Many Manny happenings

Since Manny totally missed out on the birthday post (too busy with his cutey rest), I figure that I owe him one. So, here you go, Manny, this post is (almost) just for you.

Manny is doing much better with tummy time. He's pushing up on his arms, rolling from tummy to back, and hunching up with his tush in the air in hopes of crawling one day. I have a feeling that Mr. Moo is going to be even more on-the-go than Jonah is. Watch out!

Here he is: Mr. Stiff, a.k.a. SuperManny. It's funny to have a board baby.
Manny has recently discovered a passion for books. He was fussing the other day when I showed him this book, attempting to distract him. It worked completely! He quieted down and spent at least the next three minutes looking at "Baby Faces" and turning the pages. Lest you scoff at three minutes, know that three minutes is a loooooong time in baby-time. It was also long enough for Gabe to find the camera and capture Manny's First Story Time.
Another first: rice cereal. This first attempt was wildly unsuccessful, but that had more to do with me trying to feed Manny immediately after a nap in place of nursing him first than with him disliking the food...
...as you can see from this picture.
Unfortunately, we have since discovered that Manny is allergic to rice cereal. Here's a picture of his face when I told him, "No more rice cereal for you, Manny Moo." The heartbreak!
I'm actually quite discouraged that Manny is allergic to rice cereal. It is supposed to be the least allergenic food for babies, I guess, and so I can't help but think that if he is allergic to rice cereal, he is going to be allergic to everything. I will be calling his doctor tomorrow to see what our next step is: testing, exclusive nursing, different foods? Gabriel and I don't have an allergy between us, and so to end up with two allergic sons strikes us as quite odd. In addition, Manny is practically begging for food. He's been nursing more frequently as of late, as well as waking up during the night after he'd been sleeping thru the night for a few weeks. The poor kid is 5 1/2 months and around 16 pounds, so it's no wonder that he wants some solid chow! We're working on it, buddy.

**Update: Manny's doctor returned my call this morning: to an allergist with Manny! Since food allergies can be serious, nothing solid for Manny until we see the allergist. Of course, we have to wait for the referral to be approved by our HMO, and then for the appointment. Please pray that this happens smoothly and rapidly; Manny's chubby cheeks depend on it!**

Manny has also been busy charming an array of visitors, including Josh, a long-lost friend from my hometown who couldn't stop laughing at Manny's face-breaking smile, and Rachel, who was one of the first to meet Manny after he was born. Both gushed appropriately over how cute Manny is, which means that we invited them to come back again.

Jonah didn't want to sit by Rachel and Manny for the picture, preferring to look at his catalog. Manny has been busy watching Jonah's every move, though I try to cover his ears whenever Jonah says "No."And what has Jonah been up to these days? Practicing silly picnic-style games, evidently. I walked down the hall one day to find Jonah in the dining room trying to walk with a tennis ball between his legs. This is not something that he has seen me or Gabe doing. A child's thought process is inscrutable, is what this picture tells me.