Landry- 4 Months

Landry, you are 4 months old!  You are growing so fast.  You seem to be in a continuous growth spurt!  You have gotten more vocal this month and are learning how to shriek and make other fun sounds.  You got to enjoy your first Thanksgiving and the beginning of the Christmas season.  This has also been the most challenging month so far because you are growing so much and needing to eat more, and it has taken Mommy and Daddy  longer to figure out exactly what you need, but the joys far outweigh the frustrations.

Weight: 13 lbs.  Height: 24 inches

Firsts:  
* Rolled from back to tummy
* First Thanksgiving and first trip to Marion, VA (13 hours!) where Daddy grew up and where Nena and Poppy live
* Met Great Granny Rose, Aunt Sandy, Aunt Carol, and lots of Nena and Poppy's friends and neighbors
* First trip to Jefferson City, TN where Mommy grew up and went to FBC Jeff City
* Met Lindsay (Mommy's childhood best friend) and her husband Rob and their daughters, Adelyn and Carolee
* First time sitting in a high chair
* First trip to SeaWorld
                         .......and many more!

Milestones:  
 - Rolling over!  You can now roll from your back to your tummy, but only to the left.  You stay on your tummy longer and can lift your head higher.
 - You found your feet and like to pull on your socks, and you grab at more things when they are in front of you.  You especially like to grab Mommy's hair when you are tired.
 - Nap time has become much easier because you can fall asleep on your own in your crib if you have your lion lovey and your lullibies are playing.
- Growth spurt!  You definitely had a growth spurt for what seemed like the entire month.  You began waking up again in the middle of the night and wanting to eat and it seemed that you were never full.  It was very frustrating for Mommy as she tried everything to figure it out, but we just had to let it run its course.

Like Mommy: It seems you are becoming less and less like Mommy and more and more like Daddy!  You do still have Mommy's small head and small ears. You also are still pretty go with the flow.  You seem to adapt easily to new situations that we put you in. 

Like Daddy: You are getting much more vocal (and we all know who that is more like).  You also seem to enjoy being around people and will go to just about anybody.  You also get cranky when you are hungry.

Mommy's Favorite: Mommy loves rocking you to sleep at night. She also loves watching you discover new things.

Daddy's Favorite: Daddy loves making you laugh and praying with you before you go to bed.

How We Spend Our Day: This month has been the month of no schedules, it seems.  Since you have gone back to waking up during the night and needing to eat, your morning wake times have been sporatic. It also hasn't helped being out of town for a week.  However, no matter when you wake up in the morning, you are still awake about 2 hours before your first nap and you nap between 1 1/2 and 2 hours, for the most part. Sometimes you wake up early in your nap and finish your nap in the swing.  You eat 5 times during the day and usually one in the middle of the night and take 3 naps.  When you are awake, you love to play on your play mat, take walks, and do chores with Mommy in the baby bjorn.

Best Memory: It is always so hard to pick a favorite memory of the month when there are so many!  All of the events surrounding Thanksgiving were great memories, including you meeting Santa for the first time and seeing you play with Nena and Poppy.  We also had a great time at SeaWorld and you loved the dolphin show.

Biggest Challenge:  Definitely your schedule this month!  Mommy has a small weakness in being Type A and a planner.  She expected you to go along with what the books and blogs said, but she had to realize that you are a baby and not a robot!  It was extra frustrating for Mommy because you had been sleeping through the night with the exception of a few nights for 5 weeks! BUT you had a growth spurt this month and it seemed that you were not getting enough to eat and therefore started waking up again in the middle of the night to eat.  Mommy tried everything from adding extra feedings to putting you to sleep later to trying not to feed you when you woke up, but it seemed that nothing worked.  She finally gave in and fed you when you woke up in the night and that seemed to help.  As your 4th month came to a close, you seem to be adjusting back to sleeping through the night but still have not gotten back to sleeping through the night on a regular basis.  Mommy and Daddy want to do what's best for you even if it means a couple of interruptions during the night!

How We Celebrated Your 4th Month: You and Mommy got up early and went to Starbucks to get Daddy some coffee.  Then we just played at home during the day.  Daddy preached in the big house that weekend.  So we went to hear him preach at the 5:00 Saturday night service and then we ate dinner with him in between services.

Happy 4 Months, Landry!  You are a JOY!