Look at me

Somebody around here has figured out the sitting thing. Well, mostly anyway. He topples occasionally and then is either pissed or confused, depending on his mood and how close we are to nap time. It seems like this sitting thing happened overnight, as one day he was sitting up reasonably well with the boppy supporting him, and the next I could sit him down on the carpet unassisted. In reality, I know this development has been months in the making, but it really came as a shock to me when he sat on his own for ten solid minutes for the first time.

This milestone seems symbolic in a way as well, as if Mateo is turning into a full-blown baby before my very eyes. He giggles and interacts so much more, he reaches for things and makes his desires known. He's genuinely FUN to hang out with and I am just flat out smitten. It is amazing to watch his coordination develop. Now that he can sit, we play games facing one another and I can watch him discover new things. It's so exciting and he is so dang cute.

Having him sit on his own has also alleviated some of his dependence on me. He is happy to sit and play with his toys in a way he wasn't before. Yesterday, for example, he sat with me on the bed playing with something while I folded laundry. I kept expecting him to ask me to pick him up or carry him around, but he just played away happily next to me. I continued talking to him and we were still interacting, but I was also able to get maybe 30 minutes of work done at the same time. Effortlessly.

Another development is that Mateo has now gone four nights without waking up before five am. He was doing this for a little while before we left France, but with all the changes and travelling, he was all over the place. These past few nights have left me more rested than I have been in months, and I think liberation from sleep deprivation is the most glorious feeling ever.

I was reading in a baby book that many parents feel some relief at around six months because the baby gains some independence. The idea sounded daunting to me when I read it a few months back, but now I see what they might mean. The sleeping, the sitting, the ability to entertain himself... all good things in my book.

The other big news around here is that Mateo experienced his first snow fall. He didn't think much of it, but then again neither did I. There's only so much positivity to be found in very cold winter days.

This next week I am working 36 hours -- which is now only *almost* full time (by American standards). I didn't ask for that many hours but that's what I got scheduled, and I'm going to see how well I can handle it. Should be interesting, but let's hope I don't return to the land of the sleep deprived as a result.