Four months

of smiles

and laughs

and tickles 

and coos

of snuggles

and kisses

and peek-a-boos

HAD to do it!

Every day with our precious son brings moments of wonderful joy along with new challenges that keep me on my toes and ever-dependant on God for the daily patience and wisdom I need to love this little guy well.  I have learned so much already in the first four months since Cameron was born and he has learned a lot too!  I am amazed at how he's taking in the world around him and am constantly entertained by the simplest things that he does--from his toothless gummy grins when he sees me after a nap or daddy coming home from work--to his big brown eyes lighting up when he laughs at me doing something silly (every mom sings and dances like that in front of their kids, right?)--or the adorable way he talks to himself in the crib or when he's starting to get tired--and the fact that he will still occasionally fall asleep on me like he did so often in the first weeks after he was born--and the list could go on...I am head over heals for him!  

We went for his four month checkup this morning and here at the latest stats:

Weight...12 pounds, 12 ounces (10%)

Length...24.5 inches (33%)

Head...16 inches (10%)

This was after I had to wake him up and undress him for the weigh in.  I imagine he's thinking something along the lines of "What just happened??  I was snoozing so nicely..."

So although he's on the small side for now, he is still very well proportioned and the doctor is happy with his growth.  I'm thankful for that!  As far as meeting milestones typical for his age, he can bear weight on his legs (has been able to for a long time now and prefers standing to sitting in your lap), he holds his head steadily, has rolled over from belly to back a half-dozen times or so, can sit alone in his "Mamas & Papas" chair, likes to blow bubbles with the extra spit he is producing from teething (hasn't done it recently, though he did have a phase where it was his thing!), can track objects and people from across the room--he will try to turn and watch the TV anytime it's on, so Dave and I usually wait until after he's in bed to catch up on our shows.  He'll also turn his head to follow our voices and/or watch what we're doing, so I spend a lot of time narrating my mundane chores: "Mommy is unloading the dishwasher.  This is a spoon.  You see the spoon?" or "Mommy WILL get this laundry put away now!"  He has also begun to notice Chewy's presence and will watch her rolling around on the floor or sitting begging for food :)  He has started to chew on his hands and is grabbing at toys (and daddy's beard), so I'm trying to be more mindful of the jewelry I wear because I know one day he could reach for an earring and do some damage!  One other thing he always enjoys is looking in the mirror.  Daddy regularly carries Cameron in his favorite "crotch hold" position and stands him up on the bathroom countertop to check himself out :)  He has also gotten lost in his reflection in the mirrored mobile on his swing.  See video below!

Here's one of him "talking" in the crib...it was the best I could get:

One of his favorite toys we like to call "Mr. Crinkles" 

because his belly sounds like it has crinkly plastic in in.  

Cam + Chewy = nonstop entertainment

One of the biggest milestones I'm celebrating is his ability to sleep up to 10 or 11 hours at night!  Most of the time, I'm getting up briefly after he's slept for around 6-8 hours, but the pediatrician said he can go without that middle of the night feeding.  Either way, I don't mind for now.  Some nights he needs that 3am snack, other nights he's fine without.

He is nursing 6-8 times a day, and I'm thinking we'll hold off on starting solids until closer to the five or six month mark--but I could change my mind on that!  I want him to get the hang of daytime napping before we add another element into the mix of things that I constantly question and theorize.  

I think that's all the updates for now, plus I've got to get this posted before he wakes up from his marathon nap...thanks for that, bud!