Five months, already....

The past five months have been wonderful. Ian is such a lovey boy.

I LOVE how he snuggles under my chin when he first wakes up and wants to see things but is still chillin'. I love how he grabs his toes, gives a grunt as he hauls them to his mouth, and then proceeds to chew on them while grinning at me.

I love the way his face lights up when Anna walks by. I love how he grins at Abby, even though she never grins back. I love how he is trying to reach for John when his dad gets home from work in the evenings. I love the way his toes curl up if I try to put a sleeper on him that is suddenly and inexplicably too small.

I love how he can find my nipple in the dark, in the middle of the night, without me even helping when he needs to nurse. I love how he watches me eat every bite of food, grinning at me like if he does that then just maybe I'll give him some. I love how he kick-kick-kicks as hard as he can when I change his diaper, as if he can't control the joy of having his legs bare. I love the way he brings both legs up, bending at the waist, and then rolls to the side.....only to stop, as though rolling on over is more effort than it's worth.

I love when he gives me the "E****" (family last name) eyebrow". John and all of his siblings do it, and Ian gave it to me yesterday. It involves quizzically raising his right eyebrow while hunching the other one down. Very entertaining, and it makes him look even more like his dad.

I love him. I love to snuggle him and zorbit his belly and his fat cheeks. I love to nuzzle down into his neck and give him kisses and "get all his sugar" as my grandma used to say. I love to rub my hand over his silky hair and feel the soft spot on top of his head. I love to make raspberries back to him. I love to hold him in my left arm while he chews frantically on his fingers, put my mouth on his hands and make silly sounds that make him laugh out loud. I love to watch him suck on not one hand's worth of fingers, but ALL of them. How does he do that???

I love him. Thank you, universe, for letting him come here and be ours. Each day with him is like having a brand new gift to open every day. I never know what will be inside, what new secret I will discover. What a delicious way to spend my days, discovering the ever-changing gift that he is. And even more wonderful, it reminds me to look for the gifts from his sisters, too.