6 Months Old (Colin and Claire)

Colin and Claire are maturing and developing so quickly lately. It literally feels like they grow even after a one hour nap and wake up each day able to do different things. They really love playing with each other and with Adam, and Colin has even started mimicking Adam when he wants to make Claire laugh. (They get close to her face and make a loud yelling noise. She loves it and giggles uncontrollably). Colin has started to take over in the growth department and is now almost a whole half inch longer than she is and is starting to take the lead in weight too. This is the first time ever - they have always been exactly symmetrical since my 7 week ultrasound when I discovered there were two.

But as always, that is the only way that they were the same. Colin's eyes are getting darker. Claire's eyes are getting bluer, if that's even possible. Claire grins at everything. Her brothers, Shannon and me, perfect strangers... the wall... and Colin has to be in the mood but when he feels it will grin for hours.

Colin likes fruit. He hates green beans, and is unimpressed with anything green. Claire thinks fruit is too tart and likes veggies, especially sweet potatoes. But truthfully, if it's food, she wants it. Colin eats leisurely and wants you to do it all for him. He has no problem being babied. Claire eats more quickly but wants to do it all herself and gets frustrated when she can't. She's started to hold her bottle sometimes but it's not 100% -- she doesn't have the stamina.

Last week I gave Colin and Claire both sippy cups to practice with at lunch. Claire can hold hers but struggles to drink from it and that just makes her mad. I tried to help her out for a little while and then went to Colin to hold it for him. He drinks from the sippy cup fairly well. He can't do it for long periods of time, but he can drink about an ounce before he gets tired.

Claire turned to watch him, scowled when she saw that he was drinking from it, and immediately threw her sippy cup on the ground. A little bit of a competitive streak in her, I'd say.

Claire

Claire is getting stronger on her stomach and is probably about to start crawling within the next month or two. She can spin around and there have been times I've left the room and found that she has rolled laterally across the room.

When things feel a little dull, Claire throws her cup, her toys, her pacifiers on the ground from her high chair (already), and Colin laughs at her, so she does it more. Both of Claire's brothers are convinced she hung the moon, so heaven help us when she figures that out, because she already has Daddy eating from the palm of her hand. If she's upset, she yells at me because I should fix it... but if Daddy picks her up, all is right with the world.

 
 Colin

 
Colin's strength is incredible, and everyone mentions it. He's still low-tone, but if he wants to do something he'll do it. When he rolls over he makes it look so fluid and effortless that it almost does look easy. If you put him on his stomach in his crib to nap and he isn't ready, he'll flip himself over and cry, and good luck trying to get him to roll back over. The kid is strong. He's been working on pushing up with his arms and standing on his legs more, and he's growing considerable length on him the last few days, let alone weeks.

Colin has been insatiable lately and is napping less. He thinks bedtime is at 11 pm, no matter how much or how little he napped during the day, and the only thing that makes him happy is either to be walked around the house or to have one on one time with mom and dad. I think he does it intentionally, knowing that the others are in bed and he can get his cuddle/play time in with no distractions.

Colin mimics Adam (Claire does too for that matter), and Adam has even started picking up some of Colin's habits like sucking on his bottom lip and making similar noises.

My all time favorite baby stage is when babies can grab their feet and roll around. Colin is a champ at that, and Claire can but doesn't see the appeal. Maybe she will eventually. I can't get enough of it.

They are growing faster than I like. But fortunately for me, they are all still small enough to cuddle together on one little blanket.