Byrne Baby Byrne: bust a move

Let me just say, this last month has been craaaaa-zay! Graydon has undergone what can only be described as a developmental explosion. He is doing soooo many new things and it is all JC and I can do just to keep up with the little guy. So, to recap:

First, the 6 month checkup. This checkup was mildly disappointing in that we weren't able to get an accurate weight (somebody wouldn't sit still on the scale). He appears to be somewhere between 18 and 19 lbs, as far as we can tell. 27 inches long. He seems to be in perfect health (knock on wood). He got all his shots, and was a cranky cuss for the next 4 days (ugh. He absolutely has definite reactions to the vaccines. Shot day/week is no fun in our household).

Sleep training. Sleep training was going well until shot week reared its ornery head and bit us in the ass. All our work was for naught as Graydon was feeling so crummy that he fought sleep even harder than he usually does. We had several nights where he just stood (yes, stood!) in his crib and screamed FOREVER, and both JC and I broke down and went to pick him up. It's impossible to let your own child cry it out if there's even the slightest possibilty that he's in pain. Simply impossible. So all the progress we had made went pffft. Right out the window. Currently we're trying to get back to where we were, but it's been rough. Especially now that he's standing. Tonight as I put him down, he started crying, and when I turned around at his door to wave good night, he was standing at his crib, sobbing, with his arms held out towards me. Ok, seriously? Hardest thing ever in my life to walk away. Worst. mom. ever. But I know from prior experience that picking him up and rocking him will just make him more over stimulated and take him farther from sleep, so it has to be done. But holy crap, it suuuuuucks.

Now for the fun stuff! My boy is a DEVELOPMENTAL GENIUS. That's right, I'm calling it now. In the past month (5.5 months to 6.5 months) he has accomplished the following:

-started sitting up, which was immediately followed by
-crawling, which was immediately followed by
-standing on his own, which was immediately followed by
-cruising down the side of a couch/ottoman/whatever.

The boy is SO ON THE MOVE. Prediction: he will be walking by month 9, possibly sooner. All he wants to do is move. And it's so fun, at this point, because he follows JC and I around. The other day, I put him on the floor in his bedroom and then went into the bathroom to start his bath. When I turned around, guess who was in the bathroom with me. That's right! This kid is quick. It's really fun to watch him get around. And he's so proud of himself when he gets where he wants to be. It's starting to get fun to have him around! Scandalous. but true!

Here are some pics from today:

Trying to hoist himself up...