Forward!

Since Friday, Gabriel is mobile, and he is getting faster by the day. Goodbye peaceful days! Gone is the time when we could put Gabriel somewhere and be sure that he would not move. Nevertheless, Michelle and I are very proud.
Sometimes Gabriel still gets stuck, of course ...

... but I still have to learn to live with the fact that it is no longer easy to build a tower out of Gabriel's reach.

Of course, there are solutions to limit Gabriel's mobility. Here's a low-cost version.

We are also happy that Gabriel is eating well again. He had refused all solids except banana while he had a cold. Now he devours again everything we feed him.

Note that it was Michelle who had been feeding him. I usually put the food in Gabriel's mouth. At any rate, Gabriel is growing well. At 7 1/2 months, he is ~72 cm tall and weighs 9 kg.



He also likes taking baths as well, after he had grown terrified of the water, possibly after water had run into his eyes once.

By the way: Guess the two other letters that Gabriel gets to play with in his bath. Michelle claims she chose the letters randomly.


Sunday, Gabriel was at his first Montreal St.Patrick's day parade.

He heard bagpipes,...

... and he saw many elderly men march and drive down the street.

Oh, and camels.

Every place has their own flavor of St.Patrick's day, I guess.



For easter, Gabriel is going on vacation where he'll meet his godfather. Gabriel can't wait.

Even though we've enjoyed the snow a lot (and it was a lot of snow: after the big snowstorm ten days ago this winter has become the one with the second strongest snowfall since they started recording), we're glad to get a preview of early summer in New Orleans.

We're just glad we won't have to go to the airport by car.

Playing

Gabriel is learning to play more actively, and he is able to keep himself entertained for 15-20 minutes at a time (for comparison: His dad can play on the computer all by himself for hours on end). One good time for playing is in the morning.

Although he pretends to be a poor little prisoner, he actually enjoys himself quite a bit in the morning, doing gymnastics...

... or playing with the stuffed animals.

We can often hear him "talk" to the animals after he wakes up. Whenever we come into the room, he turns to us with a big smile.

Playing has more nuances now. When he gets a new toy, Gabriel first studies it carefully.

Then, he eats it.

Beware, you who take away his toys. You make a baby cry.

Playing is also more varied. Gabriel likes playing with the same toys as his parents. He loves books, for example. I have to give him a baby book if I want to be sure that Gabriel won't try to eat what I'm reading.

Thus, when I read, Gabriel reads. When I work on the computer, Gabriel... ah, well.

Gabriel has started spending more time in his room, which we have intended as a place where he can leave his toys, and where there is little risk of him breaking or pulling down things.

As I mentioned in my last post, Gabriel has become much better at sitting without assistance.

Therefore, Michelle had the great idea to put a few toys in a bowl and to sit Gabriel next to it. Gabriel enjoys taking out the toys (we hope that in a few months, he will start enjoying putting them back in!), and playing with them and the bowl.

Of course, this much playing takes its toll.