New Stats

Ryan had his 6 month (plus or minus a week or two) check up today. He's almost cracked 20 lbs - he came in at 19lbs. 14oz. and he grew an inch - up to 27 1/4. Unfortunately he also got stuck with 4 needles and had to drink a 5th vaccine. He seemed to make it through unscathed and was back to his cheery self.

He also made his first trip to Lowe's today. I never realized it would be such a fascinating place for a baby.

Our New House

After a touch-and-go closing that almost didn't happen and movers who arrived 2 hours late, we made it into our house this weekend. There's still a ton of unpacking to do and even more organizing and arranging. But everyone has a bed to sleep in. It was also a chance for the NJ grandparents to spend some time with Ryan.

A New Zoo

Back on the East Coast we can now take advantage of free zoo admission (plus free parking courtesy of our FONZ membership - thanks Fawkes family).

Take a guess at which animal Ryan was ready to see...
We took a little break for feeding time at the zoo...
A great moment between mother and son...
An yes, there were animals, and yes, I did photograph them - panda included. They'll be up on smugmug soon enough.

Off to the City

Ryan made his first trips to downtown DC this past weekend. On Sunday he took in a little culture at the National Art Gallery. Lisa and I had no idea how well our little boy's voice would carry in a cavernous stone room :)

Under normal circumstances I would have trashed this picture immediately. But given the location, I call it "art".

A Win-Win Situation

Lisa and I have discovered a couple of the inherent weaknesses in our Working Dad/Stay at Home Mom system - she wishes she had more time to sleep and I wish that I had more time with Ryan. Well, as a part of a solution, we use the weekends to make up for that lost time. When Ryan wakes up sometime between 6 and 8, I get up with him and Lisa catches up on sleep. It's my time alone with Ryan. We laugh and play, run the occasional errand. And of course, I take a few pictures along the way.

"Good Morning, Daddy!!!" Even with his sleepy face and bed head, he still has a reason to smile.
"It's never too early for a tasty bite of my own foot."

After all the fun, its just about time for him to take a nap....

An Intersting Animal

Ryan lives with his own small zoo of pets. For as much as he loves the cats, they don't really know what to make of him yet. That's why he was very excited to meet my brother's cornish rex, Oliver.

A Slice of Apple

Moving up in the world of solids, we gave Ryan his own slice of apple to gnaw on (with close supervision of course). He seemed to figure out what to do pretty quickly...
After some practice, he even moved up to the one-handed feed....
Clearly a beginner though, Ryan didn't exactly find the target everytime....
But still, when lunch time was over and the apple was gone, he was still looking for more.

More Music

Ryan's tried his hand with a piano and a drum. Today he decided to try out the guitar.

Even though he keeps growing and becoming more active, he still has his little old man bald spot. That patch hasn't had hair in about 5 months.

Ryan is getting more and more curious all the time. As a general rule, if he can get it in his mouth, it must be good. Even his soapy washcloth in the bath is appealing.

"Hey, Dad, what's that thing in front of your face? Will it fit in my mouth?"
"What's Mommy doing up there? Does she have anything I can put in my mouth?"
"So if I sit here and smile, will you give me something I can fit in my mouth?"

Mmmmm.....Avocado

While I am at work, Lisa takes over as the photographer. Here he is snatching up bits of avocado from the high chair.

"Look at me!! Would you like some avocado?"

Half a Year!!

Ryan Alexander is 6 months old today. It's so hard to believe. Lisa and I looked back through the entire blog today and were just amazed - at how much Ryan's grown and developed, and how much our lives have changed. A new son, a new job, a new (old) coast and soon a new house. All for the better!! This is just a little something to show the progression of Ryan - August 7, 2007 until today.

6 months - 3 homes

I am not really sure how many kids can say they lived in three different places in the first six months of their lives, but add Ryan to the list. We're buying a town house down here in Virginia and if all goes according to plan we'll be moved in by the end of the month.

For the locals - we'll be living in Bristow. Feel free to stop by on your way to or from Nissan Pavillion.

Ryan gets his own room, Igor and Mieko get a fenced yard, Lisa gets her own kitchen and I get whatever is left over :)

With that news out of the way, here are a few more pictures of the boy....

Peaches and Carrots and Pears......Oh My!

I can't believe that Ryan will be 6 months old in just a few days. We've started to broaden the range of mushy foods that he gets. I think he's tried 7 or 8 different fruits and veggies at this point.

He thinks that he has this whole eating thing under control and just wants to start feeding himself....