Age - 4 months
Weight - 17lbs 9oz (78th percentile)
Height - 27.25in (96th percentile)
Sleeping habit - Thankfully, he's still sleeping a minimum of 8 hours. Most nights, he's in bed around 9pm and wakes between 6-7am. He usually naps for a combined total of 3-4 hours. 2 short naps, 1 long one.
Eating habits - We just started solids today! He seemed to really enjoy the carrots.
Favorite activity - He LOVES interacting with people. We can lay on the floor playing with him for hours and he'd be happy. OK, so hours may be a slight exaggeration, but you get my point. He still loves his play mat, and toys in general. Specifically the Winkel (seen below). That overpriced piece of intertwined plastic is amazing.
Cutest Moment of the Week - Eating carrots. Oh my gosh. That messy face was the cutest thing ever.
Milestones - Starting solids, sitting up on his own, rolling over. Go Caleb!!
Firsts - First Thanksgiving, road trip, hotel stay, and the list goes on and on.
Saturday, November 28, 2009
4 Month Survey
A day of firsts
Today has been an awesome day for Caleb! At his 4 month check-up, Dr.Jou gave the OK to introduce solids, so today we started. This kid LOVES carrots. He did a fantastic job with eating his first solids. After awhile, he wanted to hold the spoon himself (but mom still had to help, of course). He made a mess, but surprisingly, most of it ended up right where it was supposed to!
Another first...
Caleb finally rolled over!!! We were "practicing" rolling over earlier, and he rolled over from his tummy to his back all by himself! Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get video of it. Maybe next time. We've been working on sitting up/tripoding lately, and this past week he's really started to get the hang of it. Today he managed to sit up all by himself long enough for me to take a picture:
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
3 month survey
Tomorrow Caleb will be 3 months old!!! I'll be filling out one of these surveys every so often to track Caleb's progress. Happy early 3 month-day Caleb!
Age - 3 months
Weight - Will update later today
Height - Will update later today
Sleeping habit - He sleeps anywhere from 8-11 hours, wakes up to eat for about one hour, naps for one hour, stays awake for most of the day, naps in the late afternoon, then back to sleep!
Eating habits - Lordy, it feels like this kid eats so much! He takes anywhere from 6 to 8oz at a time. He's almost up to 40oz a day. Oh, he is a formula fed baby.
Favorite activity - Caleb really likes his Baby Einstein play mat. He's now able to grab the rattles and bring them to his mouth.
Cutest Moment of the Week - Do I have to pick just one?!?! I'd say the cutest moment is watching Caleb and Dave interact when Dave gets home from work. He likes to talk to Daddy and smiles like it's his job.
Milestones - He's sitting up with little assistance these days.
Firsts - Caleb experienced his 1st rainy day!
Monday, October 19, 2009
Friday, October 16, 2009
3 months?!?!
Next Thursday Caleb will be 3 months old. This past month has been a good one for us all. Caleb is getting more and more control over his muscles...he's getting very strong! Recently, Caleb is enjoying sitting up somewhat on his own. He fully supports his upper body now, so I just keep a hand on his tummy and he does the rest! He's also getting to the point where he sometimes doesn't want to be held. Yep. Sometimes my baby boy would rather be in his swing than in mommy's arms :( I know he's only 3 months old, but I can already see his desire for independence.
Since, I'm a proud momma, I feel like Caleb is a super smart baby, and is ahead of the curve. According to "What to Expect, The First Years", by the end of the third month, he...
Should be able to:
- On stomach, lift head up 45 degrees CHECK
- Laugh out loud CHECK
- On Stomach, lift head up 90 degrees CHECK
- Squeal in delight CHECK
- Bring both hands together CHECK
- Smile spontaneously CHECK
- Follow an object held about 6 inches above baby's face and moved 180 degrees, watching object all the way CHECK
- Hold head steady when upright CHECK
- On stomach raise chest, supported by arms CHECK
- Roll over (one way) Not quite yet...he can roll onto his side, but not all the way over.
- Grasp a rattle held to back or tops of fingers CHECK
- Pay attention to an object as small as a rasin CHECK
- Bear some weight on legs when held upright CHECK
- Reach for an object CHECK
- Keep head level with body when pulled to sitting CHECK
- Turn in the direction of a voice, particularly mommy's CHECK
- Say "ah-goo" or similar vowel-consonant combination CHECK
- Razz (make a wet razzing sound) CHECK
Not only do I think he's a smart cookie for his age, he is also getting pretty big for his age! Or, at least his clothing size indicates that. He has grown out of his 3 month clothes, and has graduated to 6 month sizes (some of which are almost too short for him already)! He has also moved up to size 2 diapers. At his last doctor's visit on October 6th, he weighed in at 13lbs, 1oz! Holy moly. This little guy is growing so quickly.
Keep an eye out for Caleb's 3 month pictures! For now, here's a little collage I put together for the month of October:
Saturday, September 26, 2009
The Significance of a Smile
Because of Caleb's potty problems, he is often in pain. He cries during most feedings because his poor tummy is so upset, and when he tries to have a bowel movement it looks like he may pop a blood vessel or something. I know that his medical problems are not severe, so to speak, and that there are many others who are worse off than him...but, my baby is still in pain, and it still breaks my heart. I felt like Caleb was miserable all the time.
A number of weeks ago, Caleb cracked his first smile. Now, I'm not talking about a "I have gas so I'm gonna smile" type of smile, this was an actual smile. Oh my gosh, this absolutely melted my heart. As the days passed Caleb started smiling more and more, then eventually they were accompanied by a giggle! I can't even describe how happy this made me to see that Caleb was happy. Actually happy. It's like he's trying to tell me "I'm OK Mommy! See, I'm smiling!" I know it may sound cheesy, but I totally live for his smiles. Caleb LOVES smiling for his grandpas! It doesn't matter what mood he's in, when Grandpa or Opa hold him, a huge grin shows up. It's the cutest thing! When he wakes up from a nap he is all smiles and giggles on his changing table. It makes getting up at the crack of dawn so worth it! This is what I'm greeted with after every nap: 
Being a parent may not be easy, but this smile makes it worth it.
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
2 month appointment
Today Caleb went for his 2 month appointment which meant shots! Poor baby cried a whole lot, but he survived and is now sleeping peacefully.
Besides the obvious potty issues, everything else looks great! He's a growing boy, and that is awesome.
Here are Caleb's 2 month stats:
11lbs, 12oz
24 inches
Head circumference: 39 inches
Background: Potty Problems
When Caleb was only a few weeks old, he started having trouble pooping. Sometimes he goes 4 days with out having a bowel movement. His doctor has determined that he's not constipated, but rather, he has a small sphincter, making it hard for the stool to pass through. Doc assured us that this is something that will get better, but in the meantime, feels like Caleb should be seen by a specialist at Valley Children's Hospital. We're in the referral process right now, so we should be getting a call from them soon.
It's obvious that this is uncomfortable for Caleb. During feedings he often cries because his tummy hurts from not being able to go to the bathroom. Doc has told us that we can give him suppositories when we see him pushing...it seems like the side affects from the suppository are almost worse than the reason for giving it. We're just playing things by ear. Hopefully things start improving in the potty area.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
2 months old!
Yep, that's right. Our baby boy is 2 months old! The cliche thing to say would be "Time has flown by so quickly!", but that's not a completely accurate statement. At times, it feels like we're living life on warp-speed, but at other times, it feels like it's been at least 6 months since he was born.
After having 8 weeks off, Dave returned to work last week. I admit, I was very nervous about being alone with the Little Guy all day, but things went well. I'm very lucky because I have my parents right next door if I were to need anything. It is so nice having that support nearby. Thanks Mom and Dad!
While I was pregnant, I would love seeing mom's shopping with their kids. I would see it and smile thinking about the day I'd be able to take my little one out shopping. Well...I've learned that Mommy and Caleb shopping trips aren't exactly easy at this stage in the game! In fact, yesterday I had a number of errands to run and decided to take Caleb with me (my mom offered to watch him, but I felt like taking on the challenge). The child was GRUMPY the whole entire time that we were out! Of course, it's not his fault, he was probably just sleepy. I made sure to stop and feed him at Starbucks before hitting the floors at Target. He ate, seemed happy, so I put him in the sling and was ready to go. Nope. That was not in Caleb's plans. He screamed bloody murder when I put him in the sling. He usually loves his sling, but yesterday he just wanted to be held. So, I did my shopping with my little baby hanging out on my shoulder. Towards the end of our shopping adventure he started crying and screaming loudly. I finished up as quickly as possible, and got the Little Guy home. I look forward to the day when he actually enjoys being out and about!
The downside to being 2 months old, is the second round of vaccinations. He has an appointment tomorrow afternoon...hopefully the shots aren't too painful :( Bottom line, our baby is growing so fast and we love him more than words can express!!!