It's pretty funny how proud I am of this little milestone; you'd think our boy was in 5th grade winning the spelling bee.
Monday, September 17, 2012
Rollin, rollin, rollin
Keep them babies rollin! Our big boy is rolling from back to tummy!! When he woke up during the night to eat, he was on his belly when I went in to get him. I was so surprised considering that he was SWADDLED! I figured he'd just scooted and whatnot and didn't mean to actually roll over. It was quite a bit earlier than he normally wakes up to eat and he seemed pretty frustrated about being on his stomach, which is probably the only reason he was up so early. This morning though, every time I put him on his back to play he rolled to his tummy. And he does it pretty quick too. He does not seem to like that he can't get back on his back from there though and gets a little frustrated.
It's pretty funny how proud I am of this little milestone; you'd think our boy was in 5th grade winning the spelling bee.
It's pretty funny how proud I am of this little milestone; you'd think our boy was in 5th grade winning the spelling bee.
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
I witnessed several miracles today
Gray did not scream or even cry on the way to church for Bible study this morning.
Not only did he not cry, he fell asleep!
He had a great report from the sweet old ladies when I picked him up from the nursery. And he took a nap in the nursery-he never naps away from home.
We went to my Gram's after church and he did not scream or cry again in the car on the way there.
We went out to eat for lunch and he did not scream on the way. He only cried for a minute or two.
He made it through the entire lunch without screaming or crying. Only a little whining for just a minute because he wanted out of his car seat.
He fell asleep in Gram's lap. In the restaurant. Without crying first. He just very peacefully closed his sweet little eyes and went to sleep.
He stayed asleep as I put him in his car seat and slept almost the whole way home.
These, my friends, are nothing short of miracles I tell ya. And you know where miracles come from? My awesome God. So thank ya Jesus! Can I get an AMEN?!
Not only did he not cry, he fell asleep!
He had a great report from the sweet old ladies when I picked him up from the nursery. And he took a nap in the nursery-he never naps away from home.
We went to my Gram's after church and he did not scream or cry again in the car on the way there.
We went out to eat for lunch and he did not scream on the way. He only cried for a minute or two.
He made it through the entire lunch without screaming or crying. Only a little whining for just a minute because he wanted out of his car seat.
He fell asleep in Gram's lap. In the restaurant. Without crying first. He just very peacefully closed his sweet little eyes and went to sleep.
He stayed asleep as I put him in his car seat and slept almost the whole way home.
These, my friends, are nothing short of miracles I tell ya. And you know where miracles come from? My awesome God. So thank ya Jesus! Can I get an AMEN?!
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
3 months
Another super fast month in the books! Gray has really turned a corner over the last couple of weeks. His gas has been better for quite some time now, as I am only eating turkey and bread every day ;) He is definitely still quite high maintenance, but each week I see a little improvement. He still hates the car and does not nap away from home, which makes for some tough days, especially since Paul doesn't get home until really late most nights. I have made lots of 10:00 trips to the grocery store lately.
At three months our big boy:
weighs about 13 1/2 pounds
is wearing size 2 diapers and mostly 3-6 months clothes, although he can still squeeze into a few 0-3 month things
is sleeping in his crib and doing great! he takes 2-3 naps a day and sleeps about 12 hours at night with only one feeding. he stays awake about 2-3 hours at a time (happily, anyway). he still loves to be swaddled to sleep and we plan on doing so for another month
is very alert and will maintain eye contact for almost as long as you are talking to or entertaining him
is smiling more and more! I still get teary almost every time he gives me that sweet gummy grin. he also loves the ceiling fan and smiles at it all the time
loves to hold objects-his favorite toys right now are his rattle and a Winnie the Pooh crinkly book (noises are still a huge thing for him)
still gaining more head control but can't quite support it 100% yet
did I mention that he still hates the car? (maybe this will change by month 4! one can hope...)
is hating tummy time these days
has had no interest in his paci lately until two days ago. we'll see if it lasts.
tries to copy me when I make noises with my lips. it's so smart and so, so dang cute!
still loves to snuggle and I am soooo thankful for that because I know that at anytime now the snuggle days could be long gone
we are seeing more and more of his personality every day and it is just so much fun! he does this thing when you are holding him and talk to him in a certain way, he turns his head to your side, grins and hides his face. it is so funny and so precious!
rolls onto his side almost every time he is on the floor
Lindsey took some 3 month pictures of Gray on Sunday and I'll post some when I get them. I did manage to get a few from my phone in his 3 month tie...
Of course the little booger would not smile for this. The second I took his tie off, he gave me the biggest grin. What a stinker!
I am not wishing the time away by any means, but I am loving that Gray is getting better and life is becoming a little more "normal" again. I get sad thinking about how fast he is growing but at the same time I love seeing how much he learns and changes every day. I love our little guy more and more with every second of the day and I try not to take a minute of being a mommy for granted.
At three months our big boy:
weighs about 13 1/2 pounds
is wearing size 2 diapers and mostly 3-6 months clothes, although he can still squeeze into a few 0-3 month things
is sleeping in his crib and doing great! he takes 2-3 naps a day and sleeps about 12 hours at night with only one feeding. he stays awake about 2-3 hours at a time (happily, anyway). he still loves to be swaddled to sleep and we plan on doing so for another month
is very alert and will maintain eye contact for almost as long as you are talking to or entertaining him
is smiling more and more! I still get teary almost every time he gives me that sweet gummy grin. he also loves the ceiling fan and smiles at it all the time
loves to hold objects-his favorite toys right now are his rattle and a Winnie the Pooh crinkly book (noises are still a huge thing for him)
still gaining more head control but can't quite support it 100% yet
did I mention that he still hates the car? (maybe this will change by month 4! one can hope...)
is hating tummy time these days
has had no interest in his paci lately until two days ago. we'll see if it lasts.
tries to copy me when I make noises with my lips. it's so smart and so, so dang cute!
still loves to snuggle and I am soooo thankful for that because I know that at anytime now the snuggle days could be long gone
we are seeing more and more of his personality every day and it is just so much fun! he does this thing when you are holding him and talk to him in a certain way, he turns his head to your side, grins and hides his face. it is so funny and so precious!
rolls onto his side almost every time he is on the floor
Lindsey took some 3 month pictures of Gray on Sunday and I'll post some when I get them. I did manage to get a few from my phone in his 3 month tie...
Monday, September 10, 2012
The Crib
We finally made the transition to the crib this weekend. We never intended on waiting this long but when his colic was so bad, we had nothing left in us at night and for the past 6 weeks he has slept in his swing for bedtime and all naps. Not a habit I'd recommend, but we had to do what we had to do. And I am learning to never say never with a little one.
Anywho, Friday night was the first night we planned on putting him in his crib. We wanted to start this on a weekend when Paul didn't get home so late and we could do it together. I've recently read the book The Sleep Easy Solution, and the sleep learning plan it teaches is not supposed to start until 4 months. The plan includes teaching your baby how to fall asleep and stay asleep, but also teaches how to wean during the night feedings. Although Gray is only three months, we aren't going to start weaning him from night feedings yet but figured we could put the other info into practice. I enjoyed reading the book and agreed with most of what it says. One biggie is to always put your baby down awake. We'd actually been doing this, but he was in his swing so it was easier for him to fall asleep on his own. When we first put him in his crib Friday night, he had this pitiful terrified look on his face. I realized immediately that we had not spent nearly enough time in his room or in his crib leading up to this switch. Big mistake number one. He is so aware of his surroundings now and he really seemed afraid and confused. Lesson learned there! I am already taking lots of notes for baby number two (not that we plan on that happening ANY time soon!). I decided until he was more comfortable we needed to rock him to sleep before putting him in the crib. Big mistake number two. He didn't stay asleep longer than 30 minutes and every time he'd wake up he seemed scared. I think it was mainly because he had not put himself down and when he'd wake up he didn't even know where he was. I was not comfortable letting him cry it out at all because I truly felt like he was afraid and confused. By 2:00 a.m. we gave in and put him in the swing. He slept for six hours. I'm not sure if that was mistake number three or if mistake number one allowed for us to change our minds the first night. I felt awful and like we'd confused him even more.
So Saturday we spent a lot more time playing in his crib and he even took one nap in it, but was put down already asleep. But we knew we had to put him down awake or we'd never get anywhere. We realized there was no way to put him down awake and not do some form of cry it out. You might be thinking Gray is too young to cry it out but 1) he has done far more crying even while being held that your typical baby and 2) our pediatrician said it was fine to let him cry for up to 15 minutes or so without any touch or talking to him and we could do more if he could hear or see us some during it. So that night we put him down awake. And he cried. A lot. We went in every 5-10 minutes at first, then every 10-15 minutes and talked to him to let him know we were there, especially since we still thought he was a little afraid of his new environment. The book recommends that when you go in their room for a check in, that you do not touch them at all because it teases them and they think you are going to pick them up. We didn't touch him every time, but a few times we just patted him a little and it honestly seemed to help and not make it worse. As much as I agree with that part of the book, I also believe things need to be modified according to Mama and Daddy's instincts (though of course we are wrong often). He ended up crying off and on for an hour and then finally fell asleep. I thought an hour was pretty good, considering the number of hours he has cried WHILE being held on so many nights before. I was glued to the monitor for another hour or so, struggling with all kinds of emotions...did he feel neglected? Was he mad at us? Was this going to scar him for life? Next thing I knew I woke up and it was 5:00 a.m.!!! I was scared to death and ran in to make sure he was still breathing. He hadn't eaten since 8:30 and had been asleep since about 10:00. He woke up shortly after that, ate and we put him back down awake. He cried for about 10 minutes, we went in once for a check in and then he was out. He woke up about 40 minutes later and we let him cry again, going in only twice for check ins. He cried for only two-three minutes that time and then slept until 8:30! We were so proud! I went in his room to get him as soon as I started hearing him on the monitor and as soon as I peaked over his crib, he gave me the biggest gummy grin. It was just what I needed after worrying about him so much the night before.
Sunday I had a baby shower to go to so Daddy put him down for his nap after church. He cried less than five minutes and then slept for almost four hours! Last night we went to Lindsey's house for a three month photo shoot and it wore him slap out. He was so tired when we got home that he wouldn't even nurse before going to bed. After about 45 minutes of crying, I couldn't take it anymore. I didn't want to mess things up and get him out, but I knew he had to be hungry and had probably changed his mind about not wanting to eat. So we decided to give him a bottle because we could give it to him in his crib and would only have to get him out to burp him. He chugged the bottle and then he was out and slept until almost 5:00 this morning. After eating he only cried for about five minutes and slept again until 8:30.
I put him down for nap number one this morning and he did not cry AT ALL!!! He cooed and looked at the ceiling fan for about fifteen minutes and then fell asleep. It was the best feeling! I really think that once he starts getting consistent, good, long sleeps, it will help with his mood during the day. He was great last week as long as were home. Now we've got to work on the car issue and being away from home. One step at a time!
Our pediatrician kept telling us that he really thought we'd start seeing major changes around 12 weeks. Looks like he was right. He was 13 weeks yesterday. Thank you Lord for helping our sweet boy turn a corner!
Three month post coming soon. For now, enjoy the previous post beach pics of our sweet boy.
Anywho, Friday night was the first night we planned on putting him in his crib. We wanted to start this on a weekend when Paul didn't get home so late and we could do it together. I've recently read the book The Sleep Easy Solution, and the sleep learning plan it teaches is not supposed to start until 4 months. The plan includes teaching your baby how to fall asleep and stay asleep, but also teaches how to wean during the night feedings. Although Gray is only three months, we aren't going to start weaning him from night feedings yet but figured we could put the other info into practice. I enjoyed reading the book and agreed with most of what it says. One biggie is to always put your baby down awake. We'd actually been doing this, but he was in his swing so it was easier for him to fall asleep on his own. When we first put him in his crib Friday night, he had this pitiful terrified look on his face. I realized immediately that we had not spent nearly enough time in his room or in his crib leading up to this switch. Big mistake number one. He is so aware of his surroundings now and he really seemed afraid and confused. Lesson learned there! I am already taking lots of notes for baby number two (not that we plan on that happening ANY time soon!). I decided until he was more comfortable we needed to rock him to sleep before putting him in the crib. Big mistake number two. He didn't stay asleep longer than 30 minutes and every time he'd wake up he seemed scared. I think it was mainly because he had not put himself down and when he'd wake up he didn't even know where he was. I was not comfortable letting him cry it out at all because I truly felt like he was afraid and confused. By 2:00 a.m. we gave in and put him in the swing. He slept for six hours. I'm not sure if that was mistake number three or if mistake number one allowed for us to change our minds the first night. I felt awful and like we'd confused him even more.
So Saturday we spent a lot more time playing in his crib and he even took one nap in it, but was put down already asleep. But we knew we had to put him down awake or we'd never get anywhere. We realized there was no way to put him down awake and not do some form of cry it out. You might be thinking Gray is too young to cry it out but 1) he has done far more crying even while being held that your typical baby and 2) our pediatrician said it was fine to let him cry for up to 15 minutes or so without any touch or talking to him and we could do more if he could hear or see us some during it. So that night we put him down awake. And he cried. A lot. We went in every 5-10 minutes at first, then every 10-15 minutes and talked to him to let him know we were there, especially since we still thought he was a little afraid of his new environment. The book recommends that when you go in their room for a check in, that you do not touch them at all because it teases them and they think you are going to pick them up. We didn't touch him every time, but a few times we just patted him a little and it honestly seemed to help and not make it worse. As much as I agree with that part of the book, I also believe things need to be modified according to Mama and Daddy's instincts (though of course we are wrong often). He ended up crying off and on for an hour and then finally fell asleep. I thought an hour was pretty good, considering the number of hours he has cried WHILE being held on so many nights before. I was glued to the monitor for another hour or so, struggling with all kinds of emotions...did he feel neglected? Was he mad at us? Was this going to scar him for life? Next thing I knew I woke up and it was 5:00 a.m.!!! I was scared to death and ran in to make sure he was still breathing. He hadn't eaten since 8:30 and had been asleep since about 10:00. He woke up shortly after that, ate and we put him back down awake. He cried for about 10 minutes, we went in once for a check in and then he was out. He woke up about 40 minutes later and we let him cry again, going in only twice for check ins. He cried for only two-three minutes that time and then slept until 8:30! We were so proud! I went in his room to get him as soon as I started hearing him on the monitor and as soon as I peaked over his crib, he gave me the biggest gummy grin. It was just what I needed after worrying about him so much the night before.
Sunday I had a baby shower to go to so Daddy put him down for his nap after church. He cried less than five minutes and then slept for almost four hours! Last night we went to Lindsey's house for a three month photo shoot and it wore him slap out. He was so tired when we got home that he wouldn't even nurse before going to bed. After about 45 minutes of crying, I couldn't take it anymore. I didn't want to mess things up and get him out, but I knew he had to be hungry and had probably changed his mind about not wanting to eat. So we decided to give him a bottle because we could give it to him in his crib and would only have to get him out to burp him. He chugged the bottle and then he was out and slept until almost 5:00 this morning. After eating he only cried for about five minutes and slept again until 8:30.
I put him down for nap number one this morning and he did not cry AT ALL!!! He cooed and looked at the ceiling fan for about fifteen minutes and then fell asleep. It was the best feeling! I really think that once he starts getting consistent, good, long sleeps, it will help with his mood during the day. He was great last week as long as were home. Now we've got to work on the car issue and being away from home. One step at a time!
Our pediatrician kept telling us that he really thought we'd start seeing major changes around 12 weeks. Looks like he was right. He was 13 weeks yesterday. Thank you Lord for helping our sweet boy turn a corner!
Three month post coming soon. For now, enjoy the previous post beach pics of our sweet boy.
Sunday, September 9, 2012
Friday, September 7, 2012
Fall
As much as I love summer, I've really grown to also love fall. The beginning of it at least, before it gets too cold. I started getting really excited about all of the things I love about fall the other day. And then I realized...no chili or taco soup for me because of the beans, no pumpkin bread because of the butter, no pumpkin spice lattes or pumpkin creamer because of the milk, and pretty much no pumpkin treats of any kind. And yes, I pouted for a little bit. But then God showed me some grace and reminded me that 1) My baby doesn't scream all day because his tummy hurts anymore and 2) I have new things to be excited about this fall...like taking Gray to the pumpkin patch and getting adorable pictures that will give me joy far longer than anything pumpkin flavor ever could. And dressing our sweet boy in sweaters, hoodies and sweat pants. And I am especially excited to see our chunky monkey dressed as a pumpkin for Halloween! I bought his costume at Carter's during their 50% off sale last week and I cannot wait to see his cute self in it.
I'm not saying I won't complain about not being able to eat dairy anymore, because there is a good chance I will before even today is over, but I am trying my best to focus on the positives. Thank you God for your unending grace and mercy!
I'm not saying I won't complain about not being able to eat dairy anymore, because there is a good chance I will before even today is over, but I am trying my best to focus on the positives. Thank you God for your unending grace and mercy!
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Happenings
The Hicksters went to the beach over Labor Day weekend. It was Gray's first vacation. He woke up the morning we left with his first cold. It was just par for the course with the way things have been going lately! He had a pitiful runny nose and was sneezing like crazy. He screamed off and on the first two hours and finally gave up and slept the last two-ish (it takes quite a bit longer to travel these days). We only ended up taking him down to the beach twice but he seemed to like it. He was not bothered by his cold one bit and in fact, he was the happiest baby we've seen in quite a while. I don't know if he's turned a corner or if the cold took all of his fussin energy away. Or perhaps he knew he was at the beach and it did something magical to him. It sure does to me! It was a very quick weekend but it was so nice to be with family and Daddy and I got to relax on the beach quite a bit. It was the first vacation I felt like I could fairly say I needed. If you love the beach, you may or may not want to know that Matthew (my oldest nephew) and Paul both got stung by a jellyfish. Those suckers must have been everywhere because the lifeguard that was just on our little stretch of the beach said there were 25 people who got stung that he knew of on Saturday, and 10 already on Sunday morning when Paul got stung. Needless to say, we didn't go back in the water the rest of the time.
Gray's cold still seems to be lingering around. He was so good yesterday and hardly fussed at all. I had so much fun playing with him and enjoyed every little smile and coo. And then bedtime happened. He was ready for bed at 8:00 and went down like a champ. 45 minutes later he was up and cried until midnight. The night before last he slept 12 hours with getting up only one time to eat. As hard as I know it will be, I am ready to start the "sleep learning" process and get him on a consistent bedtime and sleep schedule. According to my pediatrician and the sleep books I've read, you aren't supposed to start sleep learning until babies are four months. Surely we can make it another month! We did finally let him cry it out last night because he had been fed, changed and we'd rocked and walked and bounced and sang songs until neither Daddy or I could see straight anymore, all with very temporary success. We weren't going to let him cry for more than 15-20 minutes (which might sound like a lot for a non-colicky baby but for him that's nothing) and after about 12 minutes he had worn himself out. I think we'll try that a little earlier tonight if need be.
I went back to Bible study this morning at my church. Of course Gray screamed the whole ride there but he was pretty easily calmed down as soon as I got him out of his car seat. It was hard for me to relax because I wondered what he was doing and if they would be coming for me again like they did last week. I made it through the whole two hours and couldn't wait to pick him up. He was being held when I got to his room but he was still crying, which was so heart breaking for me. I asked if he'd been fussin the whole time and her response was, "Not the whole time. He didn't fuss while he was sleeping, which was about 15 minutes." Then she told me that he refused his bottle which I thought was very odd because as I've said before, eating is not usually an issue with our chunky boy. When I got him home he refused to take his bottle for me too. He was beyond tired so I wasn't worried that anything was wrong. I was able to get him to nurse with no problem though. I guess he wanted to be soothed and maybe he just missed his mama ;) So there went five ounces of liquid gold right down the drain. On a happier note, he has been back to an awesome napping routine and has been taking a 3-4 hour nap every afternoon.
My brother took some great pictures of Gray at the beach so as soon as I get them I'll be back to share!
Gray's cold still seems to be lingering around. He was so good yesterday and hardly fussed at all. I had so much fun playing with him and enjoyed every little smile and coo. And then bedtime happened. He was ready for bed at 8:00 and went down like a champ. 45 minutes later he was up and cried until midnight. The night before last he slept 12 hours with getting up only one time to eat. As hard as I know it will be, I am ready to start the "sleep learning" process and get him on a consistent bedtime and sleep schedule. According to my pediatrician and the sleep books I've read, you aren't supposed to start sleep learning until babies are four months. Surely we can make it another month! We did finally let him cry it out last night because he had been fed, changed and we'd rocked and walked and bounced and sang songs until neither Daddy or I could see straight anymore, all with very temporary success. We weren't going to let him cry for more than 15-20 minutes (which might sound like a lot for a non-colicky baby but for him that's nothing) and after about 12 minutes he had worn himself out. I think we'll try that a little earlier tonight if need be.
I went back to Bible study this morning at my church. Of course Gray screamed the whole ride there but he was pretty easily calmed down as soon as I got him out of his car seat. It was hard for me to relax because I wondered what he was doing and if they would be coming for me again like they did last week. I made it through the whole two hours and couldn't wait to pick him up. He was being held when I got to his room but he was still crying, which was so heart breaking for me. I asked if he'd been fussin the whole time and her response was, "Not the whole time. He didn't fuss while he was sleeping, which was about 15 minutes." Then she told me that he refused his bottle which I thought was very odd because as I've said before, eating is not usually an issue with our chunky boy. When I got him home he refused to take his bottle for me too. He was beyond tired so I wasn't worried that anything was wrong. I was able to get him to nurse with no problem though. I guess he wanted to be soothed and maybe he just missed his mama ;) So there went five ounces of liquid gold right down the drain. On a happier note, he has been back to an awesome napping routine and has been taking a 3-4 hour nap every afternoon.
My brother took some great pictures of Gray at the beach so as soon as I get them I'll be back to share!
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