He's 4 Months Old!

I can hardly believe my little man is already 4 months old!  According to the scale at the doctor's, he has doubled his birth weight and is now 13 pounds.  He's still got a few more pounds to go before he catches up with his canine brother and sister.  Until then, he has our permission to ride  them around the house. :  )

Throughout the first two weeks of the month, James was coughing and had a yucky runny nose.  I kept thinking, "Should I take him to the doctor, or should I not?"  Finally, after weeks of watching James endure this cold, I took him to the doctor.  Man, it was was a downer.  Unlike the past three times when the doctor basically patted Kyle and I on the back  and said we were doing a great job, this time James was actually sick.  He ended up having a double ear infection and bronciolitis.   We went back to the doctor on Leap Day for his 4 month well-baby check up.  This appointment involved more shots and the "spreading out the vaccines" discussion... after this month it's safe to say: I don't like going to the doctor.  Weird, huh? And I had always thought the pregnancy appointments would be the most traumatic.  HA!  Shots, breathing treatments, hip checks, and ear cleanings trump all of the pregnancy appointments!   In reality, I'm thankful for doctors... blah...blah... but I still hate going. 

James slept through the night really well this month.  He went to bed around 10:00 and slept until about 6:00.  This meant we all got a full night's sleep; something so blissful which I will never take for granted again!  Since he's turned 4 months, his sleep habits have regressed- big time.  He now goes to bed around 10:30 and wakes up one or two times per night.  When he wakes up two times in a night,  the first one is always torture.  He must catch me in the middle of deep sleep because I wake up and act like a bobble head throughout the feeding.  The  room is practically spinning, and I can't wait till he's finished so I can call in the reinforcements (i.e. Kyle) to put him to sleep.

Cloth diapering is going really well- we haven't used a disposable since the beginning of January!

Little man is getting strong!  He can pull himself up from laying down if he holds on to our fingers. He also rocks tummy time, holds his head up without support, and kicks his legs like he's crawling. And, he can bench press his rattle.

This is the month when we can start introducing solids like oatmeal and various veggies.  I'm electing not to in favor of continuing to exclusively nurse because let's be honest, like I need one more thing to worry about/take on.  Some people are really excited about having their babies eat real food... me?  I can wait.  I mean, he will be eating it for the rest of his life.  I see no reason to rush.

Getting out of the house is a lofty goal I've set for us this month.  I want to get James out of  the house and doing something everyday.   Going to the library, seeing the fish at Bass Pro Shop, hiking, visiting friends, shopping at the grocery store, really doing anything outside of our house.  Just to make this goal realistic, I'm including his babysitters as a place since he gets to be social there with the other babies.

4th Month by the numbers:
Amount of teeth: 0
Amount of drool: gallons
Times rolling front to back: 3 
Snow Days: 1
Valentine's Cards sent: 5

Here's the Pinsperation for the James' valentines.

Valentine's Cards received: 2
Trips to Bass Pro Shop: 2
Clothes: 3 months
Weight: 13 lbs (25%)
Length: 25 inches  (25%)
Head: HUGE (50%)

A Visit from Cupid

Happy Valentine's Day!

3 Months: A Letter to James

 Dear James,

Wow baby, you've been having a blast this month!   You started out with Christmas and meeting so many new people. They loved you, you know. Of course they did. You are 11 lbs. of cuteness in your sweater and baby jeggings pajama jeans. The holidays were a little rough on your mommy and daddy because we just couldn't figure you out at family gatherings! Later in the evening around 9, momma would feed you, play with you, and then you'd fall asleep. You'd be passed around to grandma, grandpa, and your great aunts. Sound asleep and then... "Waaaaaah!" out-of-control crying. We'd leave the gathering with you screaming in your carseat. We'd be sad for allowing you to get to is point. I'm sorry buddy! We're new at this! We did figure out that you enter a trance when we turn on white noise on the radio. Thank goodness for that! One awesome thing: you slept through Christmas church so momma and daddy got to worship and sing carols. (mommy's favorite!)

Another of mommy's favorites is you sleeping through the night! On Christmas you slept from 11:44 to 6:32. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.   It was the perfect gift.  We all needed that sleep! 

We rang in the new year with you. You swung in your swing while we ate a delicious meal. We played with you on your gym- little kicker! Then we read books, you ate, and we all went to bed by 11. Can you believe how wild your parents are?  We're a little worried about you being a party animal when you're older.

We started talking baby talk to you is month. "Ma, ma, ma, da, da, da, James" is our favorite phrase to say to you.  (I'm only slightly offended that you smile more at the 'da, da, da' part) All of the goos and gahs, mahs and dahs have paid off- you're now talking back to us. I love watching your little mouth change shape as you start making new sounds. Your tongue moves around and you smile as you coo. It's amazing watching you develop language. 

You are sitting in our laps and looking at books when we read to you. It helps that you have better head control now- you even hate tummy time a little less these days. Can you believe it?  Your teacher (from Parents as Teachers) was impressed by your head control and hand-eye coordination.  She was so amazed that a 2.5 month old baby could look at something and decide to hit it.  Her eyes were wide as she watched you, and she told mommy and daddy, "This is really good, you know, for a 2.5 month old baby."  We just shrugged and said, "It's just what he does."  After she left, we praised you for being a genius and bought you this hat.

source

These days you eat like a champ. I can hardly believe we're a quarter of the way through nursing! It's such a part of our lives that I am not sure how to be a momma without it. Maybe this is greedy, but I love that it's time just between you and me.   You are becoming such a chunker- especially those arms! 

This past month we celebrated our first snow day together.  Mommy got up early to feed you since school hadn't been called off yet.  She sat there thinking about how great it would be to stay at home with you all day.  Then 15 minutes later daddy came in and said school was cancelled.  Mommy got her wish!  You started the day off with a bang by rolling over from front to back for the first (and only) time. We were all so excited for you!  The rest of the day was spent sleeping, kicking, eating, and reading.  It was perfect.

You mean the world to me buddy! I can't imagine loving anyone or anything as much as I love you! I look forward to spending the rest of my life watching you grow.

                                                                                    Love,
                                                                                      Mommy