Mack - 7 Months

I'm a little late in getting this 7 month post out but I guess it's better late than never... Around 30 weeks, a baby has the memory and cognitive ability to figure out what's going to happen next. If Mack hears the garage door open at 5:30 p.m.,he kicks his legs in anticipation of daddy's arrival home from work. When he hears me pop the lid off a baby food jar, he gets excited and squeals because he knows it's lunchtime. Mack relies on sensory input -- sounds, smells, sights -- to figure out what's going on, in part because he's such a keen observer of his surroundings, and in part because he loves repetition and routine so much that he's quick to pick up on it. I've always got to be prepared, though, for a minor meltdown if he gets it wrong. 

Mack's fine motor skills continue to grow more sophisticated. He's comfortable banging, shaking, dropping, and throwing his toys. He's even mastered quite well the use of his thumb and fingers (instead of just holding stuff in his whole palm). It takes most babies until about 12 months before they master the pincer grasp -- between thumb and pointer finger -- to pick up teeny-tiny things such as Cheerios but Mack has got it down at 7 months!

As those hand skills develop, I'm curious as to whether Mack will be right-handed or left-handed. Although some babies start to show a preference for one side as early as 3 months of age, most use both hands equally throughout the first year -- so it's not unusual for Mack to suck his left thumb one day, then uses his right hand to roll a ball the next. (Statistically, more than 70 percent of people are right-handed, although Micah's parents are both left-handed, so we'll see with Mack).

Mack is becoming quite stable on his own in a sitting position but every once in a while we still have a tumble, usually when trying to reach for something. Not quite ready to stand although he likes being pulled to an upright position.

We've got quite the vocals around the Crump house as Mack has been very excited with the pitch at which he can squeal as well and the new formation of consonants and vowels he's discovered; ba, da, and ma. Of course with the repetition of them it sounds like he's saying "mama" and "dada" though there's no actual association yet. We get excited about it anyway.

Here's a few pics from the past month:

Mack playing in the laundry basket

Mack loves his daddy

So happy

Working on the tummy time

Playing in my new pool

Sleeping

My friend Tristan