Grady is FOUR Months Old!

Grady is FOUR Months Old!! 120+ days :) He just keeps getting cooler and more awesome as the days go by!

Size

Grady has his Four Month doctor's appointment next week, so I am not sure how much he weighs right now, but I would guess 15-17lbs.  Everywhere we go people ask how old he is and then do doubletakes when we say "He's three months" or "He's not quite four months old."  He wears size 9 and 12 month clothes and size 2 diapers.  

Updated to add: We went to Grady's 4 month appointment yesterday and she said he is "perfect!" She said "he is healthy, obviously crazy about his mommy, and super duper happy." Love it :)   

He weighs 16 lbs 2 oz and is 25.5 inches long.  That's 90th percentile for weight and 75th for height.  He is following his own curve, for the most part, but has jumped from 50th percentile to 75th in height. 

He showed off his toe-touching skills and blabbered and talked non-stop.  His doctor says he is perfect and to keep doing what we are doing, along with adding fruits to the mix.

Daily Schedule

Now that Whitney is back in school and Grady is in a routine, I will be better able to get into a real schedule with him.  It has only been a week back at school, but its hard to time Grady's naps so that I dont end up having to wake him to get in the car for drop-off or pick-up times.  Im hoping to get some good awake-time with him while Whitney is at school, but also need him to take a solid, routine nap so I can get stuff done around the house, run, and perhaps get a shower every now and then.  

Right now, he is waking between 7:15 and 7:45am, drinking 6oz, staying awake til about 9am and then napping til 11am.  Unfortunately, a 9am nap isnt doable since that is when we need to be in the car dropping Whitney off at school three days a week.  He has been staying awake for two hours here and there, but typically cant take much more than an hour of awake-time before he's rubbing his eyes and ready for a snooze. 

A week later, I am back to add:

I am working towards a legit schedule.  Ideally, I would like to see this happen sometime in the next month and I am excited to say that the first two days have been successful:

7:30 am - 8oz

10-12 nap

12pm 8 oz

1pm veggie

2:30-4:30 nap

4:30 8 oz

5:30-6:30 nap 

6:30 veggie and fruit

7:30 4oz

bath, books, bed by 8:30

We are "off schedule" by an hour today because he just could NOT stay awake past 9am, but Im happy that the rest of the timing is working nicely and seems doable since it gives me time to drop off and pick up Whitney without worrying about waking a sleeping Meatball.  Its our goal....and our goals are subject to change....but Im hopeful since I know Whitney and I both enjoyed her routine as a baby :) 

Activity

This has been Grady's biggest month so far! He learned how to roll from his belly to his back more consistently.  He learned how to roll on his side to get closer to a toy or his mirror.  Then he took that one step further and rolled onto his belly! And he is reaching for everything now! Toys, hair, sunglasses, you name it.  Unfortunately for Grady, his hand-eye coordination isnt exactly wonderful yet, so he can hold toys and such, but doesnt get them to his mouth the way he would like.  This ends up in tears of frustration as he repeatedly bonks himself in the forehead in attempts to get teethers, toys, books, etc in his mouth.  Poor dude.  Im hoping practice will make perfect in the near future :) 

He's had his hands in his mouth non-stop lately and while i dont feel anything poking through his gums, I think he is starting the teeth a bit.  The drool is non-stop and he has his fists in his mouth all. day. long. He REALLLLLLY wants to suck his thumb but Im trying desperately to avoid allowing that to happen.  I can take a binky away.  I can not chop off his thumb. 

He LOVES my phone and grunts and yells until I give it to him.  He has one app that mesmerizes him with its  black and white background and bouncing balls.  He's hooked.

Grady has been practicing sitting up this month, too! He is definitely not sitting on his own for more than a few seconds, but with the help of a boppy pillow, he can sit up and interact with Whitney, which makes everyone happy :) 

Sleeping/Napping

Grady is an awesome sleeper.  He is still sleeping through the night with the occasional binky retrieval still needed.  He still sleeps swaddled, though we attempted to go unswaddled a few weeks ago since he was continually breaking free.  I filed his nails super short, put socks on his hands, and hoped for the best.  He did well one night and did pretty well for a few naps, but if I want him to have a decent (2 hour) nap, he needs to be swaddled or he cant fall asleep.  His little hands just cant leave his face and binky alone long enough for him to settle and fall asleep, so we are down to one swaddle blanket that actually fits.  Im hoping he can go unswaddled in the next month since A) I have a ton of cute jammies I want him to wear and B) I think he will like the freedom of being unconstrained.  

He has become attached to his monkey blanket and I couldnt be happier :) Whitney has been in love with her Bear Blankets since about this age, and I was hoping and praying he would find his "lovey" and hold on tight.  I have tried several different blanket/animal type loveys but none made his face light up the way this cute monkey blanket does.  Its adorable when he grabs the blanket, lights up, pulls it close and rubs his face in it and then kicks and squeals.  He "talks" to monkey often, too.  Love it. 

Eating

Grady eats 6oz bottles four times a day.  Occasionally, if he's still hungry after finishing a 6oz bottle, he will get an extra 2oz bottle, but usually 6oz is enough.  I have given him some bites of rice cereal occasionally, but since he already struggles in the poopin' department, I dont want to give him anything that might make pooping even more difficult.  We FINALLLLY found his beverage of choice, after trying every Enfamil on the market.  He has settled on Similac Sensitive and so far, so good.  His poops are better....(since you asked haha)...but few and far between.  Something I hope to address with his doctor next week.  He's not unhappy, but I just cant imagine its okay for him to go days and days between poops :(

He's had some bites of green beans and sweet potatoes and squash but Im waiting to really dive into introducing it into our daily routine later this month. 

Updated to add:

A week after this post, it is official. Grady is drinking 8oz bottles 3 times a day and another 3oz right before bed.  I was planning to give him a veggie at dinner, then introduce a veggie at lunch after he had tried all the foods, but the doc said to go right ahead and add baby food to his daily routine now. Its like he heard what she said and decided it was a great idea because he ate every last bite of a jar of bananas last night after he'd already eaten a thing of squash at lunch.  Then, today, he had an 8oz bottle at 7:30, another 8oz bottle at 11:30, and then chowed down a full container of squash followed by a full container of bananas. The Meatball can eat. 

Personality

Grady is so laid back! His is content to just sit in a lap and smile and babble and watch Whitney entertain him.  He can fall asleep anywhere and is predictable enough to know what is wrong when he does decide to cry, which isnt often.  I have to admit that I LOVE that I can get him to smile faster and bigger than anyone else on the planet :) But Whitney and Daddy are a close second.  He is still mastering the belly laugh...its almost like he is afraid to just let loose and let the big belly laughs out, but when they happen, they are adorably cute.  He giggles and chuckles at silly things, and lights up when we peek over his crib in the mornings and after naps.  He knows what he wants and gets REALLY mad when he drops a toy he was having fun exploring.  He shows favoritism towards certain toys (he has a bit of a monkey theme going on now...his favorite blankie, book, and teether are all moneys), and he is starting to really laugh when we tickle him.  Sometimes I find myself wishing he was more smiley or more talkative, but then I sorta think its nice that we have to work a bit harder for those smiles and laughs, since it means he really MEANS them :) And I quickly realize that I have one loud, talkative child, so I need to appreciate these "quieter" days of Grady's :) 

Sibling Fun

Seriously? How cute are these two? I have the two cutest kids in the world, I know :) 

Whitney continues to be a moving target, so Grady struggles to keep his eye on her as much as he would like, but he smiles when he hears her voice, and I think its adorable that Whitney RACES past me to see him when I pick her up from school. She couldnt care less about hugging Mommy...she only wants to see him and ask him how his day went without her at home :) Whitney still wants to talk about what she and Grady will be for Halloween, and its always something coordiating.  Peter and Wendy? Ariel and Sebastian? Jessie and Woody or Buzz? She talks to him allllllllllll day long, and repeatedly tells me "I love my baby brother, Mommy." randomly throughout the day.  I love her love for him, and I love that it took her no time at all to get used to him being here and taking up a lot of my time.  She just continues to go with the flow and enjoy life.  I cant wait to watch where their friendship leads them :) 

 My Favorite Chair Pictures yet:

Happy Dude, Four Months Old!