Like Father, Like Son

 

 

Flying baby

Sunny Fall Evening

It was warm and sunny this evening, so we went on a brief walk outside.  Elias wanted to ride in the Beco, so we thought it was a good opportunity to try out the new drool/suck pads that I made him.  When he falls asleep in the Beco, his face rests on the hard buckles. When he is awake, he likes to suck on the buckles.  To overcome both of these problems, I made some pads to wrap around the buckles that have flannel on the outside so that they are soft against his face and terry cloth on the inside so that they are absorbent.  Elias loves looking at plaid patterns right now so that is an extra bonus.  Once again, Granny's sewing machine came in very handy as I worked on this project.  I think they are going to work very well!

My High Chair

Momma thought this would be a fun place for me to sit and play.  Don't I look like such a big boy?!  Thanks, Grandma and Grandpa Angell for my high chair!

 

 

4 1/2 months old!

4 Months Old

Here's a summary of the last month.  These posts keep getting longer and longer, but it just feels like each month his skills and personality explode exponentially.

Likes:

• When Daddy kisses his cheeks.  This almost always brings a smile to his face, and towards the end of the month, it also brought some of his biggest laughs.
• Baths - this is back on the "Likes" list after being on the "Dislikes" list last month.  Momma figured out he didn't like the mesh on his bath seat so she put a warm, wet towel on his bath seat, and he was a happy bather again!
• Sucking on his hands
• His stroller is also back on the "Likes" list. After Elias began tolerating his carseat in the car, we started with some short rides in the stroller and gradually increased them.  By the end of the month, we were taking nightly walks with the stroller rather than the Beco.
• The Beco still makes the list though.  He still loves riding in it!
• Jumperoo - Momma tried this out even though she was sure he was too small for it.  He surprised her by immediately playing with the toys on the front tray, knowing exactly how to manipulate them.
• Playing in his crib - since he doesn't sleep in it yet, we put him in it a couple of times a day to play so that he's comfortable in there.
• Blankets, actually any fabric - he loves holding it in his hands and playing with it.  We are guessing he will end up with a special blanket when he is a little older.
• Songs - when Momma starts singing a familiar song, Elias immediately starts smiling and often will "sing" along.
• Playing with toys - lastmonth he started to grasp his toys, but this month he can really manipulate them.  I think this has helped immensely with car and stroller rides since he can entertain himself for a quite a while now.  This was also the month where everything started going in his mouth.
• Baby Einstein tunes
• Cuddling - he loves to relax on my lap or to just be held.  Sometimes when I'm holding him, he'll take a break from chatting and playing and just rest his head on my chest for a minute to snuggle.
• His paci - he started relying on it this month and "asking" for it in the middle of the night.

Dislikes:

• Loud noises - he still startles very easily especially when tired.
• Large groups of people - these seem to overwhelm him.  He does not want Momma or Daddy to set him down if there are too many people around.
• Getting out of the bath tub (the temperature change doesn't seem to bother him, rather he seems upset that bath time is over).
• Quick transitions - we've learned that Daddy can't come home with work and just take over with a nap or a diaper change.  It's too upsetting.  Daddy has to slowly ease into whatever activity Momma and Baby are doing.
• Bottles - we need to get back into the habit of trying one of these every once in a while.

Look at those sweet cheeks!!

Big Moments:

• Learned to ride in his carseat.  Family outings are so much easier now!
• First family photos
• Almost rolled from back to front.  He is SO close!
• Started playing on his tummy and spending most of his awake time on his belly.
• Learned to nap in his bed!!  This was HUGE this month.  More on this later. 
• Learned to put himself to sleep.
• Significantly increased head control - this month he started holding his head up when I carried him.  He also started putting his arms around my shoulders and neck when he was being held - so sweet!
• First belly laughs
• Smiles became much more frequent and intentional
• "Talking" increased significantly.  If he is awake, he is chatting :).  His talking became much louder and higher pitched towards the end of the month.

Little Man changed so much this month and as the month came to an end, he was making so many huge leaps in his abilities that I can't wait to see what next month holds.  This was the month that he transitioned from being a newborn baby to a very interactive little guy.  When this month started, I felt like he was my little baby who I got to take care of during the day.  As we head into next month, I really feel like he's my little man who I get to chat and laugh with throughout the day. 

Last month he became more aware of his surroundings and seemed to get overwhelmed by many different things, but this month he became more comfortable with them again (i.e. his carseat, his stroller).  He gained some independence this month, although he is still quite the Momma's boy. :)

He finally got on a schedule towards the end of this month.  At the beginning of the month he was alternating playing for an hour and napping for an hour throughout the day.  He would only nap if his Momma bounced him to sleep and held him for the rest of the nap (and it had to be his Momma).  All of a sudden around week 14, he would cry, arch his back and throw his head back when he got tired.  In retrospect, I think he was telling me that he wasn't a newborn anymore, but that he was getting older and could handle longer awake time and fewer, but longer naps during the day.  One day, I put him in his bed to swaddle him to see if that would help, and he calmed down and closed his eyes.  That was my cue.  After weeks of reading books on sleep, I jumped in to nap training and knew that there was no turning back.  He really was ready for it, and even though it was a lot of work for all of us, he caught on pretty quickly.  Within a week and a half, he was starting to go down awake without crying and put himself to sleep.  His naps started getting longer as well.  By the end of the month he was taking a 2 hour nap in the morning and afternoon and a 30 min cat nap (although this was still hit or miss).  His awake times increased to an 1 hr 30 or 40 min. 

Here is his schedule at the end of this month (sorry this might be a bit tedious for others to read, but it's for me to remember what our days are like right now):

7:30 wake up
7:30-7:50 Daddy does diaper change and gets him dressed
7:50-8:00 eat
8:00-9:00 play
9:00-11:00 morning nap
11:00-11:30 play
11:30-11:45 eat
11:45-12:45 play
12:45-3:00 nap
3:00-3:15 eat
3:15-4:45 play
4:45-5:15 cat nap (this is tricky, he doesn't always take this nap)
5:15-6:30 family walk (if he didn't take the cat nap, we hope he sleeps during this time)
6:45 Daddy bathes you and gets you into your jammies
7:00 eat
7:15 Daddy puts you to bed and you usually fall asleep between 7:30 and 8:00
You still eat twice at night

Of course, not every day goes exactly like this and our days fluctuate a little but this gives a pretty good representation of a typical day.

 

Little Man, you are such a joy, and you really are such a happy baby.  You smile so easily and have started smiling if you see me smiling or laughing.  Sometimes you will look up and see me watching you and flash me the friendliest smile.  Although you are a chatty, giggly little man when we are at home, when we are out and about you are a quiet observer, specifically studying the new people we encounter.  Even at home you are keenly aware of the sounds and activity occurring around you.  I think you have such a sweet, gentle spirit.  I know that this, along with your joy, sensitivity to people and contentedness will be great qualities for you as you grow.  We are so proud of the little man you are becoming.

Great-Great-Aunt Lil

Last weekend we made the trip to Chicago so that Elias could meet his 93-year-old Great-Great-Aunt Lil.  My mom had warned us that she probably would not want to hold him, which I thought was fine because he is usually pretty wary to be held by unfamiliar people.  However, shortly after we arrived, without saying anything, Aunt Lil slowly made her way to her chair and lowered herself down.  She pushed away her walker, patted her lap, and said, "Put him on my lap!"  So I did, and Elias went right to her.

Aunt Lil has severe arthritis, so she doesn't have a lot of strength in her arms, but I could tell she was holding him as tightly as she could.  At one point, I noticed she wasn't talking as much because it seemed to be taking all her concentration to make sure she had a good grip on him.

Elias was such a content little man. He seemed so at ease just hanging out with his Great-Great-Aunt.

 

Elias flashed her so many smiles that Aunt Lil kept saying, "He must think my face looks funny!"  She would say, "Hi Baby!" and his face would light up.

 

 

Aunt Lil told us several times that he had the brightest eyes of any baby she had ever seen.  She also thought he had the cutest pug nose! :)  She seemed proud of how much hair he had, telling us that her sister's great-great-grandchild is almost two and doesn't have nearly as much hair as he does.

 

He grabbed onto her hand, and she couldn't believe how strong he is!  

 

He's our Little Man that is so full of joy, and I really think he brought a lot of joy to his Great-Great-Aunt Lil.

The McCarts

This past weekend we stayed with one of Conor's roommates and his wife near Chicago.  We had a great time with them.  They are always the best hosts! :)  Elias had a great time hanging out with Brian, or "Cart" as he called him (his version of Mr. McCart) on Saturday afternoon.  He looks pretty relaxed in these pictures.

 

 



4 month appointment

Little Man had his 4 month appointment on Monday.  His appointment was during his morning nap, so we let him sleep in.  Typically, he and Momma start their day at 7:30am, but it was like he knew it was a big day, because he slept until we woke him up at 8:40.  Or maybe he thought if he just kept sleeping, we would cancel the appointment?  We had 10 min to get him up, fed and out the door, so he went in his jammies. 

 

 

Elias did so well at the appointment.  He has never minded being stripped down to a diaper, even as a tiny newborn, so he doesn't mind when we get him ready to be measured and weighed.  He only cried for a second when his Momma stepped away from him to throw away his diaper and he couldn't see her.  He also doesn't seem to mind when the doctor puts his stethoscope on him, looks in his eyes, ears or tests his strength and mobility. 

 

The only time he got upset was when the doctor tried to turn his head to the left to look in his right ear.  Little Man doesn't have any mobility issues with turning his head to the left, he just doesn't prefer it, so he decided he wasn't going to let the doctor look in that ear.  The doctor gently tried to guide his head, but Little Man held strong against the doctor. Little Man started to cry when the doctor just wouldn't give up.  Finally, the doctor got a very quick peek and told him it was done.  He commented on how strong our Little Man is :). 

 

He also did really well with his shots.  Momma had to step out of the room, but she and everyone else in the waiting room could hear a very loud, sad cry.  The receptionist gave her a sympathetic look across the room.  Elias calmed down very quickly though, and we are very thankful that he didn't have any negative reaction to his vaccines.  No fever this time around :). 

 

Here are his 4 month stats:

• Height - 25 in, 45th percentile
• Weight - 14 lbs 5 oz, 27th percentile
• Head - 17 in, 91st percentile

 

The doctor said he is a very healthy little guy.  We are going back to the doctor in 2 weeks to do another weight check.  The doctor wasn't concerned about his weight, but wants to make sure his growth rate stays consistent.  He was in the 70th percentile for weight at 6 weeks and the 60th percentile at 8 weeks, but he may just be slowing down a little now.

 

It was a very big morning for him, but we are so proud of him.  He fell asleep before our car left the parking garage and then took a 3 hour nap in his bed when we got home.

So strong!

 Look at what I can do now....

I can really push myself up!

This is fun!

But it is also hard work!

I can see SO much from up here!



I go so high, I topple over!

More Belly Laughs

Here's another video of Elias laughing because it is just so cute.  It's amazing to me how interactive our little guy is becoming.  Tonight he was fussing a little so I said held out his paci and said, "Could you hold this for me?" to see if I could distract him.  He stopped fussing, took the paci from me and stuck it in his mouth!  He's an amazing little babe!

 

 

Dancing Baby

Our Little Man loves to dance...

 

The Sweetest Voice

We are so thankful that we have such a joyful little man.  He is happy 99% of the time, and we get to hear all about it.  He "talks" and laughs pretty much nonstop these days.  It's tricky to know when he needs a nap, because he will play, laugh and chatter until Momma tells him it's nap time.  He doesn't have many sleepy cues, so I usually just go by the clock.  He typically seems so alert and happy that he doesn't seem tired, but he falls asleep pretty quickly (by himself!) once he is in bed.  Sometimes he keeps chatting while I am getting the room ready and zipping him into his sleepsuit. (He is no longer in a swaddle, but loves his Magic Merlin Sleepsuit.  I will post pics of it soon.  We call it his spacesuit.)  This video was taken shortly before his morning nap.  He crashed as soon as he hit his bed.

It gives a pretty good representation of the joyful noise that fills our house most of the time these days.  It's also what our bedroom sounded like from 2:30-4:30am last night.  Although, his daddy wasn't talking at night because he can sleep through it.  His momma on the other hand cannot :).  He was so cheerful as he played in his bed last night, talking, laughing and waving his paci all around.  That's what we get for putting him to bed in a onesie that says, "Party in my Playpen."  I think the four month wakeful period has hit our house!  Finally at 4:15am, Momma popped the paci in his mouth and held his arms down for 20 min and he fell asleep.  Needless to say, when Daddy came to wake us up at 7:30am this morning both Momma and Baby were pretty tired.

Here's another video from the other day.  I love the laugh at the beginning of it.  We are starting to hear his sweet belly laugh more often these days.  Also, notice at the 1:10 mark when he grabs Conor's nose!

 

As a funny side note, Elias seems to love his daddy's nose.  His momma has a small nose so he has never paid any attention to it, but he loves to grab his daddy's.  The other night Conor put his face close to Elias's face to comfort him, and he felt a little mouth sucking on his nose! 

Dressing for Fall Weather

Both of these photos are a little blurry, but I'm posting them since they make me smile.

One Year Later

October 6, 2012

We found out we were having a baby.

October 6, 2013

We get to hold the sweetest baby.

Last year we made chocolate chip cookies to celebrate, so tonight we're baking cookies.

Chatty Little Man

I have to film behind him or he just stares at the camera :)  It is so fun hearing all the different sounds he makes these days.  He is constantly chatting to us.

 

Wake Forest Baby

Today Elias wore a shirt that used to be his Daddy's.

His Grandma and Grandpa Angell both graduated from Wake Forest, and his Great Grandpa Angell taught there for many, many years.  I think he looked pretty cute!

Aren't I cute?!