Toes anyone?

Within the past weeks, Jonas has discovered his feet. He seems continually frustrated by the fact that winter cold has hit the Midwest and we now keep his feet bundled up in socks. Would you believe that his feet actually smell? It's not strong, but I can tell that when he hits adolescence, look out world! He also seems to produce an amazing amount of ear wax. No matter how often I clean his ears, the next morning, there's more wax.

Okay, that's enough of the gross stuff.

On a lighter note, Jonas is now enjoying a few veggies with his rice cereal. So far, we've experimented with peas (not his favorite), sweet potatoes (oh yeah baby!) and squash (a lukewarm reception). He eats it warm or cold and doesn't seem the least bit finicky. I'm amazed at the volume of food he ingests, especially since he only poops about every 3 days (more gross stuff, sorry!). Ed is generally the solid food feeder, but I enjoy watching it. Jonas will grab the spoon and bring it to his mouth because Ed is not moving fast enough. In fact, he screams in impatience between bites. By the way he acts, you'd swear we were starving him. Ed has become quite proficient, and most of the food ends up in Jonas' mouth, with very little on the bib. However, there is plenty to wipe off of his face at the end of the meal - Jonas' face, that is.

Jonas has also started to grab at everything near him. If he's on your lap and you try to drink something, he will grab it. He's fast, and pretty accurate, so it's something to watch out for! He's grabbed the dog's chin hair, and tried to grab the cat, who is fortunately too short-haired to catch. I'm relieved that we have good-natured pets.

At a recent doctor visit (for a rash), we learned that the j-boy is now 15 1/2 pounds, and about 25 inches long. He rolls over very quickly from his stomach to his back, and we are no longer leaving him on the bed or sofa unattended. So far, there haven't been any accidents.

Lastly, Jonas is very close to sitting on his own. He can do it for about 5-10 seconds, but then sways to the side and often falls forward on his face. I'm sure my mother will be horrified to read this, but I feel like it's an unavoidable part of the learning curve. Jonas is a tough little dude, and so far the tears have been minimal. And Mom, there are no bruises, scratches, or red marks. No marks at all. None. See the picture above? He's fine. No marks! And I keep him close by when he tries this.

In any case, we can't wait until he can sit on his own, and even start crawling.

He is truly well on his way to making us more alert, diligent, and nervous parents, and we love every minute of it!