Baby Samuel

We had Samuel's six month check-up on Monday. He weighed in at 15lbs. 2oz. which put him on the growth chart. He's as big or bigger than 8% of 6-month-olds born at term! The doctor, who has been saying we won't talk about getting off of the oxygen until spring, said it was time to try it! He said the fact that Samuel has been able to fight off a couple of cold means that he's really strong, and he is really very pleased with how well Samuel is doing. :) The doctor also agreed that he's ready to start solid foods! Samuel has been very interested in watching us eat lately, and has started grabbing at things on the table. :)

With getting off the oxygen, the concern is if he's able to keep his oxygen saturations at 94% or above while he's sleeping (when he's awake, it's no problem). Samuel has been sleeping through the night pretty well for the past month, so this means I set an alarm to check him a couple time during the night. We've now made it two nights without oxygen, and Samuel is doing great!
It's so nice not to be dragging his tube around the house and to be able to see his face with out the cannula on it! I keep staring at him like he's a newborn again - he just looks different! While it's so exciting, in a little way it's almost sad too (I can't believe, I'm saying this!). Just in the sense that it's like he's taken a huge leap toward growing up and this whole tiny baby stage is now gone and over.

Samuel started smiling at the end of November, as well as cooing just a tiny bit. He's really gotten very "talkative" and much louder in the past month. He's also started to laugh once in awhile. Darren says he's finally getting fun (i.e. much more interactive)! Samuel's favorite thing has been to lay on the living room floor and watch the ceiling fan spin. He kicks his legs (riding his bicycle like Daddy) and jabbers away, keeping us laughing! Often times we spin the fan by hand, and when it starts to slow down, he'll look at us, then at the fan, and back as if to say, "Spin it again!" He aso enjoys being propped up in a sitting position so that he can watch what we're doing and play with toys. Playing "Peek-a-boo" is another favorite, and his way of "helping" me fold laundry! :)

Mid-January, Samuel had a developmental check-up regarding gross and fine motor skills and social/emotional skills. At that time, they considered him 2 months and 3 weeks old, but in all three categories he met all the 3 month milestones and some of the 4 and 5 month ones! He's working hard at catching up! We're just continually amazed at this little person God has given us and the way that He has been so kind in answering our prayers for his growth and development. I can't even come close to putting into words how blessed we feel and how thankful we are to have a God who is in control, who carried us through the toughest time of our life, and has kept his promise never to give us more than we can bear with his help.