Photo by: Dara Neyland

Love love love this picture! Dara, you have no idea how much happiness your photos bring to me and my family. The ability you have in capturing someone's personality is a gift unlike most I've ever seen. Keep up the good work, darlin!

Here is Dawson's update:

You've heard the expression "a bouncing baby boy"? If you prop your baby upright on your thighs, you'll likely see some bouncing up and down. Bouncing is great exercise for those little legs and will help ready your baby for standing, crawling, and eventually walking. This exciting development is also a gentle reminder that it's a good idea to start childproofing your home now in preparation for the scooting and crawling just ahead.

Dawson is definitely a bouncing baby boy. He stands up and is a bit wobbly, but he's getting better. He holds my hands and takes steps. He gets tickled after a few and starts bouncing up and down. It's adorable. He has almost mastered the art of sitting up unsupported in a matter of days. It's really amazing at how fast babies grown and learn.

I am overjoyed to report that Dawson has said his first word. Last week when I was home sick with bronchitis, he was playing in his walker. I was standing up doing something, and all of a sudden I heard "Hi!" I was startled, and I looked down at him. He was smiling ear to ear, and so I replied, "Hello!" I laughed. It was as if he knew he could do it, and was happy to let me know he was there. He is so much fun to be around.

Coming back to work this week was almost as hard as leaving him the first time. I was out most of last week. I tried to stay away from him as much as I could so he wouldn't get sick. At one point he just started crying his eyes out. I had to pick him up. He stopped crying instantly and grabbed my arm and hair. He was holding on for all he was worth! It was enough to break my heart. I love my little man.

He has started trying more fruits and veggies. He DOES NOT like green beans or green peas. His favorite fruits so far are sweet potatoes and pears. We are trying to find more veggies that he likes. We still have many to try, but it's a slow process.

Speaking of food, I thought this was interesting. I knew that babies shouldn't ever be fed honey, but I never knew the reason why they were not able to digest it.

Check this out:

Q: Why can't babies eat honey?

A: It's not the honey itself but what's in it that can make babies sick. The natural sweetener can contain the spores of a bacteria called Clostridium botulinum, the culprit behind the illness known as botulism. If these spores are ingested by a baby, they can grow in her intestines, where they'll produce botulism toxin, a highly poisonous substance that may gradually paralyze all the muscles in her body. Healthy older children and adults, on the other hand, can eat honey with no trouble because their bodies are capable of preventing the botulinum spores from growing. "The standard advice is to wait until your child is 1 year old before feeding her honey," says Sajjad Yacoob, a pediatrician at Children's Hospital Los Angeles. "But honey generally isn't an important source of nutrition for children, so to be on the safe side, it's even better to wait until 2 years of age." Thankfully, infant botulism is quite rare and has a high recovery rate when diagnosed early and treated appropriately.


There's something for you to ponder.

Have a blessed day!

Love,

Dawson's Mommy