4 months (and one week) old!

I'm probably going to say this every month, but it's hard to believe that our little Jameston is already FOUR MONTHS OLD!! This past month he has really started to show us his personality, albeit sometimes temperable, and we are of course falling more and more in love with him with each passing day (just when we think our hearts couldn't possibly have any more room)!He makes the cutest sounds in the world, especially his big yawns and little giggles. I could listen to a soundtrack of those noises all day long! We recently found out that Jameston is ticklish, so we often exchange laughs and smiles while tickling him during a diaper/clothing change or when blowing raspberries on his feet.

We went to the pediatrician today, and his stats are:

Weight: 16 lbs., 1 oz. (75th%)

Height: 26 1/2 inches (90%)

Head: 42.5 cm (50%)

The doctor said he is "long and lean," just like his daddy! Size three diapers here we come :)

And we started rice cereal last week! Mommy was so excited to be able to supplement (and also hoping it would help him sleep better at night; more on that later in the post). With both bottle and spoon-fed, so far he seems to like it!

As you can see, most of it ended up on his bib :)

At this age Jameston loves:

• Looking in a mirror, either on his toys or throughout the houseHe just recently discovered his feet, so he'll move them about vigorously and grab onto them. We are currently playing the "sock game," as he has quickly become a pro at taking them off!

• Baby Einstein DVD's...enough said!
• His activity mat: He's enjoyed it for several months now, so we are glad we registered for it. Some of the other baby items, on the other hand, we think we could have done without!

• Putting everything he can get his hands on (even his new found feet) in his mouth! And grabbing onto everything in sight, especially mommy's hair and jewelry!
• Going on walks in his stroller or the backpack
• His bumble bee rattle and monkey chime: We catch him "talking" to them often
• Taking baths because he can kick and splash to his little heart's content

This past month has been filled with many firsts. Here are a few:

• Rolling over from stomach to back several times in his crib...yes, our little guy seems to prefer sleeping on his stomach to sleeping on his back. And he's rolled from back to side twice in the last week. We caught him in action:

• Sitting with some support and standing while holding hands (so a lot of support!)
• Moving his arms in a circle like he's pitching a softball backwards, mainly his right arm...it is so cute to watch him! Here's a short video of him in action:

• Daycare: As I mentioned in a previous post, our little guy started going to The Whistle Stop, a daycare located several blocks from our house in Rowlett, at the beginning of the month. It is a WONDERFUL, Christian-based facility that we have trusted to watch after our little angel four days a week. As I also mentioned, this transition has been difficult on all of us (but especially me), so we are still adjusting. He is in a room with nine other babies under the age of 10 months. Who knows how long it will take us to get in the swing of things, but one thing is for certain, Jameston's teachers are in love with him!
  Of course, one downfall of daycare is the likelihood of kids getting sick. And just two short weeks into his stay, Jameston got RSV. Poor little fella...he was congested and had a cough (but no fever, thank goodness!). Thanks to the virus, he had trouble eating (he would wear himself out) and sleeping. And about two weeks before he started daycare, he had a head cold. So we have spent some LONG, late nights bonding over the last month! Thankfully, he is now feeling much better,

so no more snot bubbles for the time being!

We have been blessed this past month with the addition of our niece, Aspen.

She wanted to tell him goodbye before we left Grandpa's and GG's

Enjoying some time with Daddy after workHAPPY baby boy in his Bumbo. He's come a long way in this regard over the last month!I usually sit him in it while I am cooking dinner, and he'll track me walking around the kitchen

He is getting to be so good at controlling his head/neck movements. And the doctor said he has great trunk control. What a big (drooling) boy!

The most common question we seem to be getting lately is, "How is he sleeping?" Well, we have unfortunately had a tough time in this area. Starting at about 2 months, he began sleeping in his crib like a champ (after only a couple of weeks of transitioning from a co-sleeper in our room to his nursery). He would sleep 5 or so hours, wake up to feed one time in the early a.m., and then go back to sleep for another 5 hours.

BUT with the holidays and traveling coupled with him being sick, it seems we are back to square one and he's waking up every two to three hours at night again. Because of his congestion, our pediatrician recommended we have him sleep elevated, so he was snoozing (not for long) in his bouncer up until last week. I think maybe he has developed a habit of waking up several times throughout the night, so we are in need of some serious sleep training. Don't get me wrong, we love all the time we get with him (even in the middle of the night), but mommy would LOVE to be able to sleep for a stretch longer than four hours :( We hope this quickly passes now that our little guy is feeling better! I asked Jameston what he thought about his sleep progress, and below is his reaction:

Listen hear, Mom...I'll sleep through the night when I'm good and ready!

This past weekend, Brett and I were talking about our lives now as parents and how things have changed so much in just a short amount of time. Although some days go by way too quickly, we are enjoying every minute of it. So, please bear with me as I indulge and blog about our little boy...he's the highlight of our lives!!