Our Sun Baby's sixth month gets off to a not-so-great start, at least as far as his mom is concerned, because Lior has to start going to daycare two days a week (top left). Oma Alie and Opa Ben babysit one day a week, Opa Tano and Oma Naatje come over another day, and Esther-Mirjam has parenting leave during the remaining day. The day Lior joins Luna at the daycare center, the two wear t-shirts that read: "I'm the big sister of Lior" and "I'm the little brother of Luna" (bottom left). Luna keeps a very watchful eye over her brother at Heyendael, making it a little less difficult for Esther-Mirjam to leave them there. While mom sheds a few tears upon leaving her little baby at the daycare center, Lior does not seem to mind going there (right).

Just before going to Heyendael, Lior finally decides to drink from the bottle. In the end, a different kind of teat, called a dental teat, is what does the trick (row below, middle). This gives Lior's grandparents an opportunity to spend some quality time with their grandson, which Oma Naatje (row below, left) and Opa Tano (row below, right) love to do. Note that the first day at Heyendael, however, Lior changes his mind about wanting to drink from the bottle, giving his mom renewed worries. Fortunately, she can put these aside when Lior decides to take the bottle during his second day there. Let us keep our fingers crossed that he continues to do so!

At Heyendael, mom learns how to wrap Lior in sheets in such a way that he does not get woken up by his arms flying around (left and right). Esther-Mirjam wishes she had known about this trick before, because it works wonderfully. Lior seems to be sleeping much deeper and longer like this. Now, if he would only sleep through the night....

Hip, Hip, Hurray! Another developmental step has been taken! Having previously mastered rolling from this tummy onto his back, Lior is now able to reverse the procedure (row below). He seems quite proud of himself in the process.

As you may have noticed, Lior smiles a lot in the pictures posted here. And this is not because his mom gets out her camera whenever he does so. Rather, Lior is very aware of his surroundings and returns every friendly smile in kind. As further evidence, you can see and hear him laugh in a video clip.
Click here to watch the clip.

Note: You can watch the clip with the free QuickTime player.
Click here to download QuickTime for Windows. (In Dutch.)
Click here to download QuickTime for MAC. (In Dutch.)
Warning: The clip file is large!

When Aafke leaves a note in Lior's guestbook that her little brother is growing too quickly for her liking, he decides that it is high time to pay her another visit. There is an additional reason for his trip to Utrecht, which is that Aafke has moved into yet another room. Aafke very proudly shows her neighbor her little brother and carries him in his Baby Björn through Utrecht. During their stroll, they pass by the Nijntje Pleintje ("Miffy Square"), where Aafke and Lior pose in front of the statue (left).

Lior has received some dreadful news, namely that his mom's dear friend Lauri has been diagnosed with breast cancer. Lior had planned to stay with Lauri during his upcoming visit to the United States. Of course, he fully understands that this will not work now, though he is still very much looking forward to seeing her then. Lauri is scheduled for surgery and subsequent treatments in a few weeks. Esther-Mirjam, Luna, and Lior send her much love.

Unable to hold two children during the weekly swimming classes, mama has asked Oma Alie to come along. That is, no hands are required when Lior floats on his mat (row above, left)! And his sister is also happy to hold him (row above, middle). Yet, she also loves to hang out on her mom's back (row above, right). Ater all the splashing in the water (left), it is time for a family shower (right).

When his big sister Sanne comes over for a visit, Lior very proudly demonstrates his newly acquired bottle feeding skills (row below, left). The two have so much fun hanging out together, that Lior falls into a deep sleep afterwards (row below, middle), in the loving arms of his sweet sister (row below, right).

At the tender age of five months, Lior is already a cover boy (right)! This is because the university magazine includes an interview with his mom. That is, Lior is hiding behind the letters on the cover.

Should you be interested, you can find the interview in Vox Magazine online. While the text is in Dutch, the pictures speak for themselves!

Lior's oldest three sisters make fun of his mom when she says it, but Esther-Mirjam continues to claim that Lior's hair is growing. And wouldn't you say that these pictures (left and right) prove her point? Indeed, pretty soon a trip to the hairdresser will be in order!

When Lior visits Apeldoorn, he is admired by papa, Sanne, and Lenneke (row above, left). Indeed, papa has decorated his house on occasion of the visit (row above, right). One wonders how Lior will be influenced by the fact that he has no fewer than five sisters. For now, it means that he gets lots of hugs and kisses (row above, middle; left and right).

Lior is a little spoiled in the sense that he often gets to hang out on people's laps. However, this means that he is not crazy about spending time in his play pen. Yet, this is important for the development of his skills. So he is slowly getting nudged to become a little more independent, which he seems to enjoy (row below).

While Lior used to fit easily onto Luna's little lap, his sister now has to move over when her brother wants to sit on the couch with her (row above, left, and right). Well, Lior is not able to sit yet, but at the speed with which he is making progress, this cannot be far off!

Hip, Hip, Hurray!
Half a year old!

It is hard to believe that our little sun baby is six months old already. At the same time, it is virtually impossible to remember what life was like before he was born. Indeed, the Sent family has settled into a very comfortable routine, partly thanks to the help of their wide circle of family and friends. When Lior visits the youth health bureau, he weighs in at 7,080 grams (roughly 15.6 US lbs) and measures 64 cm (roughly 25.2 inches). He now appears to be growing with a curve a little below average.

Lior's sixth month ends on a bit of a downbeat because the doctor at the youth health bureau notices a small asymmetry in the skin creases around his buttocks (left). This prompts mom to ask for an x-ray to determine whether Lior may have hip dysplasia. The results will come in a week. Luna comforts her little brother in front of the hospital (right), because she had the same x-rays taken as a young baby and her hips turned out to be fine. Let us hope that the same is true for Lior!