So this is his four and a half month update, which might just be only his first or second blog update, I'm not sure. That's not to say he hasn't been doing noteworthy things! This little charmer is all smiles and babbles lately. His favorite thing is still his momma (the open-mouthed grin when he sees me! EVERY. TIME.) but his fingers and toes are a close second and third. One day, he was working so hard to get those little toes into his mouth during a diaper change. He squealed with delight when I helped him go that last quarter inch and pop one into his mouth. On another occasion, he was fussing quite angrily as I was simply holding him in my lap while doing something else. It finally dawned on me that he was irritated at not being able to reach his toes! As soon as I shifted him to where he could suck his big toe, he was again his angelic, smiling self. Adorable.
He's been rolling over for awhile...yeah, mom of the year, I know...and who knows when his first smile or first laugh were. Or the first time he grasped a toy. He can boogie all over his crib, though I'm not sure whether he does his scootching before or after he flips over onto his back. All I know is that he winds up really annoyed, and requires help to get back to his favorite little corner to sleep in.
Sleep, by the way, has been a little different for this kiddo than for our first two, but then he has experienced a whole lot more transition than either of them at this age. I'm not sure if it's related. Also, dairy sets him off and keeps him from sleeping well, so there's been that learning curve. Mostly he goes to bed around 6:30-7:00ish, and sleeps until somewhere in the ballpark of 3:00-4:00ish, when he nurses again, and then up at 6:30ish to nurse, and up for the day closer to 8:30. However. There has been SO much variation on this lately that I have to wrack my brain even to come up with what's "usual". Some days he nurses at 7:30 a.m. and then goes to sleep or stays awake, who knows.
Over the weekend, though, he ate FIVE TIMES from bedtime to morning feeding: 6:30, 8:00, 11:30ish, 3:00/4:00ish, and 6:30ish. That was two nights in a row of insanity. The third night he was super angry at bedtime, unwilling to settle, which is so unlike him (thankfully, like my first two, you can usually just chuck him into his crib after nursing and he will go to sleep on his own), so in desperation I gave him Ibuprofen. Boom. He slept til 4:00 a.m. Aha! As an experienced momma, I thought perhaps this was related to all his drooling and fist-chewing lately. Mikayla got her first two teeth at four months of age, so maybe he's an early teether too, right? But those bottom gums have been looking totally normal, when he lets me get a glance. I've been second-guessing my teething hunch, but if it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck....? So just this morning I sat down to nurse him, and as has become my custom, checked his gums. The bottom ones still look normal BUT...his top gums are the hardest, whitest, most swollenest things I've ever seen! Mommas, have you had top teeth come in first? I find this highly irregular but, apparently, possible. He's doing it his own way, I guess!
We've had him back in cloth diapers since we moved into the new place, despite flooding the basement twice with the extra rinse cycle (Finally got it figured out. No more lint trap. I am not sorry about this, as I had to climb on top of the washing machine to check and change it.). Nursing has thankfully been very easy with him, and when he is not teething he eats like clockwork at 6:30, 9:30, 12:30, 3:30, 6:30 bedtime, and once overnight. I am quite looking forward to getting back to it!
Naps are not quite like clockwork, as it depends on what time he gets up in the morning. I've been struggling with that third nap; some days he wants it, some days he pushes through until he's a cranky mess at dinner time. I usually slap dinner on the table, wolf down a few bites, and head upstairs to do his bedtime by 6:30. But other days he takes that 4:30-5:30ish nap, and bedtime isn't til a luxurious 7:00 or so. Once these two top teeth break through, we'll get a truer sense of normal, I suspect.
Developmentally, he's been on target, if not slightly ahead of the curve. At his two month appointment he was holding himself up on his arms at a four-month level. He's been picking up toys and putting them in his mouth, and can darn near get his pacifier into his mouth correctly. He LOVES his exersaucer, which is a Godsend while I am fixing a meal for the big kids or doing school with them.
Speaking of the bigs, they love their little brother so much! As I type, he is in his swing, and his siblings have been taking turns jiggling him around, cooing loudly in his face, and attempting to remove articles of clothing. I used to worry about them being gentle, and I do still keep an eye on Isaac especially, but Oliver is really pretty well adjusted to their volume level and proximity. Which is good, because it would personally drive me NUTS to have a three year old THISCLOSE to my face screeching, "Do you have a BOOGIE in your NOSE????" a hundred times in a row, in an obnoxious voice that she thinks is how you talk to babies. The biggest issue the siblings have with Oliver is when they get over-enthusiastic and pull on his arms or legs because they want a hug and a kiss. Provided he survives infancy without being dismembered, I think we will all be a very close and demonstrative family.
That is really it. Oh, at his four month check up he weighed 15 lbs 3 oz, and was 26 3/4 inches long (woooaaaaa, big baby! according to Dr. Chi). He is projected to be 6'2" and 165 lbs as an adult, very close to his dadda's young adult measurements. Weight is a little above average, whereas length is up in the 97-99%ile range. His head circumference is fine, but if you think I can remember that detail, you obviously overestimate me. He's also a quick forgiver like his siblings when it comes to vaccinations. My tough little guy!
Joel, if you're reading this, have I forgotten anything?
