Me time, A lil cold, Holding a spoon, 16 wk highlights

Finally some "me" time. I've definitely needed some me time to get some things done without any distractions. So here I am enjoying a late night catching up on emails, my blog, pics, etc.etc. It continues to be a whirlwind around the Carriker home and with the holidays approaching I can only imagine how fast these next two months are going to fly bye. A's side of the family is coming this weekend and into next week for Thanksgiving. It's going to be so much fun to have family here and see all the cousins together. We plan on having some of my family out during New Year's. I really do love the holidays and spending time with family.

So Saturday night A and I stayed up until midnight! We were just trying to get some things done that we couldn't get done during the day, due to Jr's lack up sleeping during his nap times. Sunday night we stayed up late again, for the same reason as Saturday. And yet here I am again tonight staying up late. I'm kind of getting used to this; probably not a good thing considering I still get up at the same time. Nonetheless, I do enjoy having some down time and if it falls late at night, so be it! Just part of being a parent!

Jr was a little fussy and stuffy Saturday night and woke up Sunday with what sounded like a little cold. He was a little congested, sneezing, and coughing. Luckily he hasn't ran a fever or anything, just seems a little plugged up. Monday (Today) I decided to take him into the dr; I'd rather be safe than sorry when it comes to things like this, especially considering everything that is going around. The dr just said to make sure he doesn't spike a temp and watch him closely where there is a lot of nasty stuff going around. Jr sounded a lot better this afternoon and evening, so maybe he's fighting it off and it'll be completely gone soon.

Today I talked to Amy about Jr's naps. After going through everything, we came to conclude a couple things about why he wakes up 30 mins into his naps. First off I think he's just developed a habit and it's just something we need to break now. The other thing I think that contributes to him waking up is he's still hungry. We ran into this same problem when he was like 5 wks or so (I think) and he simply wasn't getting enough to eat. He acts full at the end of his feedings, but maybe getting something heavier in his stomach will help. So we decided to mix some cereal into his baby food and see if that would help fill him up a little more. It seemed to help tonight, he wasn't as fussy. We mix in cereal at his 12 and 4 feeding. He drinks and eats like a champ, which is very clear given he weighed 16 lbs today at the dr's. I can't believe he's put on 10 lbs already. Although I don't workout right now, I do get my mommy workout in daily. Lifting and squatting with him all day is giving me great mommy muscles!

Jr is a really happy baby and loves to play games with mommy and daddy. He rarely wants to play by himself and would definitely prefer someone playing with him and/or paying attention to him. The other night I was playing a game with him in his high chair and I don't think he could have laughed any harder or smiled any bigger the whole time. It was awesome and it was definitely my mommy pay check for the day! Despite all the little bumps (and yes the big ones too) you have along the parenting road, when you sit and hold your child who looks at you and gives you the sweetest smile....it is then that your world is complete and you remember the endless rewards of being a parent! I love being able to watch Jr grow daily. I can't even begin to count the number of times that A & I will be playing with Jr and I just stop to give thanks for everything I've been blessed with. Most of all I give thanks for a wonderful, loving, and amazing husband and a healthy and happy son who is simply incredible! God is truly great!

And so the milestones continue: Sunday morning I was feeding Jr and decided to give him a spoon too to see what he would do. He took it straight to his mouth! I couldn't believe it. Luckily I had grabbed the camera in hopes that he would do something like this, but thinking that he'd just drop it or do something with it besides what he did. But to my surprise he brought it right to his mouth. It was so neat and I ran to wake up A so he could see what Jr was doing. Today I put a little food on there, just so he doesn't get disappointed that there's nothing on his spoon. It kind of got everywhere, but that's the fun of learning how to eat!!! Another mommy paycheck!



16 wk highlights:
-Started eating squash this wk. Out of the 3 veggies we've tried so far, seemed to like this the best. Eats 4 tbsp of veggies/day at 3 feedings. Just started adding a little cereal to his baby food. He really seems to enjoy it.
-Got to swing at the park for the first time. Loved going on a walk to the park and seemed to really enjoy being in the swing.
-Holds his shoulders and head off the ground really well. We've really noticed his strength this week. He's getting close to rolling over, but isn't quite there yet.
-Loves to breastfeed. He definitely prefers it over the bottle. Gets a bottle after each feeding just to make sure he's full (because he drains me really well, usually only leaves an oz total) and for his last feeding we give him a bottle. Although I think we might have to change this, because he'd rather nurse than take the bottle.
-Goes to bed at 8:30 now and sleeps till 8:00.
-Is out of all of his 3 month clothes (we actually cleaned out the closet last wk). Mainly wears 6-9 month cloths in most brands.
-Has been fussy this week. He's still a very happy baby, but getting back into a routine and trying to tackle the morning and afternoon nap have made for a long week. Finally tonight (after doing eating some cereal and getting his cold cleared up a little) he's been the happiest he's been in a week.
-Experienced first very minor cold. I don't even know if it can be considered a cold, but he's definitely been stuffy and has some crud in his throat.
-Can hold a spoon and bring it to his mouth!
-Weighs 16 lbs!
-Started giving him his snuggle puppy when it's nap time. He seems to kind of like it or at least chew on the ear!
-Laughs and talks all the time. Says what sounds like "Hi!" We were at the dr office playing with his phone and it said, "Hello," he then said, "Hi!" I think the dr about fell out of his chair when he heard Jr. It was great!
-Loves to look in the mirror and talk to the "other baby!"

Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. -Ephesians 4:32