Almost 8 months old.

I've been out of touch on this blog for a while. We've had some good times over the last several weeks. I will try real quick to chronicle some of the bigger items, then some photos will tell the rest of the stories.

When I last wrote, James was just past 5 months old. He is now approaching 8 months old, on October 5th. He is eating solid food like a champ, sleeping 10-12 hours a night (most nights), rolling over from his back to stomach and back again, sucking his thumb, and talking up a storm (lots of "ba," "ma," and "da"). A couple of weeks ago, he began reliably sitting up on his own, though he needs some help to get to that position. He seems to love just sitting around and playing with toys, to a point.

James has also begun to exhibit a bit of good ol' baby attitude. He has learned how to get our attention and get what he wants, so he has been asserting his will more and more. As I am sure many new parents experience, this is a rock-and-hard-place spot to be in, since we are now accustomed to meeting his every need, but not sure whether all of his demands are really needs. Overall, he is a fabulously happy and settled baby, but he definitely has his moments. These moments are usually quickly forgotten as soon as you see him with his butt in the air, sleeping like an angel; or when he looks in my eyes, says "da" and smiles like he knows who I am.

Probably one of the biggest changes going on in our lives is a pending move from Greensboro to Laurinburg, NC. I have taken on some new responsibilities at work and, as a result, was asked to relocate to our headquarters office. We will miss our lives in Greensboro - especially our friends and our church - but know that God will lead us in the right direction.

Last note - if you are reading this blog, please add a comment or send me an email (deaconjeff@yahoo.com) some time, just to let me know that others are looking at this. That will help to encourage me to keep this up.

Check out the photos to come!