I will admit I kind of lost my cool this month. I have had to apologize to Derek and my mom countless times. What was so hard for me is that everything was going pretty much perfect before this last month. Once Noah started eating normally, things were awesome! I thought wow, this is easy! So when he suddenly started screaming for every nap and waking up in the middle of the night it felt like we were going backwards. Also, it was hard because in order to solve certain problems, I felt like I could only fix it with band-aid solutions, creating new problems that we would later have to overcome.
It seems to be slowly getting back to normal now. I hope so anyways. But I have learned a lot this month. I've learned that just when you think you have it all figured out, things change!!! I'm sure this will be a continuing thing throughout Noah's life, especially the first few years. It's just one thing after another with babies. That's why we love them right, because they drive us crazy :)
Down to business..
Feedings:
Basically feedings and sleep switched places this month. Sleep sucked, but nursing was so much better. Spitting up is not an issue anymore, he spits up every once in a while, pretty normal. He is able to get down and play as soon as he's done burping. Still a little fussy once in a while before burping. Sometimes I worry that he is lip tied also, even though my IBCLC checked for it. His upper lip is just tight, sometimes causes minor pain for me. Hopefully if he is, it doesn't cause problems later on. He eats very fast now, sometimes I worry he's not getting enough. My milk definitely regulated this last month, I'm not as full as I used to be. I drink Mother's Milk Tea at least twice a day just to be safe, I find it helps. Feeding him in public is easier. However he does get easily distracted by people and sounds. He lets me know when he's done, he just pulls off and doesn't want to latch back on. He makes me and Derek laugh because he will be perfectly happy and as soon as I lay him down and get ready to feed him he suddenly acts STARVING (even if he just ate 2 or 3 hrs ago) and acts like he can't wait another minute! He lifts his head up, tries to pull me close with his hands and opens his mouth and sometimes starts to whine! It's so funny. I read on someone else's blog that their baby did the same thing. He is eating out of a bottle much better also. He doesn't choke or gag anymore and drinks much faster this way too. And he holds onto his bottle and does the same thing where he pulls it down to him and curls his head up. But we only feed him bottles (with pumped milk) once in a while.
Play:
Earlier this month Noah started reaching for things. I kept wondering when he was going to start doing that. He kind of skipped the uncoordinated swinging and batting and just went straight to reaching and grabbing. Last month he used to only grab things if it was already laying on him or if it was touching his hands but now he can easily grab things hanging over him, handed to him etc.. He still puts everything in his mouth almost instantaneously. He loves playing with (aka eating) toys. We love making him laugh. Derek likes to throw him in the air and catch him. Noah does pretty good at playing by himself for a while. I try to give him independent play time every day. He's getting so much more mobile now.. I normally would put him in his swing for a minute if I needed to go to the bathroom or something but he doesn't like his swing anymore, he just arches his back, squirms and almost falls out. We are going to put it away now. We're going to bring the pack and play in the living room and use that now instead.
Milestones:
Like I mentioned, he can reach for objects now. He is getting really good with his hands. The week after he turned 4 months he rolled over from back to tummy. Once he started that he never stopped doing it! This created one of the many challenges this month but I'll talk about that more with sleep. He is becoming a master roller. He's actually so much better at rolling from back to tummy than from tummy to back. He is getting so strong! Just within the last week he has learned how to get up on his arms and knees like he's trying to crawl! When he does this he can scoot himself around his crib on his knees! Oh boy. He's getting more and more difficult to keep him in a sitting position because all he wants to do is stand and jump. Ever since he was a newborn he has loved standing. He can hold his weight even just by holding onto his hands.
Swaddle:
Long story but we are officially swaddle-free! It was a journey, but it didn't last as long as I had thought it would. Once he flipped over when he was in his swaddle blanket we decided it wasn't safe anymore. The next few days were really bad because he couldn't sleep without it. So one night I swaddled him in his miracle blanket with one arm out and nursed him to sleep and then tucked him into a sleep sack so his arm out wouldn't get cold. It finally worked! He slept all night. So the next week that's what we did. It still took him a while to fall asleep the first few days but he wasn't crying anymore. After a week, I took out his other arm and just wrapped miracle blanket under his armpits. He didn't like that. So I just took away the miracle blanket all together, put him in a heavier sleep sack and he fell asleep! For a few days he took almost an hour to fall asleep sometimes but he didn't cry. So the whole process only took about a week and a half, and then he was actually napping better and not crying anymore when we put him down! SO happy to be done with swaddling!!!
Schedule/Wake-time:
His schedule was really all over the place the last month. I was trying to get him on a 4 hr feeding schedule but that didn't work. I don't think he's quite ready because he can still only stay awake for like an hour before he starts to get fussy. If I keep him up longer he cries before falling asleep and then only takes a cat nap so I don't even try to push it. Last week was complete chaos and for a few days I was feeding him like every hour or two! I was like what is this, do I have a newborn again! And it wasn't because he was hungry it's just because he couldn't sleep so I kept trying to nurse him to sleep all day!! Ugh, it was bad. But this week so far has been MUCH better. Now he's eating about every 3.5 hrs except for his bedtime feeding which happens earlier. On a normal day, he'll have around 5-6 feedings.
Sleep:
This is going to be a long one. I'm going to do my best to shorten it. He had been sleeping 9-10 hours at night without EVER waking and taking 4-5 naps a day. He started not sleeping for his last naps... then started waking up early (and cranky) around 6:45, then started waking around 5:30 every day, then 5:00, then 4:00 for a few nights and even 3:00 one night! At first I would just comfort him and try to get him back to sleep but when it kept happening I fed him thinking maybe it was a growth spurt. And he started screaming for hours before bedtime, which he has never ever done!!! I was losing my mind. I knew he was overtired but if I put him to bed earlier he wouldn't sleep. It was so weird. I kept having to nurse him to sleep and I hated doing that because it was like walking on eggshells when I would lay him down in his crib. Also I didn't want him to rely on that since I was doing it every night for like 2 weeks. And then last week he kept rolling over whenever we would put him down (naps and bedtime). He would roll onto his tummy and then cry. So I would roll him back and he would just roll back onto his tummy and cry again! I didn't know what the heck to do. For a few days I just kept nursing him to sleep over and over again, tried putting the boppy in his crib so he didn't have room to roll but then I would have to keep checking on him every few minutes to make sure it didn't fall over on him. It was a mess. I decided to just let him figure it out on his own, he knew how to roll back but it was like he forgot. One day I decided to let him cry for a bit, he cried for 10 minutes and fell asleep on his stomach. Since then he has slept on his tummy for every nap and all night long. It was like he wanted to sleep that way but didn't know how once I gave him the chance to figure it out he was fine! He slept all night the last 2 nights, yay!!! And he slept longer than before, like 11 hours! I still lay him down on his back but he instantly turns over and falls asleep that way. So hopefully now things can get back to normal and we can get back to a consistent routine. Geesh. He does look super cute sleeping on his belly though! He sleeps with his bum in the air. My mom said he looks like a baby bear, haha. I need to take a picture.
Random:
He does some new funny things.. he does an "air chew" smacking thing where it looks like he's chewing gum with his mouth open. Also he flaps his arms a lot, kind of like he's slapping the side of his leg. And sometimes he'll do that to other people, he kept doing it to Derek's face once, it was pretty funny. He also started making new noises. He can yell pretty loud. He still blows spit bubbles, or "raspberries" I guess their called. Yesterday his voice started sounding raspy. I think he might have sore throat because Derek had one last week. He really likes other people, he doesn't seem shy at all. But maybe that comes later. He gets so excited and does a happy dance when my mom talks to him. He seems very curious in what's going on around him, and seems to always be observing and trying to find where sounds are coming from. Oh and he rips my hair out all day long because his hands get tangled up in them with his kung fu grip! When Derek lets him play with his hair, he giggles. But poor Noah is losing his hair again, it was growing back but it's rubbing away again.
With the mix of wonder week 19, trying to extend feedings, transitioning out of the swaddle, and rolling over, it was one challenging month! Heavenly Father was definitely testing my patience. And with the way I handled things, I know I really need to work on myself. I get stressed out way too easily. When it's so crazy like that it literally feels like the end of the world to me. I need to get better at this. I'm thankful I have a husband who still loves me even though I become a little loco.
Some pics from this month...
Earlier this month Noah started reaching for things. I kept wondering when he was going to start doing that. He kind of skipped the uncoordinated swinging and batting and just went straight to reaching and grabbing. Last month he used to only grab things if it was already laying on him or if it was touching his hands but now he can easily grab things hanging over him, handed to him etc.. He still puts everything in his mouth almost instantaneously. He loves playing with (aka eating) toys. We love making him laugh. Derek likes to throw him in the air and catch him. Noah does pretty good at playing by himself for a while. I try to give him independent play time every day. He's getting so much more mobile now.. I normally would put him in his swing for a minute if I needed to go to the bathroom or something but he doesn't like his swing anymore, he just arches his back, squirms and almost falls out. We are going to put it away now. We're going to bring the pack and play in the living room and use that now instead.
Milestones:
Like I mentioned, he can reach for objects now. He is getting really good with his hands. The week after he turned 4 months he rolled over from back to tummy. Once he started that he never stopped doing it! This created one of the many challenges this month but I'll talk about that more with sleep. He is becoming a master roller. He's actually so much better at rolling from back to tummy than from tummy to back. He is getting so strong! Just within the last week he has learned how to get up on his arms and knees like he's trying to crawl! When he does this he can scoot himself around his crib on his knees! Oh boy. He's getting more and more difficult to keep him in a sitting position because all he wants to do is stand and jump. Ever since he was a newborn he has loved standing. He can hold his weight even just by holding onto his hands.
Swaddle:
Long story but we are officially swaddle-free! It was a journey, but it didn't last as long as I had thought it would. Once he flipped over when he was in his swaddle blanket we decided it wasn't safe anymore. The next few days were really bad because he couldn't sleep without it. So one night I swaddled him in his miracle blanket with one arm out and nursed him to sleep and then tucked him into a sleep sack so his arm out wouldn't get cold. It finally worked! He slept all night. So the next week that's what we did. It still took him a while to fall asleep the first few days but he wasn't crying anymore. After a week, I took out his other arm and just wrapped miracle blanket under his armpits. He didn't like that. So I just took away the miracle blanket all together, put him in a heavier sleep sack and he fell asleep! For a few days he took almost an hour to fall asleep sometimes but he didn't cry. So the whole process only took about a week and a half, and then he was actually napping better and not crying anymore when we put him down! SO happy to be done with swaddling!!!
Schedule/Wake-time:
His schedule was really all over the place the last month. I was trying to get him on a 4 hr feeding schedule but that didn't work. I don't think he's quite ready because he can still only stay awake for like an hour before he starts to get fussy. If I keep him up longer he cries before falling asleep and then only takes a cat nap so I don't even try to push it. Last week was complete chaos and for a few days I was feeding him like every hour or two! I was like what is this, do I have a newborn again! And it wasn't because he was hungry it's just because he couldn't sleep so I kept trying to nurse him to sleep all day!! Ugh, it was bad. But this week so far has been MUCH better. Now he's eating about every 3.5 hrs except for his bedtime feeding which happens earlier. On a normal day, he'll have around 5-6 feedings.
Sleep:
This is going to be a long one. I'm going to do my best to shorten it. He had been sleeping 9-10 hours at night without EVER waking and taking 4-5 naps a day. He started not sleeping for his last naps... then started waking up early (and cranky) around 6:45, then started waking around 5:30 every day, then 5:00, then 4:00 for a few nights and even 3:00 one night! At first I would just comfort him and try to get him back to sleep but when it kept happening I fed him thinking maybe it was a growth spurt. And he started screaming for hours before bedtime, which he has never ever done!!! I was losing my mind. I knew he was overtired but if I put him to bed earlier he wouldn't sleep. It was so weird. I kept having to nurse him to sleep and I hated doing that because it was like walking on eggshells when I would lay him down in his crib. Also I didn't want him to rely on that since I was doing it every night for like 2 weeks. And then last week he kept rolling over whenever we would put him down (naps and bedtime). He would roll onto his tummy and then cry. So I would roll him back and he would just roll back onto his tummy and cry again! I didn't know what the heck to do. For a few days I just kept nursing him to sleep over and over again, tried putting the boppy in his crib so he didn't have room to roll but then I would have to keep checking on him every few minutes to make sure it didn't fall over on him. It was a mess. I decided to just let him figure it out on his own, he knew how to roll back but it was like he forgot. One day I decided to let him cry for a bit, he cried for 10 minutes and fell asleep on his stomach. Since then he has slept on his tummy for every nap and all night long. It was like he wanted to sleep that way but didn't know how once I gave him the chance to figure it out he was fine! He slept all night the last 2 nights, yay!!! And he slept longer than before, like 11 hours! I still lay him down on his back but he instantly turns over and falls asleep that way. So hopefully now things can get back to normal and we can get back to a consistent routine. Geesh. He does look super cute sleeping on his belly though! He sleeps with his bum in the air. My mom said he looks like a baby bear, haha. I need to take a picture.
Random:
He does some new funny things.. he does an "air chew" smacking thing where it looks like he's chewing gum with his mouth open. Also he flaps his arms a lot, kind of like he's slapping the side of his leg. And sometimes he'll do that to other people, he kept doing it to Derek's face once, it was pretty funny. He also started making new noises. He can yell pretty loud. He still blows spit bubbles, or "raspberries" I guess their called. Yesterday his voice started sounding raspy. I think he might have sore throat because Derek had one last week. He really likes other people, he doesn't seem shy at all. But maybe that comes later. He gets so excited and does a happy dance when my mom talks to him. He seems very curious in what's going on around him, and seems to always be observing and trying to find where sounds are coming from. Oh and he rips my hair out all day long because his hands get tangled up in them with his kung fu grip! When Derek lets him play with his hair, he giggles. But poor Noah is losing his hair again, it was growing back but it's rubbing away again.
With the mix of wonder week 19, trying to extend feedings, transitioning out of the swaddle, and rolling over, it was one challenging month! Heavenly Father was definitely testing my patience. And with the way I handled things, I know I really need to work on myself. I get stressed out way too easily. When it's so crazy like that it literally feels like the end of the world to me. I need to get better at this. I'm thankful I have a husband who still loves me even though I become a little loco.
Some pics from this month...
Don't you just love his round head!
His classic worried look
Showing off his reaching skills
He does this face a lot
So handsome!
Reminds me of Derek when he smiles
I had to put a chubby cheeks one in here too
