My Sweet Little Man,
I've been meaning to start writing these little letters to
you, documenting your advancements, quirks, and happenings. Most recently
you've developed greater eye/hand coordination. As in, once something is in
your hands, it goes directly to your mouth. You are also doing better with
tummy time and developing your arm muscles. For the longest time you HATED
tummy time. You developed neck strength early on, but had a hard time utilizing
your arms for support. Because of your neck and head control, we were able to
start holding and propping you upright at about 6 weeks. We got a bouncer for
you at about 2 months, and you've taken off. You LOVE your bouncer. It is
hilarious to watch you careen side to side with bounding marshmallow steps, or
to spring, both feet in the hair, several inches off the ground like a Highland
dancer (I should know!!!). I feel sorry for our downstairs neighbors, but they
haven't said anything yet. And you are developing some incredible leg strength,
so we'll continue to let you explore and challenge yourself. It's so fun to see
your interest in the world around you and your desire to be involved and hands
on. You are such a strong, sweet, and inquisitive little boy and we love you so
much!
You've also started growing out fuzzy hair again. You were
born with what the midwife called a "rat tail" (I found this highly
unflattering but had to agree). You had some light reddish hair all over your
head but it was about an inch longer and darker in the back. The back kept
growing, so I took the liberty of shaving it. Twice, in fact. And then when you
were about two weeks old I gave you a bath that washed your adorable little
fuzzy hair off. I was devastated the rest of the day. You had an adorable fuzzy
little old man cul-de-sac before you grew the faintest fuzz on your head. It
stayed like that for a few months, until just a few weeks ago (the beginning of
December) when your hair started growing. It's now about a centimeter long and
I LOVE rubbing my face on your head. Which inevitably leads to smooching your
adorable cheeks. You, my child, have the most smoochable chubby cheeks I've
ever seen. I kiss you more often than I smooch your Father, and that's saying
something! Your hair initially came in a blondish red, and I think you're
trending more toward blonde now. We're excited to see how your coloring will
progress.
You began smiling real smiles (as opposed to gassy/dream
smiles) the last week of September, and began regularly smiling in earnest the
last weeks of October. You have the cutest wide mouthed, gummy smiles. Your
first laugh was around the middle of November, and you began laughing more
regularly the first weeks of December. You often laugh and cry at the same time
when you're tired and it's again, just adorable. You are most ready to laugh when
you first wake up and we keep you on your back in your crib. You like hearing
me say "bugaboo" and dad say "chicken tikka masala". I'm
pretty sure you just like it when we talk really close to your face and make
faces of our own at you.
You are also a heavy little dude! You've been off the charts
since you were a month old. At 3.5 months, you are just under 19 lbs and
25" long. Most people assume you are around 6 months old. The Pediatric GI
doc called you Godzilla and just laughed and laughed when he saw your adorable
chunky thighs. We love your rolls, but they are quite the challenge to clean at
night and during your bath! You also have my feet. You are able to flex your
feet and toes individually. It makes trimming nails a little more challenging.
We are also pretty sure you're teething, since you launch toward things and
start gnawing on them ravenously (even shortly after feeding). And Little Man,
you have quite the jaw strength!
One huge improvement that your daddy and I have been working on is sleep training. We read so many books with different ideas and theories, but eventually we found that letting you cry at graduated intervals has been the most successful and gentle for all of us. You are so much happier when you sleep! And consequently, so am I. Last night you slept from 8pm to 4am, with only some minor squawking throughout the night. AND we can now put you straight to bed without getting you to sleep first. We just lay you down awake, and you're usually quiet and asleep in five minutes or less. What. A. Blessing!
Most of all, I love how you gaze at your Papa and me. You
melt our hearts. And as frustrating as working on your sleep schedule has been,
all it takes is a steady gaze and smile from you to melt us. We love you. So.
Stinking. Much.
Smooch!
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