Five months old!

I feel like I was just writing Sam’s four month post! Time is really flying by. Every time I turn around, it seems like Sam is doing something new and getting even cuter.

Sam’s stats:

Rolls over. He can still roll over from his stomach to his back and I think he is trying to roll over from his back to his stomach. So far he is just rolling on to his side.
Found his feet. A week or so Sam discovered that he has feet. He loves to hold his feet and stare at them. He pulls off his socks and sucks on them. On more than one occasion I have picked up a sock to find it soggy with drool.

Sleeping habits. Sam is still sleeping through the night for the most part. I put him to bed between 7:30 and 8:00, feed him at 10:30 and then he sleeps until about 7:00 or 7:30. He has had a little cold for almost the entire month of February so he’s had quite a few nights of waking up at about 5. Not so fun, but he is on an antibiotic now, and he has been sleeping better this week. We are still swaddling him, but I am going to try to start weaning him off of that when he feels better.
Teething. No teeth have popped up yet but we can tell they are coming. He is drooling like crazy and chomps on everything. The last couple of days he has been very fussy but his mood improves with a little Tylenol, so I am guessing they will be breaking through any day now.
Starting solid foods. Today Sam had his first taste of rice cereal. He did a great job and I am looking forward to many more meals! I’ll be writing another post with more first food details soon!
Reaching and grabbing. Sam has been practicing his grasping skills and is making steady improvements. He has a number of toys to help him practice. He hasn’t really figured out how to do anything with the objects he grabs except put them in his mouth. I am anxious for him to figure out how to shake his toys to make them rattle, but I should probably just enjoy the silence for now.
Squeaks, squeals and babbles all of the time. He gets more talkative every day. In fact, we are pretty sure he has even learned some lines from Arrested Development like, “Bob Loblaw’s Law Blog”

Social and aware. He has really started noticing other people and likes to smile and flirt. My friend Deirdre and I have been going to Yoga with our babies every Wednesday for weeks and I think this week was the first time Sam realized they were there. He looked over at little Evelyn right before class and have her a big smile. So sweet!

Fathers, lock up your daughters!

Since having a baby boy, I have learned that some men become very protective after having a baby girl. I have been told more than once: “keep your son away from my little princess.” I am not going to lie, it hurts a little. I mean, how could anyone feel like their daughter needs to be protected from this sweet guy.

But now I see that their fears were justified. The other day I tried to prop Sam up on a pillow to practice taking some pictures without the flash (better picture quality, but hard to make them not blurry). Well, as he is doing lately, he rolled over and landed himself in some pretty hilarious positions. I SWEAR that I did not prop him in these poses. I just kept clicking the camera and he did not disappoint!

Traveling: Part California

Well after the back to back snow storm, we decided we deserved a relaxing stay in sunny California. So we packed our bags, braved the icy roads, and headed straight for the airport.

The trip made me realize something. We should live in California. The weather was sunny every day with highs in the upper seventies. Are you kidding me? I wonder how hard it would be to move the nation’s capital to L.A…

We went to the beach, we spent hours basking in the sun, we ate as many meals outside as we could, and of course we went to Fashion Island. Thanks Grandma Judi and Grandpa Char!! We’ll be back soon!

my future’s so bright…

sandy toes

we love the beach!

Traveling: Part Snowver It!

So while Sam and I were in Texas, enjoying friends, warm weather, and breakfast tacos, poor Ben and Henry were stuck with this mess.

(yes, that little brick spot peeking out from under the snow is our home)

But we got ours when we flew back in town on Monday night.

After a wonderful flight home, complete with a three hour delay and a very upset, screaming baby (aka Sam), I was so ready to drive home. Unfortunately DC is not really equipped for the amount of snow we got. Before we left, I parked my car in the long term lot, which was about the stupidest thing I could have done since I knew it was going to get piled in snow in my absence. Luckily Judi (Ben’s mama) flew home with Sam and me so she waited with Sam in the airport while I went to go get the car. After spending about an hour getting my car out with the help of a very nice snow-shoveling airport employee, it was time to hit the road.

To make a long story shorter, the drive, which normally takes about 45 minutes, took us about three hours. The roads were in horrible shape and there were a gazillion deranged truckers speeding around us at 90 mph. But we did eventually make it home. Good thing too. We wouldn’t have wanted to miss this next storm!

The blizzard was actually kind of pretty…

the view from our front door

snow drifts

Henry charging through the snow

definitely the largest icicle I have ever seen

Traveling: Part Texas

Sorry the posts have dropped off lately, but we’ve been on the road!

Sam and I had been planning a trip to Austin for a “Sip and See” (sip drinks and see the baby–it’s a southern tradition) being hosted by my sweet friends Ellie and Stephanie and my wonderful mom. We were supposed to head out Friday but after hearing about this storm, we decided to hit the road a day early and leave Ben and Henry to fend for themselves!

The party was so much fun and the hosts laid out a beautiful spread.

It was so great to be able to introduce Sam to some of our friends in Texas:

Stephanie and Grandma Stephanie love on Sam

Sam and I were both smitten with Ellie’s beautiful daughter Claire

Thanks for the great memories!

Laughter

Sam has a new trick: he laughs! He had his first laugh about a week ago and has laughed a few times since then. Until today, those laughs were almost indistinguishable from crying and always dissolved into tears. They are most common when he is tired and therefore a little bit on the edge between extreme happiness and extreme frustration. But tonight he erupted in giggles playing a game with his daddy. Ben was giving him the fist bump and then “exploding” as he made contact. This struck Sam as the funniest thing he has ever experienced. Below is a short snippet for your entertainment. The game went on for about 10 minutes and had all of us in stitches.

Happy Valentine’s Day

Hope you are having a happy day with your valentine.

Four Months!

I cannot believe that Sam is four months old! He is truly the joy of our lives and I love him more and more each day. It is so fun to see him grow and change. And boy has he been growing and changing. Here are some of his updates.

Sam’s Stats:

Weight: 15 lbs 6 oz (75th percentile…Sam’s slimming down!)
Length: 26.5 inches (95th percentile)
Sleeping habits: Ever since our hiccup about a month ago, Sam has been sleeping much better. He goes to bed at 8:00 p.m. I feed him at 10:30 and then he sleeps until 7:30.
Loves to suck on his hands. This is probably part of the reason he is sleeping so well. I think he really relies on his thumb sucking to get himself back to sleep. He likes to suck on his right thumb or his left index finger. He started sucking on his left hand much more frequently and we were wondering if that meant he would be left-handed, but now he sucks on both hands equally. And sometimes both at the same time!

Drools non-stop. He might be in the early stages of teething–we’re not sure. But I have to change his shirt constantly because he slobbers all over it.

Can roll over! We have really been practicing tummy time a lot lately and he seems to hate it less. Just a week ago, he was on his tummy time mat and just started pushing off one hand until he rolled over. Since then, he usually rolls over within 30 seconds of being put on his tummy. It is so cute because he always looks a little startled, and then a little pleased with himself. (I’ll post a video soon!)

Starting to reach and grab! He is not quite a pro at it yet, and he has a little bit of a hard time with closing his fingers at just the right time, but once he does grab on to it, he doesn’t let go! And the best part of this new trick is that every single thing he grabs inevitably heads into his mouth.

Smiles, squeals, and laughs. I read in one of my books that crying drops off a lot after three months and that has definitely been true for Sam. Now when we go to get him after his nap, he usually greets us with smiles and coos.

Loves his Bumbo seat. Well, loves might be overstating it. How about tolerates? He enjoys it more now that he can play with the toys that I put out on the tray for him.

Much more aware. Sam is really starting to notice the world around him. This has its advantages and disadvantages. It is fun to see his reactions to the world around him. However, it is now almost impossible to have him nap on the road. He may fall asleep, but he usually wakes up early (after only 30 minutes or so) and just wants to look all around at his new surroundings. I am glad that Ben and I took advantage of being able to tote him around with us to dinner while we could. I think now we are going to need to hire a babysitter if we want to go out for any date nights. Any volunteers??

Footsies

I LOVE Sam’s feet. They have got to be the cutest feet in the history of the planet.

I love to hold Sam at night and just watch his little toes curling and flexing as he eats.

I love how Sam’s feet feel. They’re always warm and never dry. Sometimes they are even the slightest bit stinky. But truth be told, I could smell them all day.

I love how Sam kicks his feet when he gets excited. He squeals and kicks like crazy. I put on his “sneaks” and he just kicks them right off.

I love how he curls his toes under when he stands up. That’s not how you balance, silly!

But Dad likes Sam’s feet best when they are cheering on his favorite team.

Mr. Skip

Last week I reconnected with a friend from work, Leslie, who also has a new baby. Leslie and her beautiful daugher Quinn invited Sam and me to come watch Mr. Skip with them. Mr. Skip plays guitar and sings kids songs every Thursday at Stacy’s coffee shop in Falls Church.

Sam spent almost the entire time eating, but I think he enjoyed having a little background music to accompany his mid-morning meal. And it was fun for me to watch all of the cute toddlers running around and dancing to the songs. We also got to meet two of Leslie’s friends and their sweet daughters.

Natalie, Abigail, Me, Sam, Leslie, Quinn, Liz, Ashley

We had a great time and can’t wait to go back. If you are in the area, you should come too!

http://www.stacyscoffeeshop.com/