My baby is 16 Weeks old! He is becoming such a little drool monster! I worry that he's teething already. If he is then it's certainly not the end of the world, but I hope I get a few more gummy months! Either way he continues to be a completely healthy, happy baby! I weighed him yesterday and he was about 14 and a half pounds. My scale doesn't weigh ounces, so that is an estimate. According to my scale he is 14.8 pounds. Not sure how to figure that .8.
Jackson and I have been going on some field trips. We met Mommy's friends Rachel and Lauren at the mall on Saturday to walk around. It's too hot to walk outside. Makes for hot mommies and hot babies. Lauren's baby, Zach, slept the whole time we were there. Jack was a little flirt though.
Jack loves to hold things. Of course, everything immediately goes directly to his mouth. Have to suck and chew on things to figure out what they are. Doesn't help with the drool issue. Good thing Mommy doesn't care about a little drool! It's the new accessory.
Jack continues to eat small meals. Sometimes he'll eat 4-5 ounces in one sitting, but more generally it's 1-2 at a time. When he nurses he takes between 5-10 minutes on average, which has been the same since we brought him home from the hospital. He is growing though, so I'm not too worried.
We discovered that he doesn't like to take bottles from Mommy. He will take them from Daddy and other people, but if Mommy is giving it to him he fusses until Mommy lets him nurse. On the one hand, I am so glad we have that bond and that he associates me with feeding. On the other hand, makes for some difficult feedings when we are out in public.
Jackson loves playing with toys. His favorites are his oball (so good for strengthening his grasp), his crinkle giraffe (so many surfaces to chew on), and his ring o links (easier to fit in mouth). He can be content pretty much anywhere if he has a good toy to occupy him. We have been working with him on sitting with the boppy. bumbo, or on our laps. Strengthening those back muscles so he can sit up on his own soon! Daddy developed a game for sitting on our laps. He sits on our laps and faces us, we hold his hands, and bounce him to the right, to the left, in the middle, and then wiggle his middle. We say, "Bounce over here and bounce over there. Bounce in the middle and wiggle wiggle wiggle." Jackson loves it. He smiles and giggles each time.
Jackson has been growing! He still fits into most of his 0-3 month clothes, but we had to put some away already! We have used a couple 3-6 month onesies when Mommy didn't put his clean clothes away fast enough. I want to hold off on moving him up a size until we have to. Want to get the most out of these clothes! His feet are also growing. He is almost out of his fuzzy booties that he wears almost every day. We have been putting him in socks and tennis shoes more often, but he is almost too big for those too. I already have his next pair of booties picked out and cannot wait to order them! Jack is also big enough to sit in his jogger by himself, no carseat! It's so funny because I have to tighten the shoulder straps so much to keep him secure, but he looks so cute in the jogger on his own. He loves being able to look out in front while we walk around too. Makes walks much more enjoyable and keeps us from having to carry him.
Jack is learning every day. That has to be one of the most rewarding parts of parenthood. He loves to look at patterns. It's like he wants to follow all the different parts of the pattern. He stares at my sheets, his boppy cover, and the picture frames on the walls. He also has learned that if he kicks his legs it makes his bouncer bounce. He will kick his legs super hard and then smile real big. When he's on the bed or floor he can kick his legs and scootch lower. We have to be careful where we set him now so he doesn't scootch himself off the bed or couch!
He has been sleeping in 2-6 hours stretches. More recently he's been sleeping in 2 hour chunks. Mommy has made some interesting scribbles in his night time journal (where I track when he goes down and wake up). Mommy is sleepy during those night time feedings too. It's quite amusing the next morning. Even though he doesn't sleep through the night, he generally sleeps from 9 pm to 6 am, sometimes longer. So Mommy doesn't feel too sleep deprived. He averages 4 naps per day. He needs lots of energy for all that growing he's been doing! He has laughed in his sleep three different times. It is so adorable! I wonder what he's dreaming of.
He is beginning to figure out how to suck on his thumb. He loves to stick all his fingers or his fist into his mouth, but when he figures out his thumb he can settle down so much more quickly. He still takes a paci sometimes, but he prefers his hand/fingers.
This week was the first week he enjoyed his baths! Every bath was a fun play time between Mommy and baby. He loves kicking his feet and doesn't mind mommy washing the back of his head/neck anymore. That was usually when he would scream. We wash up then play for a few more minutes before bath time is done. He hasn't been crying when he comes out of the bath either. Mommy tries to get him wrapped up in his towel super quickly after picking him up out of the warm water. We dry off, put a clean diaper on, and snuggle for awhile. Then we lotion and put on some jammies and read before bedtime. His night time routine is so much more relaxing and enjoyable now that he isn't afraid of the water.
Baby has finally started to wear a patch on the back of his head. You can see it slightly in this picture. He has been spending more time on his back playing with toys. He moves his head back and forth rapidly from left to right which wears away the hair too. I know it will grow back but I was hoping that he would keep his lovely hair.
Jackson's finger and toenails grow super fast. I have to clip them every week. Thankfully, this hasn't proven difficult. I clip his nails when Jack is asleep and this helps the process. Mommy hasn't clipped any skin since that one time a few weeks ago. Jack doesn't seem to notice any differences in his nails at all. Mommy doesn't let them get long enough to scratch himself. He also has a lot of ear wax. Gross, I know. But it comes out in flakes so it's not all bad. I don't use q tips in his ears yet, but make sure to clean his ears real good with his washcloth at bath time. Speaking of his ears, they are super bendy! Are all babies ears like that? It never seems to bother him, but we'll look over at him and he'll be lying there with his ear completely the wrong way! Silly baby!
Our most consistent nickname for Jack is "Booger". Kinda silly, but it has stuck. We call him our little booger, the boog, and boogey bear. It will be interesting when he is older if this nickname continues, but for now it sticks and is super endearing to our hearts.
Mommy lesson: I was skeptical about the whole carseat cover/shade thing. I didn't understand how covering the carseat in the sun would keep the heat out. It would seem to trap the heat in. I gave it try with a blankie. My word, was I wrong! Not only did it keep the buckles nice and cool so there was no harm of Jack getting burnt by them, but also it kept the fabric of his seat cool. The air was as warm as the rest of the car (I tried this when I left his seat in the car and was walking him in the stroller), but at least the seat wasn't burning him up. I'll be purchasing a cover as soon as we have the extra money for it. There's one made from Army camo that I'll most likely order.
We are learning to live on one income right now and that means certain items I want to purchase for baby have to be put on a wait list. I have camo booties, camo carseat cover, and a take-along swing on the list right now. The swing we certainly don't need. It will probably be replaced with a exersaucer or jumper for baby by the time I can bring myself to buy one. My income is more than our monthly bills, but we are used to buying whatever we want whenever we want it. We're trying to bulk up our savings again since we used a good amount from savings while I was on maternity leave. Ah well, when Matt enters the Army we'll be getting that pay which will be a step up in paygrade.
Still loving EVERY moment with my little booger. He is my shining star and I am so incredibly blessed. He is such a content little baby and he loves to smile and laugh. Nothing brings more joy to my heart than his smiles and little giggle.
