6.5 Months

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

I am 6 1/2 months old! We went to the Dr. today and got my stats. Surprise, surprise...I am a lean, mean, growing machine! I weighed in at a whopping 15 lbs. 4 oz. Over a pound heavier than Ainsley at this age. However, compared to the rest of the boy babies in this country I fall in the 7.5 percentile. Mom and the Dr. just laughed. I am 25.75 inches tall as well. Overall, a very proportioned little boy.

I am doing lots of things and verging on serious mobility. I can sit myself up now and am working hard on the crawling. I am eating really well and especially love fruits and orange vegetables. I am not really into the green vegetables, despite mom's persistence.

August is sure to bring changes and challenges for our family as I learn to crawl. Stay tuned to see what types of things I get into and what my various achievements are in the coming month.

Getting Ready!

I am getting closer and closer to crawling! Mom got a few snap shots up of me as I got up on all fours, started rocking, and getting ready. I have really been working on my upper body strength and can't wait to be able to move around myself.

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

Ainsley keeps demonstrating to me how I should crawl. I get a lesson at least once a day. I don't think she realizes how her life will change once I get on the move. Watch out toys, here I come! Perhaps, though it will be good for both of us. We enjoy each other so much!

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

The Cabin and a Birthday

Wouldn't you know we don't have any picture's, but we went to our friend's cabin for a few days down at the lake. It was an amazing time of fellowship and firsts for all of us as a family. Our friends have the proof (pictures) but mom got in the river. Can you believe it!

I loved the river, I went in with a life jacket and loved floating and spinning. The best though, was when dad took me on the jet ski, I kept telling him to go faster. I also went tubing with my friends Ethan and Luke. Ethan held on to me tight to keep me in the tube and dad drove fast. Andrew loved hanging out in the pack n' play outside and playing with his toys. Andrew was a great baby to vacation with.

We had campfires every night. I loved the roasted marshmallows. My friend Julia and I had a slumber party up in the loft and we read stories together at bed time every night. Then, mom, dad, Andrew, and I all slept together in the same room a few nights.

While we were at the Lake, we went to Ha Ha Tonka, a state park. We saw castle ruins and my favorite the entrance to a cave. They had a gate up so we couldn't go in but there was an exit hatch for all of the bats that live in it.

It was a great time to bond as a family and we thank our friends for offering to spend this time with us and share their cabin with us. We came home on mom's birthday. Happy Birthday, mom! Having cake was a great way to end our vacation.

From The Rankin Family

Vacation at Nana's

This year mom and the kids went to Nana's for a little vacation and some quality time. It was a blast and we got to do a lot of neat things. Mom painted a bathroom and made some artwork (things she enjoys) while I got to learn how to drive a golf cart! This was my favorite part of vacation (besides riding in Nana's convertible, just to the pool down the street and back).

From The Rankin Family

One of my driving destinations was feeding the ducks. There were ducks there, but then the geese came. A lot of them! We had to be careful because geese can be aggressive, especially when they are hungry. But that was okay because it gave me a chance to work on my throwing form.

From The Rankin Family

We also went to the pool. Nana's pool and the city pool. Both were a lot of fun. At Nana's I learned how to swim with my water wings and wasn't afraid because I can finally touch the bottom in the pool. Andrew loves the water too. He liked to play in his starfish float and he even kicked his legs and splashed.

From The Rankin Family

From The Rankin Family

At the city pool, they had fountains, water slides, and places for me to jump in. I had fun at the fountains while Andrew enjoyed hanging out with Nana.

From The Rankin Family

From The Rankin Family

Mom's favorite moment though was watching me learn to play my first board game. Candyland!

From The Rankin Family

Thanks Nana and Granddad for a great time! We can't wait to do it again next summer.

Happy Man

Here's a few pictures I snapped of Andrew while he was playing with Matthew. He loves his daddy and laughs when they play together on the floor. Andrew is really working at moving to grab objects and so badly wants to crawl.

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

From Andrew Tyndale Rankin

He went to the Dr. at the end of last month. He finally surpassed Ainsley on the growth chart. They had been tracking within just a few ounces of each other and at the same height. This month however, he jumped by her by 1/2 an inch and 1/2 a pound. We have a growing boy on our hands!