Little Luna's seventh month gets off to a not-so-great start as far as the young lady is concerned. That is, she is now big enough to start trying some solid food. Yuk, and is this ever disgusting according to our Moon Baby! She gets to have a first bite ("Eerste Hapje") of pure pear (left). While making disapproving faces, Luna has much of the food end up on her face and bib (middle row below). She gives her mom a sad look (bottom row, left) and is not persuaded by Esther-Mirjam's demonstration (bottom row, right). Only when the first trial is over, does Luna give a thumbs up (bottom row, middle).

Luna continues to visit other babies, of which Adam is the most recent "victim." Adam's father, Niek (left), was Esther-Mirjam's high-school Dutch teacher! Luna and Adam make a very good-looking pair (right), according to their biased parents. After a while, Luna gets a little tired (bottom left) and Adam becomes a bit angry (bottom right).

Luna has added a new skill to her toolkit, which is to move from lying onto her back to lounging on her tummy (top row). After each turn, she has a triumphant look that shows how pleased she is with her accomplishment (left). Luna has also discovered her hands and loves to play with and look at them (right).

Luna experiences another hot spell, which does not seem to bother her one bit. In fact, many people comment on Luna's easy-going temperament amidst changes in her surroundings. Thanks to Uncle John, Luna gets to look ultra cool when hanging out in the garden wearing her new sunglasses. Such style in those shades! There is only one problem when it comes to Luna wearing a dress, which is that she likes to lift it to stick it in her mouth (bottom, middle). Incidentally, Luna has also mastered turning from her tummy onto her back. Such quick progress she is making. You had better hurry over if you want to see Luna while she is still a young baby!

Getting older opens up a whole array of exciting possibilities for our young lady. Now that her back is becoming stronger and stronger, she is getting better and better at sitting up (left), even on top of her mom's head (middle). And as her legs are becoming more and more muscular, Luna is getting more and more eager to stand up (right).

When Luna visits the Youth Health Bureau, she weighs in at 6960 grams (15.34 US pounds), which is just a little below average, and measures 66.5 centimeters (26.18 inches), which is exactly average. So much catching up our Moon Baby has done over the past six months! The doctor noticed only one potential problem, which is that Luna's bum appears to be slightly asymmetric. This may be a sign of hip dysplasia, so will be monitored closely. Such worries one can have about a young baby! Incidentally, the "blue spots" you may notice are nothing to worry about. They are not bruises, but Mongolian spots, which are common in dark-skinned babies. The spots are caused by a concentration of pigmented cells and usually disappear eventually.

Esther-Mirjam has yet another reunion with the women from her birthing class, giving Luna yet another opportunity to hang out with the other little ones. Luna is holding hands with Eva and leaning against Susan. She sure seems to recognize her mom's camera, with the other babies looking at their respective moms' cameras!

It is high time some of the members of Luna's family fan club are featured on the website again! Pictured are the Thursday babysitting team, consisting of Opa Ben and Oma Alie, along with their dog Tjubka (left), and the Tuesday caregivers, Oma Naatje and Opa Tano (right). They take much delight in little Luna, and vice versa. What a happy extended family Luna and her mom have!

When Esther-Mirjam and Luna visited the NIAS last month, they were too busy to take any pictures. Fortunately, a few images of them were taken by NIAS staff members. Should Esther-Mirjam confess that she spent a little extra money on the Baby Björn carrier because the more expensive one was black and red (left)? Once Luna starts eating and drinking things other than her bottle, a spread such as this may no longer be safe from her (right)! For now, it continues to be a bit of a struggle to get Luna to try some solid food. It is good to know that it will all work out in the end.

Luna suddenly seems to be making great developmental leaps and turning into an active little girl! This is evidenced by, for instance, Luna having discovered the existence of her feet and loving to play with them. She can also multi-task and play with her feet and voice at the same time. This skill will come in very handy when our young lady grows yet older!

Remember Iris? Her mom and Esther-Mirjam took birthing and pregnancy fitness classes together and now they meet up about once a month to share insights. This also gives their daughters an opportunity to play together. At first, they tug gently at each other (left), but after a while Iris starts to play rough with Luna (middle), which makes the latter very sad (right). That is, Iris's mom, Irene, probably has pictures showing Luna playing rough with her daughter! And when Luna rubs her eyes, it is a sign that she is tired. Still, it made for a good story line.

One of Luna's favorite books is Dr. Seuss's Circus McGurkus (left). Her mom has read it to Luna so often that she has memorized all the lines. As far as Luna is concerned, the best thing about the book is that she can stick it in her mouth (middle). And after all this fun, Luna falls asleep holding on tight to one of the breezy trapeezing members of the Zoom-a-Zoop Troupe from West Upper Ben-Deezing (right).

Luna's serious face.

Luna continues to share many faces, all equally adorable. How can Esther-Mirjam not be completely in love with her young daughter?

Luna's smiling face.

Luna's talking face.

Luna's sticking out her tongue face.

Luna's thumb-sucking face.

Inspired by a recent visit to a professional photographer, Esther-Mirjam takes a few pictures of Luna in her birthday suit. Such a beautiful girl Luna is, according to her biased mom!

Luna continues to make lots of visits and welcome many guests into her house. She has simply too many friends to feature all of them on her website! Two are pictured here: Tante Daphne (left) and Ome Arno (right). As you can see, Luna loves to cuddle with the former and play with the latter.

Hip, Hip, Hurray! Seven months old!

On her seventh Month Day, Luna starts to wander around when she lies on her tummy. It also takes her a while to fall into her mom's hands when she sits unsupported. Such rapid progress she continues to make!

Here come the balloons, garlands, and hat again. Luna's mom simply cannot pass by the opportunity to celebrate her baby's existence in her fulfilled life. Little Luna continues to be a very relaxed, happy, and friendly young lady. The only dark cloud consists of the possible problems with her hips. The next month will hopefully clear the clouds!