Liam is 7 months old today! (A couple weeks late.. but getting better.)

7 months, what a delicious age!!! So coy and flirtatious until someone tries to TAKE YOU FROM YOUR MAMA! Then you arch your back and try to twist completely around in their arms... while reaching your arms out to me.

Here are your latest stats:

We were finally able to get you a doctors appointment at 6 and three quarters months that covered your 4 and 6 month checkups. You are very healthy, tall and skinny. Your stats were: 27.5 in and 15.6 lbs.

My absolute favorite developmental milestone so far... you give big kisses! And this month you've started showing the rest of the family some loving! First, and most often, you give them to Mommy... but Daddy has finally managed to get one or two. You know exactly what you are doing and you're quite serious about it. Once you've decided to give a kiss, you make sure it happens! You grab a hold of my face and pull it hard towards yours. Then you plant a nice open-mouthed smack-a-rooney on my cheek or chin or eye and hold it there for a LONG time. You'll even giggle in anticipation of it all. And sometimes I get two or more in a row, when you're feeling particularly lovey! You even gave Ben a few and he was so excited, until he saw how messy they could be :)

You initiate and pull down your own blanket for peek a boo... and you just giggle and giggle! You love any sing-song or rhyming game I make up and set to motion. And you still love to dance with me and travel up or down the stairs in my arms.

June 12th getting better at trying to sit up... we place you in the position where you stay for 5 seconds before falling forward to rest on your hands, pushing yourself back up and then toppling to the side. You've repeated this over and over again. But you still totally prefer to be down on your back and tummy rolling around because you still love to use your feet when you play.

June 13th you said, and perfected, your first word, "Da da da da da" (said sort of like "Dah dah dah dah duh")... just in time for upcoming Father's Day.

Starting to fuss for mommy more and more... you'd really just prefer me most of the time now.

You're big into grabbing all our food and drinks and anything else you can reach adding shiny silverware to your list of most desired contraband! And you aren't happy when we take it away from you, when you display what I think is just the cutest (for now anyway) "throw your head back while you flail your arms about a let out a yell-cry" protest.

We've increased your menu to include both applesauce and bananas with your cereal, but you're still just not that interested in having anything spoon fed to you. You purse your lips and turn your head. I put some on your lips so you can taste it and you make the funniest faces. I thought every baby loved applesauce. However, you have discovered how much fun it is to gnaw and suck on zwieback toast.

You're rolling all around to get to anything you want, and have managed to easily twist and contort your body so you can maneuver 360 degrees around the room. I keep placing you in the middle of a soft blanket with fun toys... and come back merely a few seconds later to find you far away from both, pressed up against the wall, off on the cold hard tile or stuck partially under the couch. I can see that I will have to bid a fond farewell to quiet independent blanket time soon :)

While rolling around, you've started to pull your legs up under yourself a little when you're on your tummy. And you'll try to both push off of things and alternate rolling from side to side while reaching forward as far as you can in an attempt to inch along towards your target... the beginning stages of crawling.

On of your eyes has completely cleared up now, meaning the tear duct is no longer blocked, and the other one is so much better. We're hoping it will clear up too soon.

You help us make friends every where we go because all the Germans are so attracted to your cute smile! You'll even "call out" to people we meet to get them to look at you. Needless to say, you're quite popular in our village and on our travels.

You like to bounce your face off of my shoulder when I'm holding you. Sometimes you make noise with your mouth while you're doing it because you like to hear your voice cut in and out.

You like to bang different objects on hard surfaces to make noise. You've even started to bang objects together.

You join in with me now when I'm singing to you... you are pretty serious about singing along, precious!

You've let out an impressive scream a few times, even surprising yourself, both for fun and because you wanted attention.

You found your angry cry, and you have a nice back arch now to complement it. Whether in protest to us taking away a treasure you've gotten ahold of or when I'm trying to put you down when you don't want me to.

You are really enjoying toys more and more. You have a basket of blanket time toys, a couple baby gyms and a Little Einsteins activity center you really like.

And now some tidbits paired with pics:

All my guys together...

So fun to be a big boy riding on Daddy's shoulders... and pulling his hair!

Happy baby, still well within the weight limit, but getting a little long for his infant car seat. It's just so convenient for when you fall asleep while we're out and about.
You know how to kick back and relax :) always putting your feet up on anything you can. And, just like Benjamin, you don't like binkies... not in the traditional sense anyway. You like to play with the binkie holder and chew on anything but the nipple part. You actually like to use that part as a handle.
All bundled up and trying out the umbrella-like McClaran stroller at a festival. The weather here is a lot like northern Washington. We've had some summer-like days , but mostly it's been on the cool side.

And here you are, same stroller, warmer day and catching a quick cat nap at the Gartenschau (Dino Park) in downtown Kaiserslautern.

Sleeping all across Germany... here we are in the ancient Roman city of Trier.
I wonder when you'll be too big for this. I think you've been changed more on the front seat of the van then you have on your nice changing table and pad from your nursery.
Trying out your Bebe pod for the first time... you were really excited. We could have done it a little sooner, but we hadn't received our household goods yet. You've had lots of fun in it lately though.

But wait, it's just not that much fun without toys within reach to play with.

Let's see what I can reach... oh yes, this would be perfect... and extra fun and sticky.

Or maybe this? Yes, I could get all nice and tangled in it!

And now for the real deal... practicing sitting up without support. You like folding in half so you can chew on your toes!
Working on the lean recovery maneuver.
Pretty excited about doing it himself, even if only for a few seconds.
What do you mean it doesn't really count until I can do it without my hands? :)
A little celebration kick because I'm such a big boy now that can feed himself, thank you very much!
See how I do that Mom?
You might not realize it, but the feet are a big part of this process... something about balance or something :) And they're a taste meter... the better the food - the higher the foot.

Up close zwieback toast face.

Do you see this fascinating fuzz treasure I've discovered!?!
Perfecting the Jedi mind trick... move this way fuzz.

Wow, it's so much more interesting over here on the plain red rug.

Whatever it was, I didn't do it.

This is totally one of the coolest things about this toy... the warning tag :)

Tub time just keeps getting better and better... new sitting up skills add a whole new dimension to baths.

Look at me!

I still get to tag along on date nights! Here we are at the Schnapps House. Mommy and I didn't partake of any schnapps, but the food and atmosphere were great... at least what I stayed awake for.

I'm just as skilled with my feet as I am with my hands!

Finally some hot summer days when I can chill in my birthday suit!

Now I don't really look like only the 5th percentile in weight, do I?

Then it's back to the cooler temps where we bundle up to watch my big brother ride bikes outside.

We go on a new adventure almost every weekend! Here we are having dinner in a wine barrell before heading to my very first castle at Burg Eltz in the Mosel River Valley.

My "I'm so excited" face...

Halfway down the hike to the castle, the excitement got a little too much for me to take... to my defense, it wasn't a short hike!

I of course woke up in the middle of the tour and began my "I'm hungry" growling for all the nice German tourists... and here I am with my big brother posing by a window.

I've been a big help unpacking... and have given mommy lots of time to put everything away and set up our new home :)

See you soon with an 8th month update!