Six months old

Wow, Jacob is six months old. That is half of a year! I cannot believe my little baby is growing up so fast. It is amazing to see all of the wonderful things that he can do, but I am sad to see the days, weeks and months pass by so quickly!

We went to the doctor for his six month checkup last Wednesday and she said that he looked great. He weighed 18 lbs, 1 oz (55th percentile) and was 26 1/4 inches long (45th percentile). Unfortunately, he had to get five shots (including the seasonal flu & H1N1 shot). It was hard to see him in such pain after getting all of those shots, but once I scooped him up and cuddled him for a little while, he was all better. I did give him some Motrin & Tylenol later that day (as instructed by the nurse) just in case he had some additional pain, but he didn't seem to be any fussier than normal. We have to go back in a month for him to get the 2nd shot of the seasonal flu and then will see the pediatrician again at 9 months.

The doctor did have a small concern about a slight tilt to Jacob's head. I honestly never really noticed it until she said something, but it appears that when Jacob holds his head up, it tilts every so slightly to the right. She suggested that we see a pediatric Physical Therapist for one appointment to get some ideas of stretches and exercises we can do to make sure his neck muscles on the left are being strengthened like they should. We have not gotten the referral to the PT yet so I am sure the appointment will be after the holidays. I am not concerned one bit about this because he has really good head control and is able to move his head and neck really well (especially when he is on his tummy). I am confident that he is growing just fine.

One of the exciting things that we started recently is feeding Jacob vegetables. As you know from previous posts, Jake has been eating rice cereal for some time now and really loves it. He also seems very interested in whatever we are eating or drinking. When I am eating something in front of him, he stares at it as it goes from my plate to my mouth. Sometimes, he even opens his mouth hoping that the food will somehow land in it! It is really cute, although I do feel guilty sometimes. I think it will be easier once he can eat what we are eating.

I am definitely going to make my own baby food. It seems like such a simple process for the most part and this way Jacob will be getting fresh fruits and veggies. For now though, with the craziness of the holidays and with us traveling to Richmond and PA in the coming weeks, I am just giving Jake Gerber baby food. I started with sweet potatoes last Thursday and it didn't take him long to really enjoy them. He did make a funny face the first time, but by the second meal, he didn't seem to mind them. He started on carrots on Sunday and really liked those. I am still nursing him four times a day in addition to the cereal and the veggies. Like I have said before, I am confident that he is going to be a good eater, which I am thankful for.

I also introduced a sippy cup with water in it in the last week. Jacob has no earthly idea what to do with the cup other than hold it and put it in his mouth. I have been letting him just play with it to get used to it. At times, I have taken the valve out of it so that the water comes out freely when it is tipped over. When I put it up to his mouth and the water comes out, he usually spits it out. I am sure that it is weird for him to feel a strange liquid substance in his mouth. I know that over time, he will get the hang of it.

Jacob has started to notice his feet a lot more now too and will put them in his mouth. He especially likes to grab for them when he is on the changing table. I think that is because it is one of the only places where his feet are exposed and don't have socks on them. He will pull at his socks and try to put them in his mouth too. He doesn't quite have the strength to pull his socks off yet, but he is close!

Another thing that he is close to mastering is sitting up by himself. As you can see in this picture, he can do it for a very short period of time. Most often, he does not like to sit up (he will arch his back to get back into a laying down position) although I try to pile up lots of toys in front of him so that he has something to distract him. I love seeing him sitting up and I think it makes him look like such a big boy.

The REALLY exciting thing (in my opinion) happening lately is that Jacob's two bottom teeth are coming in! It's hard to get a picture of them so you may not be able to really see them, but they are there! They are popping out more and more everyday. Unfortuantely, because of this, Jake has been a little bit fussier the past few days, mostly in the afternoon and evenings. Thankfully, a little bit of Infant Tylenol usually does the trick and he doesn't seem to be in too much pain most of the time.

A few other things to note (mostly for my own documentation):

• Jacob definitely knows his name and responds to it. If you call his name, he will turn his head and most often smile.
• EVERYTHING goes in his mouth! He will attempt to "eat" anything he can including my shirt, his blanket, his toys and the remote control.
• I can't "sneek" into his room anymore when he is awake in his crib. He pushes himself up and holds his head up really high so that he can see my every move. If I do need to go in there to check on him or get something, I have to duck down so that he can't see me. It's quite a challenge sometimes!
• Sometimes Jacob gets stranger anxiety, but for the most part he smiles at everyone he sees. He has a harder time when I am not around. Even when Keith is holding him, he often turns his head to make sure he knows where I am at all times. He recently stayed with my parents for a few hours and did remarkably well. He seems to take awhile to warm up to my Dad, but my Mom said that Dad was able to make him smile a few times the other night!
• He does not recognize me if I have my sunglasses on. He just stares blankly at me until I take them off.
• Jacob LOVES to jump. He has taken a tremendous liking to the Exersaucer and will jump up and down to make the music and lights turn on. He also loves it when we hold him and he jumps on our laps, or on our stomachs if we are laying down. He is a ball full of energy!
• He is still sleeping really well. I read on babycenter.com that six month old babies require 11-15 hours of sleep a day. Jacob is currently getting more like 15-18 hours. I guess he just really likes sleep!
• He is becoming more flexible when it comes to missing one of his naps. This is good as it allows me to have some flexibility in going places during the day.
• He has not really added much to his vocabulary of sounds lately. He mostly says "ah", "oh" and something that sounds like "hi". He does laugh and giggle a lot, which is really cute. He also yells at times when he is really excited.
• He loves music and when I sing it calms him when he is fussy (especially in the car).
• He is scared of the vaccum cleaner and the dust buster. He cries when I turn them on. He also gets scared if we sneeze loudly. He doesn't always cry, but he gets this really frightened look on his face.
• He is starting to do some things that require us to tell him "No", like putting his fingers in his mouth when he is eating or trying to roll over while we are changing his diaper. It is hard for me to "discipline" him at such a young age, but I know that I need to teach him right from wrong. Slowly, I am sure he will start to understand.
• He is still spitting up A LOT. I am definitely ready to be done with this stage! He is still taking Zatac twice a day and we will continue that for as long as we need to (the doctor said he can probably go off of it by the time he is one).
• He definitely has a few favorite toys that go everywhere with us. These include his teething ring, his orange ball and the green monkey. He has others that he likes to play with at home, but those three are the standard favorites right now.

As you can see, I am very busy raising a beautiful, smart little person! I am LOVING my life right now and look forward to all of the wonderful things that are to come!

Thanksgiving 2009

I am way behind in posting about recent happenings, but I wanted to be sure to include a post about Jacob's first Thanksgiving. So here goes....

Every Thanksgiving that Keith and I have celebrated together (4 years) has been spent in Richmond with my family. This has usually happened because one (or both) of us had to work on the day after, so traveling wasn't going to work.

This year, since neither of us had work, we decided to venture up to Western PA to spend the holiday with Keith's family. We left on Monday afternoon and came back on Friday. We would have stayed through the weekend, but we had plans to meet up with friends of ours in Richmond on Saturday (Daryl & Ana who were in town from Toronto) and Sunday (Mark & Tanya who were in town from Asheville, NC). Unfortunately, the visit on Saturday didn't pan out, but we were overjoyed to see the Burdettes on Sunday!!

While we were visiting in PA, like we do many times, we stayed with Keith's aunt Kay & uncle Barry in the house that Keith grew up in. It was the first time we had taken an extended overnight trip with Jacob since September and I was worried that his schedule would get a bit messed up (which it did) and he would get overtired (which he did) and the trip would be stressful for me (which it was) because I am such a control freak when it comes to his schedule! All in all, though, I was pleased at how flexible he became and how easily he took to being around people that he doesn't see very often.

As you can see, he was quite happy hanging out with uncle Barry one morning:

And, aunt Kay got him some really fun toys to play with. She got down on the floor with him numerous times and he really enjoyed playing with her:

On Thanksgiving day, we went to Keith's cousin Susie's house and had 14 people around the dinner table. It was great to see everyone and for them to enjoy time with Jacob.

Of course, Jacob wasn't able to enjoy all of the delicious food that we had (they had turkey AND ham AND manicotti, not to mention all of the wonderful side dishes. And, the desserts were awesome!!) But, he did get to sit in his portable high chair and eat some yummy rice cereal!

He also got to experience the "Grand Illumination" of Susie & Tad's Christmas decorations. Jacob got to "hit the switch" and turn all of their outdoor lights on. Of course, at this point he was tired and probably cold (it was a bit chilly there that night), but he looked at all the lights with Daddy.

After he took his evening nap, he got to play a bit with Grandma Marge (Keith's mom) and his cousin Becca. At times, I think he wasn't sure about all of the people around but for the most part, he really relished the attention.

On Friday morning, we woke up to snow falling and Jacob got to experience his very first snowfall. It snowed for a few hours and a couple of inches accumulated on the ground. Keith and I were really excited to see snow & glad that we were able to show it to Jacob. I think he wasn't quite sure what to think about it, but he didn't cry or fuss when we took him outside in it.

We didn't keep him outside long since he didn't have super warm clothes on, but he did get to put his feet on the snowy ground.
He enjoyed being out there with Mommy & Daddy and we are hoping he gets to experience more snow when we travel north again for Christmas.

Feet

I am not a big fan of feet, except for my own. Well, and these......

The Hop 'N Pop

We have been on the go so much this last week and I have a lot of things to blog about including our trip to PA for Thanksgiving with Keith's family. Unfortunately, I haven't had time to sit down and put anything together yet.

In the meantime, I wanted to post this video (which in my opinion is super cute!) of Jacob in one of his favorite toys right now - the Fisher Price Hop 'N Pop. This is a toy that we borrowed from a friend of mine about two months ago and Jacob is just now really starting to enjoy it. When he jumps up and down, it "pops" and music plays.

This video was taken on Sunday night after we returned from a week away from home. As you can see, Jake was very animated that night and his laughter was contagious! The funniest thing was that he could see himself on the computer while I was recording and it was almost mesmorizing for him! He would stop and just stare at himself. I just love his little laughs!

A day at the playground

Last Monday, I met my sister, Katie, and her kiddos at one of the playgrounds in my neighborhood. It was a beautiful sunny day and was even a bit warm when you were standing directly in the sun.

Katie & I enjoyed catching up and we even chatted with a few moms and their kiddos who were also visiting the playground. Pierce really enjoyed playing with another little boy who was about his age. I wish I had gotten a picture of them sitting together on the playground talking about the plane that had just flown over us. It was so cute!

We have visited the playground a few other times with Katie & Pierce, but I have never put Jacob on the swingset before since he wasn't really able to sit up very well until recently. This time, I put him in the swing and when I pushed him a little, he smiled. I think he really liked it.

Here are some fun pictures from our adventure:

Pierce & Jacob on the swing while another little boy looks on.

Reid was fast asleep in the front carrier.

Weeeeee....Jacob is happy on the swing

Katie doing "triple duty" - pushing Pierce on the swing

while wearing Reid in the carrier AND talking to another mom

He looks so grown up! :(

He's thinking, "Mom, stop taking pictures so you can keep pushing me!"

Five months old (a few weeks late!)

Warning...this is going to be a long post because I am so behind with blogging lately. I feel like I have so much to post about, but I just don't get around to actually typing out my thoughts. It's frustrating and I wish I had more time in the day to get things like this done. In addition to sharing what's going on in our lives, I want to "journal" what is happening with Jacob so I can go back and remember all of the fun things he is learning and doing. I have recently gone back and read some of my posts from when he was first born and I really enjoy seeing how little he was and remembering those times.

Alas, he turned 5 months old two weeks ago and I am just now getting around to post about it. I guess I need to be more organized and on top of things in the months to come. Maybe that can be my New Year's resolution this year :)

Anyways, I cannot believe that Jacob is 5 months old already!! He is growing up so fast before my eyes and I often want time to stop so I can enjoy this wonderful stage in his life!

Developmentally, he is changing so much every day. The biggest change in the last month is that he can now hold on to things, like rattles and such. He can also pick them up if I put them in front of him. He has always had a really strong grip, but now it is so cool to watch him actually focus on a toy, reach out and grab it. I know it's a small thing, but it just makes me so proud!

He still loves to be on his stomach (as soon as I put him in his crib or on the floor to play, he instantly turns over onto his stomach). He is not very fond of laying on the activity mat and playing with the toys that hang down above him. He would much rather be on his tummy with his head up looking at the things around him. I need to be very careful when he is on the couch or the bed as he tends to move around a lot also and I am worried that he may roll right off! I am certain that crawling is not too far away although I am not in any hurry for that to happen! As you can see from this picture, he has a lot of strength in his arms and he pushes himself up often to look around. He hasn't mastered anything with his legs let except for kicking his feet, but I am sure that will come soon.

He also has no desire to sit up at this time. I often prop him up on the couch, but he arches his back and pushes himself down to a laying position. It's weird, but I guess that is how he is most comfortable!

He is more and more alert these days and enjoys playing with things like this Exersaucer that we borrowed from Sierra (Thank you, Karen!). He still can't really push any buttons himself, although sometimes he accidently hits something and music will play. He is very interested in looking around at everything and enjoys anything that lights up or plays music. We have put the bouncy seat away and he doesn't sit in the swing that much anymore. I guess we are moving to a new stage of "playing".

I am not sure if he is teething or not, although I suspect that he is. I have been periodically checking his gums to see if I can feel any teeth popping up, but I haven't felt anything. He constantly has his hands in his mouth, either sucking or chewing on his fingers or pulling on his gums. He drools a lot too, although not as much as I had imagined. I try to give him appropriate things to "chew" on like teething rings and toys, but he often will grab one of my fingers, a blanket, his bib or his burp cloth. Basically he puts everything in his mouth!!

He has started making more sounds now too. He will babble on and on and he makes a really cute raspberry noise (although it's not so cute when he does it while he is eating as it makes a big mess!). He also likes to make a high-pitched squealing noise when he gets excited (like when Daddy comes home from work). I love "talking" with him and he is contantly smiling, either in response to someone smiling at him or even on his own. He has started laughing a lot more now too (especially when I kiss him on his neck or tickle him). Last night Keith was getting him ready for bed while I was cleaning up from dinner and I could hear them both laughing really hard over the monitor. It was so cute hearing them interact and I know that Keith really enjoys those times too!

He continues to do really well with eating. On November 4th, I decided to get his high chair out of the box and see how he would do sitting in it while eating his rice cereal. As you can see, he really enjoys it. Keith said that seeing him in the high chair really made him look like a little boy and I would have to agree. I am sad that he is growing up so fast!

He is still breastfeeding about five times a day (usually every 3-4 hours). After he breastfeeds mid-morning and mid-afternoon, I give him a 1/4 cup of rice cereal mixed with breastmilk. He has become really good at eating with the spoon and he really likes to eat! He gets excited when he sees me coming with the cereal and he waves his arms and legs. He finishes all of it in a very short time and would probaby eat more if I gave it to him. A few weeks ago I was thinking about giving him some fruits and vegetables too, but I have decided to wait a few more weeks until he turns six months old.

In addition to being a good eater, he is also an awesome sleeper! He has really stared to establish a pattern which is nice for me! He usually gets up around 7am (give or take 15 minutes). When he wakes up in the morning (and from most naps), he doesn't cry or really even fuss. Most of the time I will hear him just babbling to himself in the crib. Usually after about 45 minutes of being awake in the morning (including feeding time), he starts to get fussy and will go back down for a morning nap. These days, he will sleep anywhere from an hour to three hours during that nap. Once he gets up, he eats and plays for about an hour to an hour and a half, and then he goes down for another nap. His afternoon nap is often shorter than his morning nap, but he sometimes sleeps three hours in the afternoon too (if he takes a long nap in the morning, it's often shorter in the afternoon and vice versa). Depending on what time he wakes up from his afternoon nap, he will sometimes go down for a short nap around 5pm and sleep for about an hour. He is usually in bed for the night between 7 and 7:30pm.

He does really well with going down in the crib. I think we taught him well that the crib is the place you go to sleep. He will often lay his head right down as soon as we put him in it. He very rarely fusses or cries, although sometimes he will babble for quite awhile until he falls asleep. One cute thing is that he will "talk" to the bears that are on the bumper around the inside of his crib. If he is "talking" a lot, sometimes I will go in to see if he has spit up or if something else is wrong and he will just be staring at one of the bears making "ooh" and "aah" sounds. I usually smile and just walk out of the room.

One thing that he does have trouble with is falling asleep in the pack and play when we are traveling. It usually takes him some time to fall asleep and he sometimes gets fussy if he is in an unfamiliar place. I am hoping this is something he will grow out of. We are traveling to PA next week to spend Thanksgiving with Keith's family so I will have to see how he does.

He is still taking Zantac for his reflux issue. I have decreased his dose to 1 ml twice a day and I am hoping to get it even lower (and eventually not have to use it at all). I tried to decrease it to .5 ml, but the next day he was very fussy so I decided not to mess with it for now.

I wish I could say that he isn't spitting up as much now that he is eating cereal, but that isn't the case. In fact, in the past few days, he seems to be having more stomach issues and is spitting up more than usual. I don't know what the cause might be, but thankfully he doesn't seem to mind it, except when he does it in the crib and then he gets it all over his face. As for me, I am definitely ready for it to STOP! I walk around most days smelling like sour milk....not fun!

All in all, Jacob is growing and changing so much! I love being around him and find it a joy to hang out with him every day. I cannot believe that he will be six months old in just two weeks!! He has his six month checkup with the doctor scheduled for December 9th, so I will be sure to report his new "stats" and let you all know what else he is up to!

Happy 3rd Anniversary to us!

Today Keith and I are celebrating our 3rd wedding anniversary. Some days it seems like our wedding was just yesterday and sometimes I feel like I have known Keith my whole life!

This past year has brought many changes to our marriage, most importantly being the addition of Jacob to our family. Three years ago, on our wedding day, we could only dream of the childen that we hoped to have. Today, we are not only husband and wife, but we are also Mom & Dad to this precious baby boy.

I am truly thankful to Keith for being a caring husband, a loving father and a gracious provider for our family. I look forward to many more years of health and happiness with this wonderful man.

Jacob's Baptism

Last Sunday, Jacob was baptized at St. Martin's Episcopal Church in Richmond. St. Martin's is the church that Keith and I belonged to before we moved to Charlottesville. Keith attended the church for ten years & I went there for three years. We really miss that church and all of the wonderful people that are involved there. We have been attending a church here in Charlottesville but we haven't gotten very involved or met very many people. And, I think even when we do, it will be really hard to replace the memories and friendships that we have at St. Martin's.

Back in the Spring, when I was pregnant, we visited St. Martin's one Sunday when we were in Richmond. We had numerous people tell us that we had to have the baby baptized at St. Martin's. They made it very clear that they wanted to be involved in this spiritual event and Keith and I were really glad to share it with all of them. It was also awesome, in my opinion, to have Fr. Lee, who is the priest that married us, perform the baptism. It just seemed appropriate.

For anyone who is not familiar with the Episcopal church, we believe that "Infants are baptized so that they can share citizenship in the Covenant, membership in Christ, and redeption by God." The baptismal promises are made for infants by their parents or sponsors, "who guarantee that the infants will be brought up within the Church, to know Christ and be able to follow him". [Excerpt taken from HERE]

Keith and I asked my brother & sister-in-law, Mike & Blakely, to be Jacob's Godparents. We believe that they are faithful people who have the same religious beliefs as we do. They will be good examples to Jacob and will pray for us, and him, as we strive to raise him to be a loving and faithful Christian.

Unfortunately, Jacob missed his morning nap due to the timing of the church service so he was pretty cranky during the entire thing (except for the actual baptism). He had a bit of meltdown in the beginning of the service because he was hungry. I tried to give him a bottle in the pew, but he was not happy with it. I took him out and breastfed him in a private room and we returned to the sanctuary just when we needed to go up on the altar for the baptism.

Thankfully, he did really well when it was time for him to "shine" up on the altar. He didn't cry at all when Fr. Lee sprinkled the water on him. He did, however, cry a bit when Fr. Lee made the sign of the cross on his forehead. I'm not sure what he didn't like about it, but people thought it was "cute" so it wasn't that bad.

During the ceremony, Jacob wore a Christening gown that belongs to my grandmother and is an old family heirloom. It is almost 50 years old and has been worn by many baptized babies in my family. I wore it when I was baptized 34 years ago. Do you see any resemblance?

After the baptism, Keith had to leave the service and sit with Jacob in the parish hall for the second half of the service. He was very overtired and by the time we left the church, he was prety much spent! We took him back to my parents' house and he went to sleep pretty soon after we arrived.

While he was sleeping, the rest of us watched football, ate my mom's awesome Spaghetti dinner, and enjoyed some cake that we got for the occasion.

Keith and I are very thankful to my entire family for coming to Richmond to help us celebrate this very important event. It was great to have the whole family together and to have everyone be a part of Jacob's special day!

Cousins

Last night Katie, Pierce and Reid came over to our house for dinner. Keith was seeing a movie with a friend and Shaun was working late so it was a great night for us to get together.

When they arrived - and while we ate - Jacob was napping. As soon as I mentioned that I should probably wake him up so that he didn't go to bed for the night too late, Pierce jumped up and said "I am going to go with you". He was so excited to see Jacob! Together, we went into Jacob's room. Pierce was standing on the ottoman so that he could see into the crib when we woke him up. Luckily Jacob is usually pretty happy when he wakes up, even if we have to wake him. When Jacob looked up and saw Pierce, he smiled at him. It was so precious.

Then Pierce said, "I want to hold him". He was really excited to hold Jacob and was really cute interacting with him. He was talking to him and saying "He is looking at me". They both seemed to be enjoying each other's company. They even watched a bit of a "Berenstain Bears" movie together.

When Jacob was sleeping, Pierce noticed one of his toys on the coffee table. It is a teething ring that has water in it. Pierce saw the water and said "It has water in it". I explained to him that it is for Jacob to chew on because it helps his gums. His next question, of course, was "What gums?" and I told him that Jacob doesn't have any teeth but he has gums that get sore when his teeth are growing.

Well, once Jacob got up and Pierce was holding him he said that he wanted to give Jacob his toy. When I handed it to him, he immediately put the water part in Jacob's mouth. It was too cute to see him holding the teething ring for Jacob.

Later, while I was feeding Jacob, I asked Pierce if he loved his baby brother. He said, "Yes, but I love this baby too" (as he patted Jacob on the head). He is such a good "big cousin" and such a loving little boy! I look forward to seeing them interact more and more as Jacob grows up!

Blog Award

I've never received a Blog Award before, but I have seen them on many of the blogs that I read. My sister-in-law, Blakely at With This Ring, gave me this award. Thanks Blakely! I appreciate it!

So, here are the rules:

Fill out the below questions, using only one word, pass along to six favorite bloggers, and tell 'em you did so.

Take it away...

1. Where is your cell phone? kitchen

2. Your hair? messy

3. Your mother? loving

4. Your father? giving

5. Your favorite food? carbs

6. Your dream last night? none

7. Your favorite drink? tea (iced & sweet)

8. Your dream/goal? success

9. What room are you in? living

10. Your hobby? blogs

11. Your fear? loss

12. Where do you want to be in six years? here

13. Where were you last night? home

14. Something that you aren't? hungry

15. Muffins? blueberry

16. Wish list item? Wii

17. Where did you grow up? NY

18. Last thing you did? ate

19. What are you wearing? pajamas

20. Your TV? Sony

21. Your pets? none

22. Friends? great

23. Your life? awesome

24. Your mood? lazy

25. Missing someone? always

26. Vehicle? Jeep

27. Something you're not wearing? socks

28. Your favorite store? Kohls

29. Your favorite color? blue

30. When was the last time you laughed? today

31. Last time you cried? unsure

32. Your best friend? husband

33. One place that I could go over and over? Vegas (good answer, Blakely)

34. One person who emails you regularly? Keith

35. Favorite place to eat? Mexican

& the next lucky winners are...

The Simons Say

NG Things

I'm Only Sleeping

Sheparding My Herd

Welcome to the Jungle

Growth of the Gringers

Starting Solids

We started feeding Jacob solids last week per the advice of our doctor. The hope is that the solid food will help his GERD and also will keep him from spitting up as much. So far, as a whole, I haven't really seen a difference in the spitting up, but I am hopeful that it will get better as his tummy adjusts to this new addition.

Like most babies, Jacob is eating rice cereal to start. I was hesitant to start him on solids knowing how messy and time consuming it can be (compared to breastfeeding). Also, I have heard and read many mom's opinions about not starting solids too soon. Most say you should wait until 6 months and Jacob is not even 5 months old right now. I certainly don't want to do anything that is not good for him!

Now, after a week of feeding him cereal once per day, I think I made the right decision. He is doing really good and seems to really enjoy eating! [Note: this does not suprise me since he is my son and I love to eat!] He eats really well from the spoon and he seems to like the cereal when it is thicker rather than runny. (The first few days, I mixed a lot of breastmilk in so that it was more liquidy. Now it is a more of a thick consistency and he is able to eat it a lot easier.)

I feed him the cereal during his late-afternoon feeding, usually around 3pm. Up until today, I was giving him the cereal first (about a tablespoon mixed with breastmilk) and then breastfeeding him. Today, I decided to do it the other way around and I think it worked better. He didn't spit up as much after eating and I think the heaviness of the cereal really did help to keep everything down, as the doctor said it would.

I haven't really decided what I am going to do about introducing other things - like fruits and veggies - into Jacob's diet. I am leaning towards waiting another month or so and just increasing his cereal to two or three times per day. I am not sure if that is a good idea or not (I have never done this before and really am just wingin' it!!) so we shall see.

For now, here is a little clip of Jacob's cereal eating from yesterday. (Please excuse the loud banging noise from me putting the bowl back on the table repeatedly. I didn't realize how loud it really was!)

Enjoy!

First pair of shoes

Thanks to my grandma, who is visiting us from Rochester...

...Jacob has his first pair of shoes!

As you can see, he really likes them....

....and Daddy already has Jacob practicing his walking!

I love the shoes and am so glad that he has something to keep his little feet warm when we go outside now. THANK YOU NANA!!

Is it Fall or Winter?

Fall is my favorite time of year. Who doesn't love falling leaves, apple picking, pumpkins, and the crispness in the air? Well, unfortunately this year, so far, Fall has not been "crisp", it has been downright cold (except for last Friday when it was 80 degrees...that's a bit too warm!!)

Even though it is only October, the weather here in Charlottesville has been pretty crappy! The past few days it has been rainy and the highs have only been in the 40s....brrrr!

Since I had a summer baby, I am not the greatest at figuring out how to dress Jacob for cold weather. Luckily, we were given a really cute winter hat from one of Keith's co-workers.

On Wednesday night, Jacob donned the hat* as we were leaving Katie & Shaun's house. I personally think he looks really cute, but I am not super excited about having to bundle my baby up just yet.

*Note: Jacob also had blankets on him, although they can't be seen in this picture. I don't want anyone to think that I took my baby outside in 40 degree temeratures in just a hat!

Fortunately, the weather forecast is calling for an increase in temperatures and we will be getting back to "normal" around here next week - highs in the 60s! That's the Fall that I like to see!

Four Months Old

Jacob turned four months old last week. Can you believe it? Even he can't believe that sign says FOUR months...holy cow...where has the time gone?

I can't believe how big he is getting and how he is turning from a small baby into a little boy. I have a hard time remembering how little he once was as he has changed so much in the last four months.

We went to the doctor today and she told me that he is just perfect (which I already knew!). He currently weighs 15lbs, 13 oz (70th percentile) and is 25 inches long (50th percentile). She was impressed that he was rolling over and that he had started when he was three months old. She said that means he is "ahead of the game" with his gross motor skills. I am already bracing myself for him to start crawling early!!

He also got three shots today and he did really well. He cried when he actually got the shots but once I picked him up and cuddled him a bit, he settled down. He even fell asleep on the way home from the doctor's office.

I talked to the doctor about Jacob's spitting up, which is really annoying (for him and me) and happens more some days than others. I was hoping that it was going to end sooner than later, but it seems to be continuing. She suggested that we start giving him a small amount of rice cereal before each feeding. She said that this should help keep everything down. I can't say that I am super excited about starting Jacob on solids, for numerous reasons....it is messy, it is more work that just breastfeeding, and it requires more planning when we are out of the house. I am willing to try it though, so that he is no longer in discomfort. I'll be sure to let you know how it goes!

These days, I am really enjoying being at home full-time with Jacob as his personality is really coming out. He is such a happy baby - even first thing in the morning (he certainly didn't get that from me!). He smiles most of the day and is easily amused by the littlest things. His bouts of laughter are contagious - he sometimes giggles when other times, he lets out these huge laughs! He is also very ticklish and I can't resist tickling his little body so that I can hear him let out a little giggle.

He is especially happy and giggly when Daddy gets home in the evening. I think it is awesome to see the two of them interacting and I can tell the love that Jacob has for Keith just by the look in his eyes.

Keith is hoping to pass his love of books on to Jacob. Right now, Jacob is not super excited about books, but we continue to read to him and hopefully, as he gets older, he will learn to love them.

One thing he does enjoy is singing. And, although, I know that I don't have the best singing voice, Jacob really likes listening to me sing. His favorite songs right now are "The Wheels on the Bus", "The Farmer in the Dell", and "You are my Sunshine". Sometimes he even "joins" in while I am singing. It is so cute to see him being able to interact with me more and more.

Physically, Jacob is becoming stronger every day. He now holds his head up really well and loves to be on his stomach. He will lay on the couch or on the floor for awhile, just hanging out. He loves to look around and take in his surroundings.

I think he really enjoys the new views he is getting from being able to sit up in the Bumbo seat or play in the Hop 'n Pop.

He doesn't really "hop" too much, but he is learning how to make the music work by either extending his legs or hitting one of the buttons. And, he loves to watch the lights. It's so much fun to watch him learn new things.

Breastfeeding is still going really well, although Jacob does get easily distracted these days. He often will stop eating and start looking around if he hears someone talking nearby or if I have the TV on. I used to be able to feed him while catching up on my favorite DVRed TV show, but these days I am finding it easier to feed him in silence. This way he can concentrate on eating and not on what is going on around him. Also, I have learned that he and I can connect better when there is less going on around us. I love the closeness that I feel towards him when I am feeding him. Time is going by so fast that I know these days are going to come to an end all too soon.

Sleeping is also something that continues to go well, although the last week or so, Jacob has started waking up every 3-4 hours during the night (he had been sleeping for 10-11 hours straight most nights). I am attributing it to a growth spurt and hoping that it ends soon. The doctor suggested that I do not feed him when he wakes up and I may try that tactic tonight. I am not sure I will be able to ignore his fussing, but I will try.

He is definitely a stomach sleeper and instantly turns over onto his stomach when we put him in the crib on his back. He also has a tendancy to scoot up and sleep in the very corner of his crib. It is quite cute, but makes me nervous every time I see him like this. I worry that he is going to suffocate himself when he turns his face towards the bumper. I go in and check on him often when I am awake.

All in all, our little boy is growing up and I am happy and sad all at the same time. It is so awesome to see him acquire new skills and learn new things everyday, but I am sad that these "baby" days are going by so quickly. Like I have said numerous times, I am truly blessed to be Jacob's mommy and I love him more and more everyday!