braxton michael | seven months.

You've been with us for seven months today, big boy! So much has happened since your half birthday, and I'm excited to tell you about it all. Before I get started, I need to correct a statement (a very exciting statement) that I made in my last letter to you. We went to the doctor ten days after your half birthday for a wellness check, and seconds after I exclaimed "He has his first tooth coming in!" the doctor looked in your mouth, hesitated for a split second (probably because she knew that hearts would sink as soon as she spoke), and told us that you didn't have a tooth yet - it was some sort of "gum abrasion" that had formed instead. She said that these things usually mean that a tooth is getting ready to come in, but that it could still be months before it actually happens. Darn! Now that just means that we will be that much more excited when those pearly whites finally do start to show themselves. Speaking of teeth, you've been extra fussy for the past few weeks + have been putting everything you can get your hands on in your mouth + are still drooling like a water fountain , so I think it's safe to say that you are a professional teether at this point. You are a solid-eating machine, too, kiddo! You eat a fruit in the morning, a vegetable in the late afternoon, and the only thing that you've tried so far that you haven't particularly cared for so far has been avocado. The doctors kept telling us that once you started sitting up and eating solids that you would stop spitting up so much, and I am so proud (and, let's be honest, really thankful) that they were right. You have always been a "happy spitter" (as they call it), but it's nice to not have to clean you up every five minutes now (insert "HALLELUJAH!" here). The only word you say is "Ma Ma," and you've started making lots of new clicking noises with your mouth recently. When you eat your solids, you say "Mmmm" after most bites, and you are also trying out this new thing that sounds like you're grunting. I'm not really sure where that came from, but you especially like to do it when you're excited about something. Speaking of a different kind of grunting, you've really started going through diapers since you began eating solids twice a day. Sheesh! Your first diaper rash has, also, happened, and daddy + I are thankful you are no longer screaming out in pain when we change you - we cried when you cried, little one. I think the rash was a result of two things: 1) your new bathroom habits, and 2) the swim diapers that you wore every day for a week while we were at the lake. That's right, bud - you were a lake bum all last week! You, me, Daddy, Pops, Mimi, Nik Nik, Cannie Ree, Trent, Ozzie, and Harley went to Lake Greenwood for one last hoorah of the summer, and you got lots of lovin' from everyone. You slept in your pack n' play in our room, and we learned that you are quite chatty in your sleep (you can thank your daddy for that one). You are still a smiley one, but I've noticed that the more curious + aware you become about everything around you, the more you wear your serious face. When I can't get you to smile at me, I cheat a little and tickle you until you're belly laughing. Hehe! And, last but certainly not least, a really, really, REALLY big (and mind-blowing) milestone happened in the last week. Are you ready for this? Little B, you CRAWLED for the first time! I've been shrieking with both excitement AND terror since then. You aren't "into everything" just yet, you only move when you really want something in front of you, and your biggest motivator is keys. You love to be up on your knees so you can rock back and forth, and you especially love to do that when you're in your crib. Maybe you're rocking yourself to sleep? Who knows. Nevertheless, because of this, daddy dropped your crib down closer to the floor just in case.

Here's to all the adventures we've had this month, and to all the ones we're going to have over the course of this next one. You are loved an enormous amount by so many, but no one on this earth loves you quite as much as daddy + I do. Giving you smooches + hugs is our favorite - especially when we squeeze you between us and kiss both of your little cheeks at the same time. You make us crazy (both good crazy AND not-so good crazy), and we wouldn't trade it for anything! May God continue to teach us how to raise you up in a way that prepares you for His perfect plan for your life, and may we never cease to thank Him for choosing us to be your parents.