Four Months Already.....

My computer messed up a bit, so here is the actual post that was supposed to go up yesterday.



Our baby is four months old -  he is actually 4 1/2 months old by the time I am actually writing this.  I wanted to wait until his 4 month check up to post this blog so I could get his stats.

Weight:  16.4 lbs (63rd percentile)  The doctor was a little concerned that his percentile isn't staying up but the positive side is that his weight is continuing to go up, just not as fast as the doctor thinks it should.  We will go back next month for a weight check.  This same thing happened with Owen at this exact age.  So I'm not sure if my babies just start evening out at this time or my milk doesn't have as high of a fatty content.  I'm not sure but since we have been through this before I am not going to stress so much about it.

Height:  26 1/2 inches (85th percentile)

Sleep:  Around week 15 Grayson started waking up at 3 AM or 4 AM to nurse, I thought okay maybe this is a growth spurt, it will only get better.  Right?  Wrong!!  Around week 19 Grayson started waking up 45 minutes after I put him to sleep, around 10:45, then again 12 AM, 2 AM, 4 AM, 6 AM, you get the idea here.  This has been going on for a week, we are trying to figure out how to turn this around without making him "cry it out" so I am giving it another week before I make any decisions.  Owen did the same thing right around this age and we made him "cry it out".  It worked for him but it also made him a very inflexible child and he couldn't sleep anywhere but his crib.  So we will see.  One thing is for sure, I am exhausted!!

Play:  Grayson loves to be held upright more often now.  He loves to look at people and smile and coo at them.  He squeals with delight and kicks his legs all around when he sees or hears Owen.

Grayson loves toys, especially his squeaky giraffe Sophie.  He wants to put everything in his mouth so we have to have toys around all the time so he has something to chew on.  We also just started putting him in his bumbo.  He likes it for a limited time period before he starts arching his back and wanting out.

Eat:  Grayson is still exclusively nursing - we need to give this child a bottle!!  We did give him a few bites of a smashed banana several days ago.  Owen loved feeding Grayson, but we are not so sure Grayson loved eating the banana.  We will try again in a few weeks.

By the looks of his rolls, I think he is eating pretty well.  

Grayson is still a sweet natured baby who loves to get your attention and smile and laugh.  Here are some comparison shots of the two boys....

                                                                        

Can you guess who is who in these pictures?

Our Month in Pictures

Along with our trip to Tennessee, we have been trying to make the most of some of the few warm days that have come our way recently.  We had one nice Saturday where the temperature reached almost 60 degrees.  It felt like a heat wave.

We spent so much of our day riding bikes....

Looking for ducks on the golf course....

Going to the park to play...

 Apparently Owen forgot that he does not like the swings...

Spent some time with the neighborhood gang at circle park...

Grayson was worn out from all that sunshine...

Did you notice that he has a pacifier?  Yes, I finally got Grayson to take a pacifier this month.  Yay me!!  I am sure I will be cursing myself someday over this, but for now it is fabulous!

We got our new double jogging stroller this month...

Sadly it has been super cold since it came in the mail so this is as far as we have gone in the stroller.  Owen is dying to get out and take a walk in it. 

We started gymnastics class at Premier Athletics this month.  Owen is loving it!

We went to music class...

We went to a kid-friendly Mardi Gras party...

Grayson found out what his future profession is (thanks to Luke)...

(a pickle merchant)

Grayson became interested in books...

Grayson found his toes - his new favorite toy...

The boys cheered on the CATS from home in their matching UK jerseys...

That's about it for this month.  Hopefully we are able to get out and enjoy some warmer weather in the coming weeks.  

Weekend Trip to Tennessee

Some of our best friends, Eddie and Lisa recently had a baby and we were dying to meet this sweet little thing!  So we decided to make a trip south to Knoxville, Tennessee to visit baby Natalie.  Eddie has been a close friend of ours since college and when he met Lisa, we knew she would fit right in.  We have taken many trips, run many Bourbon Chase races and enjoyed a ton of laughs together over the years.  It is so much fun to share in this big life change of having a baby with such special people.

Since I can't exactly leave Grayson for more than a couple of hours, we brought him with us.  As for Owen, I would never want to bring a super energized toddler for an extended visit with a newborn.  Besides, Owen had never spent an overnight with my dad and stepmom Karen, so we thought it would be best for all if Owen stayed in Lexington.

Karen ended up not being able to make the trip with my dad so it was just going to be Pop Pop and Owen.  I can't lie, I was a little nervous.  I'm not really sure why, I guess it just makes me feel better to have a female around, as sexist as that sounds.  Apparently there was no reason to worry, Pop Pop was on top of his game. Owen had so much fun once he arrived and hardly looked our direction to say goodbye.

They read books....

 My dad prepared "the breakfast of champions" in his words...

 They played soccer....

My dad even felt so good about the weekend that he invited Max and Luke for a sleepover....

When we came home Owen was having so much fun with his cousins and Pop Pop he barely said hello.  They had a great weekend and we knew he was in good hands which made us feel better.  I did notice that Owen was wearing Grayson's 3-6 month t-shirt and one of Grayson's diapers.

In my dad's defense, this is a large 3-6 month shirt and Grayson wears a size 3 diaper. 

We really enjoyed our time traveling to visit our friends.  Brad and I stayed in a hotel because Eddie and Lisa have two dogs and Brad is highly allergic, which actually made this feel like a bit of getaway.  We woke up, and went to the gym together which we haven't done since before we had babies.

Then we had a nice, long and relaxing breakfast while Grayson slept in the booth.

It was the biggest treat to enjoy my tea while it was still hot.  That doesn't happen so much at our house anymore.

After breakfast Brad and Eddie went to the Vols basketball game while Lisa and I hung out and Grayson and Natalie got acquainted.  We met up with the boys downtown for a late lunch and some drinks.

It was a much different trip from some of our past outings with the Rottmann's.  Not sure we have ever been back in bed by 10:00 on a weekend spent with these two, but it was fun in a different way.  We look forward to many years of taking trips to the lake maybe even with our kids one day.