Noah Ryan - Month 4

Here are your numbers:

WEIGHT: 16 pounds 2 ounces (68th percentile)

LENGTH:  26 inches (63rd percentile)

HEAD:  44 centimeters (84th percentile)

AT FOUR MONTHS YOU ARE:
-Sleeping in your crib at night in your own room :)
-Rolling over from back to front
-Grabbing for and holding on to toys
-Sitting up in your bumbo
-Getting hair again, no more baby balding!
-Smiling, drooling, and spitting up...constantly
-Still farting like crazy

HEALTH
We had your well check with Dr. Fink and you are a happy, healthy, growing little boy.  I explained to him about our new struggle with nursing on the left side.  He checked your ears and they looked great, so it confirmed that you just prefer the right side.  I've always produced more on that side and you are a boy who likes to eat!  Dr. Fink also gave us the green light to start baby food, but I don't think you are quite ready yet.  Addie started solids at 4 months and Bella at 6 months, I think you will be somewhere in the middle.  We ended your appointment with your next round of vaccinations and I think it was harder on me than it was on you.  You were all smiles minutes later!

EAT
I am still exclusively breastfeeding, but we had a few hurdles this past month.  There were a few days where you would refuse to nurse.  I never was concerned you were starving (because hello baby rolls!) but I was concerned something was wrong.  Was it your ears?  Was it your tummy?  To this day, I still don't know because your mini-strike all of a sudden ended just as quickly as it started.  All was good, but then, you started refusing the left side.  I have always produced more on the right and I think it's more comfortable for you.  I always offer the left side first and can often times trick you into eating from that side.  Breastfeeding is hard, even the 3rd time around!  I am proud to say we overcame our obstacles and are still going strong.  You nurse every 3-4 hours during the day and 1-2 times at night, usually a total of 6 nursing sessions per day.

SLEEP

I am happy to report that you are sleeping in your own room at night in your crib!  Yayyy!  Your sisters are sharing a room, which has freed up your room for you!   The transition was something I have been dreading, but you did much better than I thought you would.  We have way more good days than we do bad, so I'll call it a win!  On a typical day you wake up around 7:30-8 and nap on the go about 2 hours later.  Your afternoon nap is around 1 and usually lasts 2-3 hours and then you cat nap again before your 7:30 bedtime.  You are (almost) sleeping through the night with only 1-2 very brief nursing sessions.  We are working on teaching you how to fall asleep on your own by laying you down when you are still awake and I am one proud mommy when you fall asleep all on your own.

LIKES & DISLIKES
You are a water baby and are the happiest when you are in the tub.  The bumbo, your pacifier, blowing bubbles, and eating your hands are some of your other favorite things right now.  You think your sisters are hilarious and I know I'm going to be jealous when they get the first laugh out of you.  Tummy time is your least favorite thing.  You get upset after about 2 minutes and start crying, Addie comes to the rescue and insists we flip you back over.  I'm also convinced you don't like clean clothes because within minutes of getting you dressed you are covered in droll and/or spit up.

PERSONALITY
This past month has been so much fun!  You are much more alert and started "playing."  You like to hang out on your play mat or in your bumbo right in the center of the action.  You are such a happy guy about 97% of the time, but lately I've been getting a taste of the "witching hour" and man can you be needy.  Luckily, Daddy has experienced it first hand so really makes an effort to be home by 6pm so we can have all hands on deck.  Your sisters usually smother your Dad the second he walks in the door and since they are entertained and have Daddy to referee for a little, you get my attention back and all is good in your world.  I know this is only the beginning of a very fun phase of baby hood and I can't wait to see where it takes us.

FAVORITE MOMENTS
-This past month you got to spend some quality time with your Godmother.  Aunt Leah came to town and you gave her all the baby snuggles and smiles, it's safe to say you already have her wrapped around your little finger.
-You also got to meet you Uncle Jay this month.  The Hazelwoods came to visit and we had a blast celebrating Bella's 2nd birthday, going to the beach, and just catching up!
-I've started bathing the 3 of you at the same time and it's made an already fun activity even more fun for you.  You absolutely love bath time!
-We went on a "Farewell to Summer" trip to the Outer Banks, just the 5 of us and it was amazing.  The weather was perfect and we had fun showing you around town.  We took you to the sand dunes, to some of our favorite restaurants, mini golfing, and to Manteo, which is were Daddy and I had our wedding reception.
 -Everyone knows I love coordinating outfits and with the girls I've loved doing mommy and me twin days ever since Addie was born.  Well, you've had your first twin day with Daddy and it was adorable.

Farewell Sweet Summer of 2017

It's hard to believe that the summer is already coming to an end, but it will forever go in the books as one of my favorite summers to date.  I will miss so much about summer 2017 - hours upon hours spent at the pool and splash pad, beach sunsets with my crew, fun at the "gardens" - both Busch Gardens and the Botanical Gardens, extra time with Daddy, lots of fun play dates with both new and old friends, serious fun at little gym, weekly neighborhood dinners, spending the 4th in Pittsburgh, and family vacations in the Outer Banks.  Last, but certainly not the least, we will always remember this season as the season that we brought Noah into this world.  We grew from a family of four to a family of five and enjoyed every second of making memories and celebrating firsts with our favorite little man, as well as watch Addie & Bella grow up in the blink of an eye as soon as we brought Noah home from the hospital.  Of course there are some things I won't miss as well...the never ending buckets of sand in my swagger wagon, mosquitos (oh how I despise those little creatures!), sunscreen (another of my least favorite things), and having to always carry around a battery operated fan to keep our little man cool in the hot, humid days.  Overall, summer of 2017 was oh so sweet to us and I will always cherish the memories that we made.  Farewell sweet summer of 2017, helllooo all things pumpkin spice and the cool, crisp air of fall days :)