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%)

2 Months

 

Wow, the difference between one month and two months is huge!  James has been through so much during his second month.  He met all of his great grandparents over Thanksgiving.  We couldn't get James to contain his excitement.

 His first snowfall on December 6.  Again, his enthusiasm was hard to contain, perhaps he knew the snow would melt in just a few hours.

His first bottle, which was important since his mommy went back to work.  Mommy being gone all day wasn't too big of a deal since he got to stay home with Grandma and Grandpa B for five days and McGrandma and McGrandpa for  another five days.  He undoubtedly loved the attention and enjoyed all the extra company by practicing his new favorite skill: smiling.  He gave his first real smile while he was being fed on the morning I went back to work.  It was just what I needed to get through the day!

 On the evening of the 21st, he had his two month appointment.  Little man weighed in at 10lbs. 7 oz.- that's a 4 pound increase from his birth weight!  His weight is in the 25 percentile while his head size is in the 45 percentile.  So if you think his head looks proportionally larger than his body, you are correct.  : )  The appointment ended with (cue the scary music) SHOTS.  He got three shots.  He only cried for about 30 seconds immediately after the shots, but later that night was crying inconsolably because his legs hurt.  We eventually got him fed and put to sleep.  Although the night was rough, he ended up being fine the next day.

All in all- he's growing and having fun!  He loves to kick at his play gym, listen to books, and watch the dogs.  Kyle and I are loving every minute with this little guy!