first fall from the Bumbo. (She was technically still in it, but somehow managed to bump her head on the table.) She's fallen off the bed. :( (Of course her first fall was a couple of months ago and much scarier...when I tripped while holding her.) She's had her first tastes of rice cereal and avocado. She's enjoying new textures, like Daddy's scratchy face. She's enjoying her exersaucer and LOVES her tigger bouncer. And in slightly less exciting news, though nice in its own way...she now goes most of the day with no bib. I can actually see her clothing. :)

Zoe still fits in her swing. We LOVE the swing. She ends up in strange positions a lot but doesn't seem to mind too much.


Here's a picture of some of the people I work with. Zoe tags along sometimes.

We were able to visit Wichita last month. Zoe really enjoyed hanging out with her Grandpa and Grandma.

We had some very relaxing time out in the backyard. So beautiful! It was a little chilly, but it's always fun to snuggle with Zoe.

One of my favorite things about Zoe lately is how she likes to snuggle and put her head on my shoulder when she gets sleepy. I wish I could capture and remember each of these moments.

Zoe had an encounter with the cat at Jesse's parents. (If you can't tell, there is a screen door between Zoe and the cat.)



Zoe is always eager to get _anything_ into her mouth. During my mom's last visit, we decided to go ahead and try rice cereal. My mom was very excited to be the first to feed Zoe in her highchair. She was so excited that we had to repeatedly stop her from giving the first bite until we could get the camera. My mom was more excited than Zoe. =) Zoe ate her first few bites like a seasoned semi-solid food eater. After the novelty wore off, she realized that the cereal didn't really taste like what she was hoping for. We've since tried avocado several times also, but the jury is still out on that also. I think Zoe will be content to keep eating her burp cloths and Mommy's arm and fingers.



These two pictures sum it up.

The cleanup afterwards was a little more fun. Still, she was very ready to be out of the highchair.

She is going through a phase (I hope it's a phase) where she cries whenever we put her down. Actually, she has incredible intuition to sense when we are even thinking about putting her down. ;) The solution that is working for now is to include her in just about everything we do. Here she is watching her daddy shave. She loves mirror time.

Some classic bib-cape action

Oh, and in case you hadn't heard, my brother, Tim, is getting married!! Her name is Sarah. They will be getting married later in July and be moving in down the street from us. Yay!

Here are some cute pictures of Zoe with her grandma. Thanks to Laura for the awesome dress. We love it!

Zoe and Carson interacted a little more on this visit. She would watch him wherever he went. She got to pet him a little bit, too.

I've worked a lot to clear some ground for a little garden. It's been hard work, and we are now enjoying the firstfruits.

Zoe wasn't too sure about the Tigger bouncer the first few times. Now, she loves it. She can jump for half an hour at a time! This video also highlights her new laugh. She squints her eyes, smiles a toothless, gummy grin, and breathes in and out really fast. It's so funny!