This month has been one transition right after the other for you! Each day you take a little step further and further away from being a newborn baby. Dad and I even got a little sad to note that we no longer look up information about 0-3 month old babies anymore! Such a big boy.
The week before you started going to daycare last December we learned that they cannot put you in a crib with a swaddle blanket on due to State regulations. With that, we had to start weaning you from the swaddle right away. Our first attempt was to go "cold turkey" and that was a disaster, to be frank, because your startle reflex was so strong. After doing a little research we started swaddling you with one arm out and only did a full swaddle in "emergency" situations. Over the course of a few weeks we stopped doing the full swaddle altogether and just did a one armed swaddle during those "emergency" situations when your startle reflex kept you from sleep. I'm not exactly sure when we stopped any form of swaddling, but now you sleep like a champ all loose and free.
The pacifier was the next thing to go. Based on what we were reading it sounds like the pacifier is one of those things that is not a problem until it becomes a problem. We had reached that point because anytime the pacifier would fall out of your mouth (particularly if you were asleep) you'd cry pretty hard. There isn't really a way to transition off the pacifier, so we just stopped giving it to you about a week before your four month birthday. So far it seems to be okay, but there have definitely been times where I feel like you would have gone to sleep or calmed down more quickly if you'd been able to suck. We're not turning back, so hopefully you'll continue to learn to soothe yourself without a pacifier.
Usually when we go for a walk, we put you in your car seat and your car seat clips on to the stroller. Even though you can't sit up on your own just yet, you are big enough to sit right down in the regular part of the stroller now! It has a five point harness which holds you in place pretty well. If you fall asleep we can recline the stroller so you are laying all the way back. We've had some unseasonably warm weather recently and have taken you on two test drives. You seem to like having this forward facing view instead of looking back at us or up at the sky as you did in your car seat days.
The final, and probably biggest, transition is moving you out of our room and in to your crib in your nursery for nighttime sleep. It actually sort of happened out of necessity! I came down with some sort of 24 hour stomach bug, and then the next day (when I was feeling better) your Dad came down with some sort of mystery illness. In an effort to keep you from catching germs, we put you upstairs in your crib and I slept down the hall on the loveseat in your Dad's office. By the time your Dad was feeling better, I was starting to feel more comfortable with you sleeping down the hall versus right next to my side in the pack and play at night. It was a little weird to just have the monitor and no baby in our room, but I think the transition has been good for all of us. We left the pack and play up for an extra night or two just in case I changed my mind about being "ready", but on your four month birthday it came down! We've had all your stuff in our room since mid-August when we were anticipating your arrival, so it feels freeing in some respects to have our bedroom back to being just me and Dad. Also, it's been kind of nice to not tiptoe around and whisper when we're getting ready for bed since we don't have to worry about waking you up!
During the day you are such a fun, sweet, and smiley baby. We've had lots of people comment about how happy you are, and we get a kick out of seeing you just sit around and smile. Nighttime, however, you turn in to a completely different baby. It can take anywhere from one to four hours for us to get you to sleep at night, and nothing we seem to do makes a difference. You cry and cry and cry and we just keep taking turns trying to calm you down. We try every sort of soothing known to mankind, have tried early and late bedtimes, consistent routines, and have read every single suggestion the internet has to offer. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't, and most of the time you just end up wearing yourself out. Hopefully something will "click" soon and you will grow out of this phase. It's really not fun for any of us!
(This kind of sleeping is bliss!)
We talked to the pediatrician and she had one or two suggestions we haven't tried (starting rice cereal and occasional Tylenol), but for the most part it sounds like we just have to wait for you to grow out of this fussy period. The good part is that you don't really wake-up once you're asleep for the night. If you do wake-up, it's usually just for five or ten minutes and most of the time you can put yourself back to sleep. On occasion, you do need a bit of assistance, but a hand on your belly and stroking your hair seems to do the trick. I'd say you stay asleep nine to ten hours a night on average (according to the pediatrician, the goal is to get you to sleep for twelve straight hours at night).
On a more fun note, you're big and sturdy enough now that I can easily walk around carrying you on my hip with one arm. I love how carrying a baby around the house while doing other things feels like my new normal (because it is, I suppose!). I know it's silly, but this one little thing really makes me feel like a mom. You've started to hang on to my arm while we are walking and you really pay attention to what I am doing which is also fun.
Speaking of hanging on, it's pretty much your new favorite thing to do and it makes your Dad and I laugh every time. If we put you in anything with sides you'll reach out and hang on to the edges. Car seat, bouncy seat, stroller, swing, changing pad, you name it and your little hands are gripped tight. I'm pretty cautious (your Dad teases me about holding the railing when I walk down stairs, for example) so we've joked that you inherited my cautious nature.
You continue to have one heck of an appetite and nursing is still going strong. You drink nine bottles a week at daycare plus an occasional one at home if I am out and Dad needs to feed you, but the rest of the time you nurse. Sometimes you'll take a quick break and look up at me with a huge smile on your face as though you're saying, "Wow! Thanks, Mom! This is delicious!" It makes me laugh every time and feels like it's our own little joke. Also, if your Dad and I are talking while you are nursing, sometimes you will look up and try and see where your Dad is and look at me as though you want to contribute to the conversation. One time you looked at me with a curious face when you couldn't figure out where Dad's voice was coming from and I said something like, "Mind your own business and keep eating, buddy!" and you gave me a big grin with a sparkle in your eye and went back to eating. We get such a kick out of it. You really are starting to develop your own personality!
(Now you are really playing with toys!)
You have turned in to a super drool-y baby and you almost always have a hand or toy in your mouth. We're constantly grabbing a burp cloth to dry off your face and hands, and often have to dry ourselves off after we get "slimed" by your little fist. Sometimes you just suck on your hand or thumb, but other times you hold and rub your tongue. It's gross, but cute at the same time.
Here are some facts about you as a four month old boy:
New Nicknames: Pumpkin, Little Guy, Sweet Boy
Loves: "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star", hanging on to whoever is holding you or the edge of whatever you are sitting on, smiling, playing with water during baths, toy keys, putting everything in your mouth
Dislikes: Going to sleep, getting drool wiped off your face (sometimes you're fine with this, though)
Height: 25 inches (51st percentile)
Weight: 14 lb. 8 oz. (47th percentile)
Head Circumference: 16.5 inches (39th percentile)
Clothing Size: 3 month, 3-6 month, Size 2 diapers
As you can see from your "stats" you are pretty average as far as size goes. Of course, we think you're above average in every other way. :-) You get more and more fun every day, and we can't wait to see what you have in store for us in the coming weeks!
Mom
