Happy 6 Months Jack!

He turned 6 months yesterday. It continues to amaze me that he is so different from his big brother. That's an understatement. In fact, I would go so far as to say that they are complete opposites. Let me give you some examples:

1. David was a docile baby content to lay there and smile. He didn't CRAWL until he was almost a year old. Jack is always in motion, flipping around, rocking, bouncing and is on the verge of crawling already! He scoots pretty well and many have witnessed him taking on the yoga "down-facing dog" position that even I find difficult.

2. David was a clean baby. I didn't understand how baby clothes could get stained or worn out. Jack, also known as geyser, spits up (or should I say gushes) his milk after all feedings, soaking all people, sheets and blankets present. I do AT LEAST 2 loads of laundry A DAY! Workers at the gym kids' center have started bringing extra clothes to work just because of him. If you visit us, I suggest you do the same.

3. David was a quiet baby, when he wasn't doing his squirrel giggle. You could barely hear his cry and it was rare. Jack's cry resembles a loud, piercing, unearthly siren call. Those who have heard it don't soon forget it. His cries go from 0 to 60 in 2.2 seconds. When he's mad, he's MAD. And he was pretty mad the first four months of life.

4. Jack is brave, while David is still very timid. We've never had to worry about David jumping into pools, falling off jungle gyms or tripping down stairs. Jack, on the other hand has flipped himself off the bed so many times that he doesn't even cry when it happens. It doesn't faze him. We're the slow parents who are still expecting the same leisures we enjoyed with David.

5. David has always and still does fear baths. He is so sure that water dripping into his eyes while his hair is being washed will mean certain death. Jack LOVES baths. He splashes, he kicks, he coos. Rich even dunked him in the pool once, and he didn't mind a bit.

6. As a baby, David hated rice cereal and consistently refused it until we gave up trying. Jack loves the stuff and can't get enough. The first time we hovered a spoonful near him, bracing ourselves for the battle, he surprised us by grabbing the spoon, shoving the cereal noisily into his mouth and swallowing with ease.

7. With David, new stages took training and patience such as nursing, using a bottle, swallowing food, rolling over. Jack handled it all like a champ. He's gotten everything the first try easily, as if he had done it all before. Except for smiling and sleeping. David dazzled us in his first few weeks of life with both, while those have taken Jack much, much longer.

There are many other examples, but you get the idea. We are learning how little control we have over these little personalities. I know you're not supposed to compare your children, but it will be fun to look back on this and see if their stark differences continue.
Most amazing of all... we love them both equally!

To celebrate Jack's 6 months of life, I made a little video I like to call
"60 Seconds with Baby Jack." Oh, and I didn't add any sound effects. What you are hearing are authentic Jack sounds.