Charlie at five and six months

The past six weeks have been a time of important changes and growth for Charlie -- and lots of fun!

It all started in April when the weather warmed up and we started to see curls in Charlie's hair. Katie was thrilled to have another head of curly hair in the family.

 
Then Charlie started trying to sit up. At the time of his five-month portraits, this was serious business. He could only balance a few seconds before toppling.

But over the past few weeks, Charlie has mastered this skill and was excited to show off at today's six-month photo shoot.

 
A few more comparisons of Charlie at five versus six months:

Five months

Six months

 

Five months

Six months

 

Charlie also is doing better and better at using his hands.

Stay tuned for the latest development in next month's photos - his first tooth! We first felt it on Memorial Day, but it's not very visible yet. Keeping with everything we've learned about him so far, Charlie has taken teething in stride.

Finally, just a few more cute shots from the past couple of months:

Charlie's christening

Sunday was a joyful day filled with family and friends as Charlie was christened (baptized) in the Episcopal Church.

The fun began when we were getting him dressed. Katie insisted that he try on the bonnet that came with his outfit, and it was just too cute to take off! He rejected every hat we tried on him this winter, but he didn't seem to mind this one!

Charlie napped up until the big moment but woke in a great mood (as usual). He smiled every time Father Ray Hanna poured water on his head and charmed the congregation with ease.

 

While Charlie couldn't fit into the family christening gown (Katie was the latest to wear it in her christening), it was particularly meaningful that we were able to welcome him into the church at Trinity Episcopal in Mt. Airy, the Fawcett family's church for generations.

Katie was so excited for the day to arrive, and Ray was great about asking for her help in baptizing her brother by pouring the water and holding the towel. When he introduced Charlie to parishioners afterwards, the proud big sister was at his heels the whole time.

We were thrilled to have Anne's great friend from Philadelphia, Sarah Ferone, to be there with us as Charlie's godmother and Sriyesh's brother Priyesh as godfather.

We finished with a feast hosted by Anne's parents at their home near the church. Many thanks to all of our wonderful family and friends for making this a special day and to Anne's dad for the beautiful photos during the service!

Sweeter than our Easter candy...

We had the cutest little bunnies in town this Easter, even if I'm a little late posting their photos.

We were excited to have Katie join in the photos this time. At four and a half (a big distinction for her), she is spunky and full of life.

 

She loves to make up songs and has a knack for rhyming on the spot, a skill that seemed easy until I recently tried to make up a song with her.

Katie is learning to tumble in classes at Little Gym, and she recently performed her second Indian dance. Although she didn't know what the words to the song meant, she learned them all and loved singing while she danced. She also had a great time getting dressed up with necklaces, jingling anklets, bangle bracelets and even jewelry in her hair. Click here for a video of her dance today.

Katie continues to be Charlie's greatest friend. The best part of my day is when Charlie and I wake her up and they share a few sweet minutes of cuddle/playtime. I also love hearing her sing to him in the baby monitor. He loves to watch and play with Katie, and she can always get a giggle by dancing or jumping up and down for him.

 

Charlie, meanwhile, continues to be his sweet, happy little self. He and I recently started a mommy and me class at Little Gym, and it was such fun to see his joy at being around the other babies. Plus, it was a great workout for both of us!
 

 

One last note for this month - boy clothes are so much fun! We've had a blast dressing him up in cute little outfits, thanks to our generous family and friends. Katie picks his clothes each day, and while this can be hit or miss, he easily charms us, whatever he's wearing.

Charlie is 1/4 year old!

The past four weeks have been big for Charlie, who's also getting bigger himself. At three months, he weighs in at 12 lbs, 10 oz. and 24.5 inches long. We just moved him into 3-6 month clothes, and it's fun to have a fresh new wardrobe with a little more room! Katie just celebrated her half-birthday and was interested to hear that her brother is now one-quarter of a year old.

Much to our delight -- and his -- Charlie has started laughing. His first laugh came playing peek-a-boo with Anne. We haven't found anything that reliably makes him giggle yet, but past activities that have tickled his funny bone have included Katie blowing on the monsters on his mobile and Sriyesh pulling on the vibrating frog attached to his car seat. Sriyesh caught the latter on the video below:

Charlie also has increasing dexterity with his hands. Rather than swatting at the animals on his car seat or bouncy chair, he can now touch and hold them in his hands, and he spends a lot of time examining them and trying to get them to his mouth. He also likes taking his pacifier out of his mouth - if only we could teach him to put it back in!

Finally, he's figuring out tummy time. Once Anne showed him what he was supposed to do by lifting his shoulders, he's been a champ and gains more strength every time. What's funny, though, is that usually he chooses not to push up on his arms, but instead to lift his arms off the mat and look around like he's flying.

Katie, meanwhile, is still enamored of her little brother and is ready for more little siblings. She prayed for Charlie and takes full credit for him. She recently asked when Charlie would be a big brother, and I told her that it would only be if we had another baby, which wasn't likely. She grinned and said, "Not if I have anything to do with it! You and Daddy have to hope that I forget to pray for another baby." Fingers crossed!

A few more photos from our three-month-photo shoot today:

Our smiley boy at two months

Charlie continues to charm us with his sweet and laid-back personality and sunny disposition. He has become quite a little smiler, and his two-month photo shoot was a delight.

 

 

He recently has let us hear a few laughs, as well. Our new goal is to figure out new and replicable ways of making him giggle - what a wonderful sound!

One of his favorite people to smile at is his big sister; he's incredibly patient with all of her affection. She asked me yesterday if Charlie is the cutest baby in town - she sure thinks so! This is her favorite picture from this month.

Katie had her two-month pictures in this little overall outfit (see them here), and it was neat to do a photo shoot of Charlie in the same outfit. They still have quite a resemblance, something Katie is very proud of.