Where has my baby gone? Eli is looking more and more like a little boy these days and a lot less like the baby we brought home from the hospital. He is growing and changing so much every day. I am so glad I have the blog to preserve memories and images of him as he is getting older. It's so fun to go back and look at how much he has changed over the past four months.
Sunday night we went over to Eli's Zue-Zue's house to eat and he got to wear his first pair of overalls. Now, I know they're not traditional overalls, but khaki ones count in my book! Our weather has been crazy lately, so it was warm enough for him to wear them.
We got to Sue's and I sat Eli in the chair to take some pictures of him in his overalls. It wasn't long before Tammy (Mammy) and Uncle Clare got there to eat. Eli instantly became the center of attention and he reveled in it. He turned into a little ham and started cooing and squealing at everyone. It was so cute! I love it when he coos and squeals. I can't imagine how excited I'm going to get when he actually says words.
He remembered this place...in the background he could hear kids screaming, phones ringing, people talking about appointments, a Disney movie, that no one was watching, playing on the TV, the faint smell of Lysol, and kids walking out with Dum-Dum suckers...yep, he was at the doctor's office.
Today we went for Eli's 4 month well visit. As you can tell from his eyes in the above picture, he wasn't too sure of this place at the beginning. We got there and only had to wait a little bit before they called us to the back. While we were waiting, Eli made lots of smiley faces at his Daddy. Eli loves his Daddy! All Josh has to do is look at Eli and he will break out into the biggest toothless smile you've ever seen!
Cheesing at Daddy
When we were placed in our room, we stripped Eli down to his diaper and waited for the nurse to come get us so we could see how much he weighed. The weather may be warm outside, but it was very cold inside the doctor's office. I'm glad we brought a blanket! Josh and Eli snuggled together while we were waiting.
Smiling with Daddy
We took him to get weighed and he moved around SO much I thought he was going to bounce right off the scale. The nurse weighing him made sure she kept one hand on his at all times. He is SO ACTIVE! She went ahead and measured his head, took his temperature, and measured him to see how long he was, too. Here are his 4 months stats:
Head: 16 1/4 in. (25th percentile) Weight: 15 lbs. 1 oz. (50th-75th percentile) Length: 26 in. (90th percentile)
I was so glad that he was at least 15 lbs. For some reason, I was worried that he wasn't gaining enough weight. I hear everyone talking about how they can get their babies to take 6-7 oz. of food at a time and I am lucky if he drinks 5 oz.! Dr. Russ reassured me that he was eating just fine. He eats around 4.5-5 oz. every 3 hours (sometimes 2.5 hours) and is definitely getting enough. He's just not a big eater that's all. Dr. Russ also gave the go ahead on rice cereal and even introducing some baby food. I'm so excited about that! I guess it's the new mommy in me, but I am so excited to use a utensil other than a bottle! I got all my bowls and spoons down the other day and they are washed and ready for action! (In fact, we had some rice cereal when he got home today! My dad videoed it, so I will post that later on. It was really cute!)
Hey! I don't look at how much YOU weigh!
While Dr. Russ was in the room discussing his growth, development, feeding and sleeping schedules with us, Eli discovered the FUN paper on the exam table again. This time he went CRAZY! He was thrashing around so much and having so much fun with the paper that he tore it in half. Josh had the fun job of making sure he stayed on the table while I talked to Dr. Russ. He was so loud that several times Dr. Russ and I stopped our conversation to see what in the world he was doing! Dr. Russ was laughing so hard at my little active boy. He was having a GREAT time! (Be sure to check out the videos at the end of this post!)
Mom, can we get some of this paper for our house?
The paper makes noises when I move!
Dr. Russ won't mind if I tear some (I mean, hold some paper gently in my hands).
Wow! Who cares about shots? Just give me more paper!
After successfully SHREDDING the paper on the table, Dr. Russ pulled down a fresh, wrinkle free section and then started examining Eli. Once again, she couldn't believe how much hair he still had. (He's only lost a little in the back). She also was very impressed with how strong he was. She tried to bend his legs and he was not interested in letting her do that. He passed his tummy time test. AMEN! He held his head up so well for her. I was so proud of my baby :) She said everything looked perfect and that we didn't need to come back until he was 6 months old. The dreaded part came next....SHOTS! :( I didn't take any pictures this time. My poor heart (and the hearts of his grandmothers and so many others) just couldn't take it anymore! I hate to see my little boy hurt, but it's for his own good, which makes it a little better. He only got 2 shots today, one in each leg, and cried (of course) but was better as soon as I swooped him into my arms.
Thump, thump, thump...checking Eli's heartbeat and lungs
He's just so darn cute!
Josh and I feel so BLESSED to have this healthy, perfect little boy. He has been so much fun these past 4 months. I can't wait to see how much he is going to grow and change before his next doctor's visit.
We put together Eli's cowboy jumperoo (Thanks, Tommy!) a few weeks ago when we noticed that he seemed to prefer standing up as opposed to laying down. When we first put him in the jumperoo, he didn't really know what to do, but pretty soon his own activeness caused it to bounce up and down and a bouncer was born! At first, his feet barely grazed the ground. A few days ago when he was in it, Josh and I noticed that both feet were planted solidly on the ground. WOW! I still cannot believe how fast he is growing! He's still getting used to the jumperoo, but I think in time he is really going to love it. Next on the list of things to buy is an exersaucer. Any suggestions as to which one to buy? Leave me a comment and let me know which ones your little ones loved.
Today was a BEAUTIFUL Saturday. The weather was just simply PERFECT! Josh and I had already decided earlier in the week that we wanted to spend Saturday out in our yard and get it ready for spring and summer. Eli's Zue-Zue came over to help watch him while Josh and I worked in the yard. Last year around this time, I wasn't much help because I had just found out I was pregnant and lugging around big bags of mulch was not ideal for someone in my condition. Today I didn't have any excuse so I donned some work gloves and got to work. We pulled up all of our dead plants from last year, mowed the yard, sprayed for weeds, and I attacked the lantana with clippers to cut it back. At the end of it all, our flower bed looked really bare, but so much better without the dead plants! Now it's ready for new pretty ones :) We'll plant in a few more weeks. We want to build our beds up first to get them ready.
Since the weather was so nice outside, Eli and Zue-Zue came out to watch us for a little bit. Josh and I also let Maggie, our golden retriever, out in the front yard with us so she could get some bonding time with us. Poor thing! She's been so neglected ever since Eli came along. I've been trying to take her with Eli and I when we walk just to give her some much needed attention. Eli and Maggie have met several times before this and she has pretty much decided that she's not that interested in him right now. He, on the other hand, is so curious about this big, furry beast! He sat on his blanket and stared and stared at Maggie. I think he may be an animal lover like his Mom one day. After about 20 minutes, Eli was tired and very hungry, so he and Zue-Zue went back into the house. He ate and then took a 2 1/2 hour nap! I guess that time outside really wore him out! I can't wait until spring finally gets here so he and I can start spending more time outside. It's going to be great!
Eli checking out Maggie.
Watching Daddy and Mommy work in the yard
Checking out Maggie...again
My sweet Maggie looking up at her Daddy, who she absolutely adores!
She used to be the one I took pictures of all the time. I had to indulge her in a photo session :)
Maggie went to the doggie spa today! She had a bath, got brushed, got treated for fleas, and had her ears cleaned. She thought she was in doggie heaven!
Maggie with her most favorite toy of all...her pink ball. That's her pacifier! She carries it around with her wherever she goes :)
Today Eli turned 4 months old. WOW! I look at the number and I am just amazed that we have had this precious boy in our lives for 4 months. I say this all the time, but where has the time gone? I think back to when we first brought him home from the hospital and compare that baby to the baby I hold in my arms now and SO much has changed! He has developed his own distinct personality and I love finding out about him every day.
We go to the doctor on Tuesday for his 4 month well visit, so I don't have his height and weight stats yet, but here are some of Eli's latest accomplishments, likes, and dislikes.
Accomplishments: -Roll over from his tummy to his back (YAY!) -Hold his head up like a champ! (YAY! Tummy time is fun now!) -Grab his toes -Turn in the direction of my voice or Josh's voice -Reach and grab for an object -Sit in his BUMBO -Smile spontaneously -Coo, goo, squeal, and make lots of noises -Sleep through the night (for the most part) He goes down around 8:30 and usually wakes up around 5:30. He may wake up once every now and then, but usually goes right back to sleep.
Likes: -Mommy and Daddy are still his favorite :) -Being outside (I'm so glad it's starting to warm up here. We've been going for walks and he LOVES to stare at everything around him.) -NUK pacifier -Funny songs Mommy sings (Hokey Pokey, Skiddamarinky Dinky Dink, and Shake Your Booty-KC and the Sunshine Band- are his favorites right now) -Looking out at the world around him -Airplane on Mommy's knees -Getting his diaper changed (except for when he's really hungry, then it makes him mad) -Getting his nose sucked out with the aspirator -Snuggling with Mommy at night and Daddy in the morning -Books (Brown Bear, Polar Bear, Goodnight Moon, Goodnight Gorilla) -Baths (He is such a water boy. He loves to splash and play in the tub.) -Putting things in his mouth
Dislikes: -I really can't think of any dislikes right now. He is such a happy baby and is so content. He is such a great baby!
Josh and I are loving life as parents. Eli is so much fun! God has blessed our lives so much!
Step 1 : Secure right foot with your hands. Might prove to be more difficult than it looks because of your bulging belly and slippery skin. Hold on tight!
Step 2: Carefully align right foot with your mouth. This will test your agility and limberness. Watch out for the nose and eyes! Don't take your eyes off your foot!
Step 3: Delight in the yummy goodness that is your big toe. Suck loudly enough and you may draw your Daddy's attention and make him freak out!
Step 4: Stare in wonderment at the feat you just accomplished and make plans for when you will do it again! You have successfully found your foot! Way to go!
I am a wife to a wonderful husband, mommy to a precious little boy, and a teacher. Josh and I have been married for 12 years now and it just keeps getting better and better! Our son, Eli, came into our lives November 6, 2008. He is such a light and a joy to be around. God has blessed our lives in more ways than I can count and I am forever grateful!
Where has my baby gone? Eli is looking more and more like a little boy these days and a lot less like the baby we brought home from the hospital. He is growing and changing so much every day. I am so glad I have the blog to preserve memories and images of him as he is getting older. It's so fun to go back and look at how much he has changed over the past four months.
We got to Sue's and I sat Eli in the chair to take some pictures of him in his overalls. It wasn't long before Tammy (Mammy) and Uncle Clare got there to eat. Eli instantly became the center of attention and he reveled in it. He turned into a little ham and started cooing and squealing at everyone. It was so cute! I love it when he coos and squeals. I can't imagine how excited I'm going to get when he actually says words.
