happy 6 months, sweet jacob

Happy half-birthday, our precious little one!!

How can it possibly be that Jacob is six months old already?  I'm thankful that keeping this blog has helped me to be more mindful of how rapidly time continues to pass by.

It truly feels like just a few weeks ago that we were anticipating "baby brother's" arrival...that we were adjusting to life as a family of six...that we were learning who this wonderful new person in our midst would turn out to be.

And now, as I sit in our simple temporary home in northern Tanzania, dealing with an extremely slow internet connection that only occasionally allows me to upload pictures, I have a chance to realize the blessings that have enriched our lives since August 19, 2012.  I am filled with gratitude for sweet baby Jacob and the love and life that he brings to our family.  As I wrote to friends recently, he has turned out to be the gift that we didn't even know we needed.

His warm, engaging and endearing personality is not lost on a single person he meets.  No matter the age, ethnicity, or language of persons who cross his path, each one seems so taken with this baby and his loving attitude.  We are one lucky family to have him in our midst.


And in these six short months, what a ride he has already experienced.  From his birth in Houston, to our cross-country drive to Georgia and South Carolina, to our month in Louisiana at Christmas time, to our trans-Atlantic journey to Tanzania, Jacob hasn't missed a beat.  Without a doubt, his relaxed persona has made a big difference in making for so many great memories.





So what do I want to remember about Jacob at this age?  Well, everything, but most especially...

• how he smiles that gorgeous gummy smile when he sees one of us approaching
• how he sometimes wakes up singing in the morning, and what a beautiful a sound that is
• how he makes everyone around him feel so funny/special/loved
• how he is rolling over all the time now, and how he recently figured out that sleeping on his tummy is way more comfortable...and how wonderfully he has slept at night since making that discovery (happy dance!!)
• how he is starting to enjoy his first solids this week--"Cerelac," made by a European company and very similar to baby cereal in the U.S.--and how Madison has already asked when she will get a chance to feed him
• how he has taken to so very many changes so readily, how he rarely cries (and when he does, I know I need to pay attention), how he just is joy, all the time...and how I wonder if this is predictive of his personality later on...and how I really don't want to mess that up! 
• how his siblings still clamor for time with him, how they never tire of snuggling with him or trying to make him laugh his precious belly laugh, or how they are constantly amazed by the new things that he can do
• how he adores his daddy...and how his face lights up every time he hears Chris' voice or sees him nearby
• how he still opens his mouth wide onto my cheek, chin, shoulder, etc., so often...I don't even care if he is actually rooting for milk that he might have missed--I just love that it feels like precious, slobbery kisses to me
• how he is keeping his daddy and me young and energetic, because really, what choice do we have?  :)
• and finally, I want to remember how he reminds me, every single day, that God is so very present in my life...right here...right now

You are deeply loved, our sweet Jacob.  Thank you for being you, and for making us, us.