Easter has come and gone and with it a very long week for us. Adam & I both had very busy schedules last week - and we're still juggling both our jobs while caring for James during the day. Some weeks it seems to be a perfect arrangement, and other weeks it's pretty tiring. Hopefully over the course of the year at least one of us while have a scheduled workweek so we can plan better. In addition, I came down with a bad case of the flu which was the sickest I've been in many years. (And in case you're wondering - yes, I did get a flu shot this year; apparently they're only 70-80% effective and I'm just an outlier.) I did a bit of reading about breastfeeding and illness on my trusty go-to breastfeeding site, kellymom.com, and thankfully found out there are plenty of over-the-counter medications that were safe to take. I guess the thinking is the breastfeeding during maternal illness is especially important because babies are in greater need of the nutrients they can only get from breastmilk, and antibodies produced in a mother's body for the specific illness she has gets passed along to the baby. So breastfeed we did and I'm happy to report James seems to have escaped getting the flu. Still, Adam came down with a milder version of what I had and we spent a couple of days just taking turns laying in bed and waiting to recover.
I remember enjoying sick days when I was a kid; I always got such special treatment from my mom and liked staying home from school and getting to veg out on the couch with my books or movies I liked. She would make a "sick bay" on our living room couch for my brother and I and would stay home from work to take care of us. She was so sweet; I can remember throwing up on her bed, in the car, and a number of other places (I was horrible about "getting to the bathroom") and she would just lovingly hold me and make me feel better. Even now, when I don't feel good I still just want my mom. I wanted her there when I was in labor with James and I wish for her to take care of me every time I come down with a bad cold. This week, she did actually oblige her 29 year-old daughter and brought me some homemade chicken noodle soup which I'm sure is what finally broke my fever.
We did have big travel plans for Easter that got canceled as we were too sick to go anywhere. We had planned to visit my dad and my grandmother in Bend, OR and are hoping to reschedule for later this month. In the meantime, we dressed James in a special Easter outfit and opened Easter baskets which included a new bunny for James. We'll have to post some photos when we can.
In the meantime, here are some 4-month pictures of James (above). He is an absolute delight at this age and I'm loving this stage so much. I know a lot of moms blog about the details of what their babies are doing at each month, but I find that a little boring so I'll just include the highlights:
- James is back to waking only once a night, and otherwise sleeps from around 8:30 - 6:30 a.m.
- Unlike most babies, he learned first to roll from his back to his stomach, and likes to do it constantly. He's still mastering the art of flipping back the other way but is getting pretty close.
- While on his stomach, James arches his back, balances on his legs and sticks his bottom in the air like he's trying to crawl. He is a man on the move and would try to walk out the front door if his poor little uncoordinated body didn't get in the way.
- He smiles all the time at us, and has started doing belly laughs when Adam sings funny songs to him.
- He loves his toys! He's very tactile and wants to grab everything in sight and put it in his mouth. His favorite toy is this little green frog that has a pull string and caused the frog to vibrate and make noise. It got pulled so much that James actually broke it, but still likes to grasp onto it while in the car or when falling asleep for his naps. It's pretty cute.
- Really likes to be around us and will look intently around the room if someone walks away. He still loves being held but seems to enjoy having space to himself (like laying on a blanket) and knowing that we're nearby.
- Loves to talk, babble, coo, and shriek with delight. Loves when he is talked to and especially sung to.
- Is doing much better being in his carseat and does great on most outings. Sometimes enjoys being in one of our baby carriers and almost always falls asleep when being pushed in his stroller.
- Is getting too big and strong (and bored) for his bouncy chair and enjoys hanging out in the walker/exersaucer my mom found at a garage sale. Likes his bumbo chair, but usually ends up trying to eat his toes and almost falling out.
- Likes to read books for short periods. Some of our favorites right now include Dr. Seuss's Green Eggs & Ham, I am a Bunny, Goodnight Moon, Pajama Time (our bedtime routine book) by Sandra Boynton, and board books with bright colors and objects that he can help turn the pages on.
- ADORES listening to all kinds of music. We play him Johnny Richardson cds (folk kids music), Beatles, reggae, Jackson 5, and a few cds of lullaby versions of popular bands like Radiohead.
- When delighted by something, will often flash a huge Gerber smile, then bury his head in our chests and peek out and make funny noises.
- Is 18 lbs. now (95th percentile), 24 inches long (88th percentile), and still has a big head (120th percentile). Wears size 3 diapers and 9-month Carter's clothes.
- Remains exclusively breastfed and eats every 2-3 hours pretty much like clockwork. We will be getting ready to start solids soon and I can't wait to start making my own baby food - I can already tell it's going to be a little bit of an obsession.
- Is just so much to be around and makes our lives so joyful!
