7 Months!

Look who's 7 months!

Our big guy weighs 20 lbs. and is 28 inches long, meaning that he's starting to "thin out."

He still likes to taste everything.

He's getting more wiggly, but does not show a strong inclination to crawl.

He gets cuter everyday.

He is an expert reacher.

He loves standing up.

He is interested in pulling himself up, but can't quite do it on his own.

Huntington Gardens and Library

Baby and the Bonsai tree

Today, we headed up to the Huntington to enjoy an afternoon of art and gardens. We visited the newly re-opened American Art gallery; Elijah thought the acoustics were fantastic.

Checking out the bamboo

Elijah enjoyed observing the world from his stroller.


He thought the Children's Garden was great, especially the water portions.

Bath

Cutest Feet Ever

Another New Decision

Last night, my little sitter decided that he is capable of lowering himself to the ground from a sitting position.
For weeks, he has been very carefully not to upset his balance when sitting. He'll reach over for a toy, but takes care that he doesn't tip.

He's like one of those weighted punching bags, always returning to his upright position.

But last night, he decided to carefully lower himself and then proceeded to do it over and over again amid much laughter. He was pretty pleased with himself!

New Decision

Last night Elijah decided that there might be be an acceptable finger food besides his beloved puffs.

For an unknown reason, he decided to eat his banana bits rather than his usual routine of perfecting his ability to distinguish between puffs and banana.

It requires concentration.

So yummy!

As an after dinner treat, Elijah gets to chew on his spoon and suck on his washcloth.

Relaxed

White Mountains, Part III

While camping, we enjoyed hiking in a couple of Bristlecone Pine Groves. The trees are amazing! On one hike, we think we saw Methuselah, the oldest living thing (depending on your definition), at approximately 4800 years old. It's unlabeled, but we identified the three most likely candidates (based on our vast knowledge of trees).

The epistemological question, though, is whether we can know that we saw it. If the trailmakers showcased it, then we saw Methusaleh, but if they obscured it, then who knows. There were a lots of trees. Regardless, we did see a number of very old trees.

The Rowleys and the Patriarch Bristlecone Pine Grove

Hiking with Daddy

Beside the Patriarch, the largest Bristlecone Pine

Baby in the Patriarch

Another tree

Another cool tree--note the twisting caused by the harsh weather conditions

Baby with Baby Bristlecone

"Happy" Camper

For Labor Day weekend, we decided to try out camping with baby. We headed up to the White Mountains with friends to admire the Bristlecone Pines.

Playing whilst we set up camp

After setting up camp, we headed to Schuman Grove for a quick hike.


Bristlecone pines are extremely resilient trees, able to live for thousands of years in the dry, rocky land at a high altitude.

These trees take a long time to decompose; we saw dead trees that were knocked over hundreds of years ago.

Enjoying the campfire with our friends Jon and Libby

Playing in the tent

We could pretend that it was a happy trip for all involved, but Elijah got altitude sickness (we were camping at 8500 feet), which turned him into a fussy, clingy baby who slept badly. The second night we stayed down the mountain because he was so much happier at 4000 feet. Still, we enjoyed hiking, admiring the trees, hanging out with friends, and even feeding a chickadee by hand.

I got a container of water for Elijah earlier this week; he wasn't quite sure what to make of it.

Food!

Elijah thinks food is fantastic. Puffs are the best, but peaches rank pretty high as well. If we are too slow on the food delivery, he sits there and says, "Mmmmm. Mmmm." If that is ineffective, his "mmmm"s become louder and more insistent.

He has recently markedly improved his ability to get food into his mouth; the majority actually end up in his mouth after only one or two tries. Gone on the days where five pieces of food would keep him busy. He will happily munch away at as many puffs as he is given.

The introduction of food means that it is easy to keep him content at mealtimes. He enjoys sitting with the big people for the entire length of the meal.

Starting him early