*Milestone!*

So as you all know, Robbie (aka Meatball) is not a small child.  He's long and always has been - and now that he's eating solids, he only continues to grow faster and faster.  I would be a little nervous about just how quickly he's growing, if it weren't for my good friend Jen in Florida whose little boy is built the same way Robbie is.  Thankfully her little guy, Tyler, is a few months ahead of Robbie - so I am always comparing notes with her.  "Did Tyler gobble down his first-ever bowl of cereal as if you had been starving him all this time?"  "Did Tyler practically skip the 6 month clothes and head straight for 9 month clothing?"

And today, while on the phone with Jen... "Did Tyler last longer than 6 months in his infant carrier?!"

Because Robbie did not!

Today I installed Robbie's big-boy car seat. He's 5 days shy of his 6 month birthday. He is pushing 30 inches long already, and I have got to believe that he's closing in on 30 lbs too.  And babies officially outgrow their car seats (at least the Chico one that I have) at 1 year old or 30 inches/3o lbs, whichever comes first.  Honestly, do babies last an entire year in these things?!  I don't believe it.

I have to say, I'm not sad in the least.  Would you be, if you had to haul around a quarter of your own body weight dangling from a plastic bucket on your right arm wherever you wanted to go?  I was literally starting to have strange muscle tingles at night as I lay in bed - along my spine, in my shoulder...  I was even beginning to give those little Gerber plastic containers of baby food the evil eye, knowing that their contents would stick to my baby's insides like glue, weighing him down even more.  A mommy shouldn't have to think bad thoughts towards innocent pureed fruit just because it contributes to her baby's necessary growth.  Plus, the carrier was starting to have its own 'funk' from all the lovely spit up I wasn't able to wipe out, and maybe from a blowout diaper or two somewhere along the way.  Gross.

Dear Infant Carrier,

Thank you for safely transporting our precious baby home from the hospital, around Wheaton's Town Square as I attempted to re-learn how to shop (with a baby - tricky), to the Lake House all summer, and through the grocery store (even though you took up all my space inside the cart and I had to strategically balance food items all around my sleeping baby, attracting dirty looks from old ladies).   

Love, Me.

So here is Robbie this afternoon, trying out his newly installed Britax Boulevard!

Gosh, he looks like a little baby again!!!

I wasn't sure if he'd like it, but he caressed the soft velvet along the inside of the seat while we ran errands today (I was watching him in my mirrors) and even talked to it.  I have never wished I had a video camera more in my life.  I was laughing so hard!  He loves those little flaps by the sides of his head.

(Don't worry - if you can't tell, the seat is still rear-facing.  He doesn't get to face forward until he is actually 1 year old, regardless of how big he gets.)

In other news, the home repairs seem to be endless (although we're not complaining - just amazed).  Our dryer wasn't drying clothes properly, so we had someone come out and look at it.  It turns out our dryer duct was all backed up with lint.  

Based on the amount that was extracted, we think we had lint from the '80's.  No joke.  About 2 gallons was removed, the worker said.   I had to take a picture.

I can't believe I'm blogging about dryer lint.  I promise we are not as boring as dryer lint.  It's just that dryer lint in large quantities... it's fascinating...