Four Months {Rory}

My goodness. Four months old.

We couldn’t get an appointment with Dr. N until August, but here are Rory’s unofficial stats: he weighs 16 pounds, measures 25 inches long, and his head is just under 17 inches around.

Here’s what I want to remember about this past month:

• He’s eating well, taking 4-5 ounces at each feeding at the beginning of the month and increasing to 6 or so at the end. He recognizes his bottles now. He eats six times a day, so he’s getting about 35 ounces total. However, he doesn’t always keep everything in his stomach. Yes, he is still spitting up. Joy.
• He takes his bottles straight out of the fridge. The cold must get to him sometimes because his whole body shivers every now and then.
• We started him on rice cereal last Wednesday (post with lots of pics coming soon) per Dr. N’s orders. He gets 1-2 tablespoons once a day for a week, then twice a day, then three times a day. He is actually doing really well with the cereal; he seemed to pick up on how to eat from a spoon faster than Riley did. And we’re hoping the more cereal he eats the less he spits up, but we’ll see if that happens.
• His sleep habits are steadily improving. Putting him down for a nap once he’s been awake for close to two hours is working, although he is starting to fight me a bit more lately. (He insists on burying his head in the armpit of whoever is holding him. Silly kid.) He naps for about 45 minutes in the morning and then his others range in length.
• As for nighttime sleep, that’s getting better too. We’re trying to put him down for the night earlier than we had been, and it’s working pretty well. Although, the first night we did so (last Wednesday), he woke up after only a half hour and we decided to let him cry it out. He cried for 40 minutes and then he slept all night long. The second night he didn’t cry at all. But then Friday night he was up every couple of hours or so. And the game continues…..
• He is still loving his baths and is starting to really move around in his little bathtub, kicking his legs and waving his arms.
• He still has cradle cap, but it’s not too bad. He also lost a lot of hair on the sides of his head, so he very much looks like he has a mohawk.
• He is starting to suck on his hands and also notice his feet. He is grasping really well with his hands and also is reaching for things. He has a good grip, too, and he gets a hold of his paci, bib, and burp cloth all the time.
• He is starting to roll onto his side but hasn’t rolled all the way yet. He is also pushing himself with his feet when laying on his back. It’s always interesting to see how far he’s moved himself when I have him on his playmat.
• He is improving with tummy time, although I don’t do it as much as I should because of the spit up issue. We have also put him in the Bumbo more, and he seems to like it.
• He loves watching fans spin and looking at geometric patterned things (i.e. striped towels or polka dotted shirts).
• He is ticklish on his sides.
• He is a tv junkie, just like his brother was (and still is).
• He is incredibly vocal and so very smiley these days. I cannot wait to hear him laugh out loud.

Four months old!