Gabriel vs. The Ping-uh-win

It was quite a spirited battle and I think Gabriel worked in a little
Mike Tyson move at one point, but on a wing instead of an ear.

Fun with Science

Eleanor and Gabriel had a very fun time at the Sci-Tech Discovery
Center in Frisco! Many things to do and see. Eleanor learned how to go
around a defender (or in this instance under) and Gabriel learned
about physics...and noise.

Gabriel Signing Eat

Earlier he very clearly signed "mom" but I was unable to catch him
signing it. Later that evening I did record him signing, quite cutely
I think, "eat." Bon appétit!

Gabriel signed his first word! And it was "mom"!!
He signed his second shortly afterward and it was "eat."

Big girl

Eleanor had a big growth spurt and finally put on some weight (and of
course more height). First sign: one of the tree branches she always
swings from wont hold her weight anymore and broke off last week :)

Aaaaalllmost crawling!

"I will ride my bike to the park"

Followed by. . .

A nice bath in the fresh air.

Gabriel's first painting

Art al fresco

A visit from periquito azul

Music

Hmm, what should I play today?

Sweet kiddos

It's cheerio day for Gabriel! No pincer grasp yet, but working hard at it.

6 months of Gabriel

 

As he turns 6 months old this week, Gabriel is an absolute joy. He has a huge smile that lights up his whole face, and he's nearly always smiling. I imagine that if he could talk he would be a baby version of my grandfather, saying to everyone he meets (stranger or friend): "Howdy! I'm Gabe Townsend!"
He sits up competely independently now (with excellent posture!) and he scoots around in circles on the floor. He doesn't seem very interested in crawling, but I think that has more to do with his very content temperment than it does with his physical ability. His favorite things are his exersaucer (hideous and beloved, thank you Austin for sharing), eating, watching his sister, and just being with people. Everything he touches goes straight into his mouth. His neck is very ticklish and he has no teeth just yet. He was making great progress toward sleeping through the night before about two weeks ago when he was struck by a cold. We're optimistic he'll be back on track soon. He got a clean bill of health from the pediatrician, and his growth and started to level off. He's now only large instead of enormous. Happy 6 months to you, Gabriel!

Love

Where we live

(While looking at a picture of Earth)
Eleanor: We live in Central America.
Me: No, we live in North America.
Eleanor: South America has Eleanors in it.

Gotta Wear Shades

It's important to wear sunglasses when it's night. Why? Because it's dark outside. Duh.

My girl

If there was any doubt, I now know that Eleanor is my kind of girl. She wakes up very cold, like I do, so this morning she took matters into her own hands. I sent her into the bathroom to wash her hands after breakfast and found her sitting in a sink full of nice warm water 10 minutes later. She looked very pleased and I felt a little jealous that I wouldn't fit into the sink.

Baby bwudder

I love these kids.