4 Month Update!
Stats:
75th percentile in height and weight...16lbs 2 ounces, mainly still in size 3-6 months, size 1-2 diapers (need to move up as soon as we are done with our big box from Sams!)
Milestones:
Almost rolling over! He completely moves his body all the way over except for the last little bit so he could probably do it any day now.
Laughing- He has been doing a short giggle for weeks now, but Henry is starting to belly laugh, and I don't think I've ever heard a more precious sound in my entire life. Shaun found a spot this morning (right under his chin on his neck) that gets him to laugh just about every time. I'm very excited about this!
Hands- Starting to grab objects and check them out. Still putting his hands in his mouth every chance he gets.
Kick, Kick, Kick- Henry still loves to kick, and he can kick very hard. He has actually hurt me a couple
times.
Talking- Henry is still a very talkative baby and a good listener.
Favorites:
Music and Singing- I sing to him all of the time, and he smiles and coos every time. My favorite song to sing to him is "I've Got My Baby" by Fatih Hill (post with lyrics coming soon). I also have two songs that I've made up called "I Love My Baby" and "It's bath time or It's nap time." Henry loves music! If he is a little fussy, a little music usually makes him stop and his eyes light up.
Daddy Time- Henry LOVES his daddy. They play airplane and make silly noises. He gets a big smile on his face when Shaun gets home from work, and he follows him around the room with his eyes.
Favorite Toy- A little blue dinosaur that plays music
Sleeping and Eating:
Naps- We've been doing some major sleep training for naps (babywise) around here the past week, and I can't believe the difference it has made in our days. I never thought I would be able to let him cry it out, but he made the decision easy for me because he was crying hard while I was holding him before every nap. So I had the choice to either try to bounce and rock him to sleep every nap while he screamed or I could lay him in his crib and let him fuss a little before falling to sleep. I figured out after looking back at some babywise info and this awesome blog that Henry's awake time was too long and that he was getting overtired which was causing him to fight his sleep and only take short naps. Once I started putting him in his crib at the right time, there was much less crying and longer naps. For my records, current awake time is only an hour for the first morning nap and somewhere between an 1:15-1:30 for the rest of the day.
Night Sleep- Don't even get me started! We are experiencing the "four month sleep regression," and it hasn't been easy. Currently, I'm waking up about 3-4 times a night to comfort or feed Henry. Here is a link with more info. We will be working on this soon once we get our days straight! Henry's doctor thinks the nightwaking is Henry asking for more calories so we are also starting solids.
Eating- Henry says, "Shhhhh Mommy! I'm trying to eat here, and I want complete silence." Henry has become a very distracted eater so I'm having to feed him in silence and sometimes in a dark room.
Starting solids- We started Henry on rice cereal mixed with applesauce in a jar last night, and he LOVED it. He just kept kicking his little legs in delight. It was soooo fun! But a little sad for me because from now on I won't be his only source of food.
Summary: I can already tell that this is a great age! We are starting to get into a routine which is nice. I'm really enjoying motherhood, and I'm starting to feel a little more settled into my new role. Henry is adorable, and he needs to stop growing up so fast!
P.S. Y'all were right about Shout--it is the best at getting out poop stains! I have the best readers! And feel free to give me some advice on this nightwaking!
6 comments:
What a sweet update! :) Makes me smile to big to read about Henry! LOVE IT!
My DS was like Henry with the naps and awake time...keeping him up too long and he'd take a short nap. Again, like Henry, he would only be awake for about an hour before his morning nap, which was great for thsoe days that I need a few more winks myself...just get through the hour! LOL! But my DD is total opposite, put her to bed too early and you only get a cat nap....she needs 3 hours of awake time! Don't you wish trial and error wasn't the only way to figure this stuff out? LOL! But, so glad you are figuring out what is the best schedule for Henry!
Now, my DD is a lot like Henry with night waking. I've tried a million things and I've given up. She's 9 months old and I've decided I'm just gonna deal with it until we stop nursing at 1 year. But, what worked with DS was cluster feeding at night. Instead of ever 3 or 4 hours, whatever time spread it was for that age, he would eat like 2 1/2hours, 1 1/2 hours, then sleep for 11! It was great once we figured that out! So, he'd eat at like 3pm and instead of just one time again and 7 and then bed, we did 3pm, 5:30pm, and 7pm. I can't quite remember what age that was though...he may have been a little older than Henry. But anyway, cluster feeding regardless. Especially because often times your supply is lower towards the end of the day, so this will help him get some milk in his belly!
But I sometimes wonder if DD wakes at night sometimes, just a little, and realizes, ohh, I want mommy! Where DS would wake at night and go back to bed. Just different personalities maybe!??!?
Glad you like Shout too! :)
Oh, I'll add with DD, we've been having fluid and ear infection issues...so my newest hope is after tubes next week...we'll have a whole new sleeper! :)
So, maybe I haven't given up quite yet! :)
That Babywise blog is AWESOME! I reference it all the time!
Letting Little Bug CIO was the best thing I did for her, starting at 3.5 months old. It is hard to hear them cry but so worth it in the end when you have a well rested baby on a schedule.
There are bumps along the way and you are constantly having to change the schedule to meet baby's eating/sleeping needs. Right now I'm having a time with Little Bug in the morning because she keeps waking up early.
But doing Babywise means normally you have a happy baby on a good schedule that works for both baby and Mommy!
Glad you all are doing so well and sorry to hear about the 4 month sleep problems you're having with Henry.
I always tell myself when we are in a rough spot (like now!) that "This too shall pass!!"
great site! we've had sleep issues too & finding the right nap solution works wonders. of curse, we still get up once at night, but i've decided thatrs normal after hearing from a bunch of other blogging moms. sounds like you & henry are doing great! & he is cute as a button!
Good luck with the sleeping issues. I have no advice to offer. My first was horrible and my second started sleeping through the night on her own at 12 weeks.
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Courtney, so glad things are going well. Sounds like you are finally getting settled into some kind of routine. When this happens for me after a baby comes I begin to feel so much better.
On the night sleeping, I think the daytime routine will help. I was lucky with Charlotte - I had NO idea - she just went down, loved her crib from day one, and we really only had problems when she was sick.
Douglass Charles was another story. I did have to use a crying out method with him in the middle of the night. Email me if you want more info, but he had to learn to not need a feeding to fall asleep. After our little battle things got much better. We still sometimes have issues, but he has done so much better since my working with him.
Good luck. You are doing a great job and let me just say, you will be so grateful for establishing a schedule. This structure has been such a blessing in our home.
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