Grey's World: Super Seven!

Holy moly!  This handsome little guy is 7 months already!  I know  I probably sound like every mother out there, but where does the time go?!?!  It really all seems like yesterday that we were bringing this tiny human home and now...

...there's this!

{Likes: Solids, Exersaucer, videos of himself, baths (finally!), 

being naked & watching his kitties}

{Dislikes:  getting dressed}

{Milestones Reached:  Sitting Unsupported, Clapping, & Belly Laughing}

{Parental Milestone: Surviving First Plane Ride & 

Changing a Huge, Poopy Diaper at 20K feet}

Yes, yes...you heard it correctly.  We all survived Grey's first flight!  Three cheers for the Gravelles!!  This past month was a busy one for all of us.  Grey visited with 3 out of the 4 sets of grandparents.  (More to come on that later.)  One of those visits involved us traveling to San Antonio.  Grey was a trooper given that we woke him up 3 hours early for the flight.  I was completely stressed about the TSA, but that really was the easiest part of it all.  Grey took his bottle on both "take offs" and slept through the descents.  The flight attendants on both flights were quite helpful & nice...and even announced to all passengers that Grey was having his first flight.  Can I get a round of applause???

The plane ride home was a bit of a different experience...most for Chad & I.  Grey was exhausted from not getting enough sleep for several days.  So waking him up for the crazy early flight didn't fare well.  Yep.  We were those parents with the screaming infant...in both airports.  We did manage a bit of happy time though.

Grey also experience his first...and second...Zoo visits this month.  The first was here in KC and the second was in San Antonio.  

I love that the weather is getting warmer now.  I can't wait to see what adventures this Summer holds for us!  Here's some fun shots of the past month...

Daycare Fun

Grey loves his kitties

My First True Mother's Day

My first Mother's Day has come and gone...and we all survived.  LOL.  You're probably asking yourself what the heck I'm talking about.  Well, I've been a total basket-case in the week leading up to Mother's Day...somewhat bi-polar-esque.  I went from crabby, to laughing, to bawling and...

NO, I'm not pregnant!  My emotions are sure reflective of it though.  I've been reflecting on this for a few days now, and I really can't explain my emotions.  This holiday has always been a bit emotional for me.  When I was younger, I hated having Mother's Day so close to my birthday.  When I grew older, I started to realize the meaning of Mother's Day and how lucky I was to have such strong female role models.  Then it became somewhat heartbreaking for me...a holiday that might never evolve for me as it does for other women...

until it did.  

Many of you know this, but many of you probably do not.  I've struggled with infertility issues for years.  I often wondered when I might blog about this, and it finally feels like the right time.  I also have spinal issues that I thought would complicate the pregnancy even more if I ever were to get pregnant.  So I set my sights on adoption early on.  When Chad and I were ready to add a tiny human to our family, we started researching adoption further.  For many reasons, some outside our control, it was clear that adoption wasn't the right option for us.  This was somewhat disappointing for me, as I had counted on it...planned a bit for it...at least in my head.  Now I had to reframe our future as parents.  It became even more uncertain.

After several consultations with different specialists, we decided to try and get pregnant. It took a bit over a year, lots of medication, a handful of acupuncture visits and a few IUI procedures, and we were blessed with our Gnocchi.  It was nothing short of our own little miracle.  I was lucky enough to have a fairly uneventful pregnancy and...

now I'm a mother.

Those are words that some days I never thought I would say.  I've thought about this so much recently.  I'm feel so blessed but also a bit guilty.  There are so many wonderful women struggling with infertility that deserve to have tiny humans in their lives.  It is for this reason...and my years of infertility...that I often choose not to wish someone - especially strangers - a Happy Mother's Day first.  You never know what's going on in someone else's life, so I've always been cautious. Those words can sting...but I've just now realized how wonderful they can be.

To those of you celebrating Mother's Day, I hope it was wonderful.

To those of you avoiding it, I hope you were able to spend it with someone you love...someone you can lean on for support during this emotional time.

Even though I'm now a mother, I'm finding it all still very emotional.

I'm so grateful for my little family!

Time Flies...Month 6

Total #momfail

Things got so hectic this month that I failed to post his 6 month pic until 2 days before he turns 7 months.  Talk about squeezing it in at the last minute!  So you'll get two posts full of cuteness this month.

Wasn't it just yesterday that I was laboring...or that we were bringing our Grey baby home?  Time sure does fly when you're having fun!

{17 lbs, 2 oz & 26.75 inches}

{Likes:  Solids, Mom's singing, playing peek-a-boo & kitties}

{Dislikes: getting dressed}

The most exciting this that happened in month six was the addition of solids to Grey's diet.  He has been working hard on being a supported sitter, so (along with the doc) felt that it was time.  He loves being a big boy and eating food from a spoon.  I made his first solid - sweet potatoes - from scratch.  It was quite a bit easier than I originally thought!  Since the above sweet potato massacre (pictured below), he's had avocados, carrots, peas & apples...and loved all of them!  I sure hope that he continues to be a good eater!

He's been hitting his milestones pretty regularly.  Grey is now a supported sitter, as previously mentioned, and can now roll from both tummy to back and back to tummy.  He's also such a happy boy!  We're such proud parents over the smallest of things!  Who would've thought?!

Enjoy some pics of Grey's 6th month...

Daycare Pics

Other favorites...