Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Four-month-old Newt!

Well, he really doesn’t look like a newt anymore mostly because the only time he really gets mad (and red) is when he’s hungry. And speaking of hunger, he’s up to six ounces at each feeding now. Not including the time while he’s sleeping overnight, he can go anywhere from 3-5 hours in between bottles. I’m sure all this will improve after his four-month appointment (on April 3) because he’ll then be able to mix in some rice cereal! He’s going to love that!

He’s been a GREAT sleeper over the last month. We’ll give him his last bottle around 10:30/11 p.m., I’ll rock him and then he’ll sleep until AT LEAST 7 a.m. most of the time. Every once in a while he’ll wake up a little bit earlier but, for the most part, we’re very happy parents. Our next step will be to keep pushing back the time of the last bottle so we can get both of the boys to bed at 9 p.m. (and have a portion of our nights free again). I don’t want to rush him but he’s already growing like a weed so maybe it’s OK. I don’t know.

The big deal lately has been his giggle. My Mom got him to laugh for the first time last Wednesday (March 18) when he was playing with his activity gym. She would hide behind the mirror and then pop out at him and he thought this was all kinds of hilarious. She said it was a big belly laugh and I’m SO SAD I missed it. I did re-create the experience later in the night and he did giggle for me but it wasn’t a big belly laugh. Kevin then got him giggling a bit Sunday night and Harmon made him giggle – by laughing himself – Monday night.

Ah, yes, Harmon. He loves his little brother (and is a great helper) and Simon is a HUGE fan of his! Simon just watches everything Harmon does and loves to be everywhere he is, especially if it involves reading or playing with cars or balls. You can just see that they’re going to have a great time together very soon!

Other quick things happening – Simon’s eyes have YET to change. They are still grayish blue and so pretty. I know they will change and end up being beautiful just like Harmon’s eyes but it’s just odd to see that they haven’t changed already (like Harmon’s did). While Simon is pretty much aware of his arms and hands now, his feet, legs and knees are totally blowing his mind. When you lay him on his changing pad (his favorite place in the world), he can ALMOST get them. Pretty soon, he’ll have those feet in his mouth! He’s still not interested in holding his bottle but he’ll claw the shit out of your hand while you hold it. But, two things he IS interested in holding are his duck blanket and his Peter Rabbit blanket. I didn’t use these much with Harmon but Simon likes to grab so he loves them.

Despite many attempts, he hasn’t rolled over just yet. Again, I’m not rushing him BUT, once he call roll from belly to back – both ways – he can sleep on his tummy at school. And, he sleeps SO much better on his tummy. School is going really well. It’s nice to drop him off and have teachers fighting over who gets to hold him! When Harmon was at KidZone, he was always the little rock star and we weren’t sure how it would go with Simon at Annie’s. But, it’s gone much the same way so far. The teachers tell us that he’s so good and easy going and, surprise, only really fusses when he’s hungry. We’re very happy with the school situation and it makes it even better when Harmon can come up and visit Simon every once in a while.

So, four months have gone by and it seems like four days! We feel so lucky and blessed to have such strong, smart, handsome boys and we TRY to enjoy every minute with them!