Blessed Beyond Measure: The A Team Week 18: 4 Months Old!

The excitement of this week was that our littlest guy turned four months old! It is hard to comprehend. How have four months gone by already? A year ago I had just found out I was pregnant and now there is this new little guy stealing my heart and demanding my attention...All of my attention (or as much as he can get at least)!

So at four months old, what is Avery like? Well, he is a momma's boy for one! Seriously, the kid would probably be thrilled if he were physically attached to me at all times. He loves watching his big brother and loves playing with his Daddy, but seems to be happiest doing so when I am within reach. If I am out of the room he is a cheerful little guy, but the moment that he hears my voice or sees me, his mood changes completely until he is back in my arms. Last weekend, we were all in the playroom together and Avery was in his swing while I was trying to clean up. Every time I would walk toward him, he would start to smile and kick and grab toward me in excitement and every time I'd walk away from him he would start to cry. Don't get me wrong though, while it can be exhausting at times, I also know that someday soon Avery, like his big brother Asher, will become a Daddy's boy and want nothing to do with me unless he needs something or is hurt...and sometimes not even then.

Besides (or in addition to?) being a bit of a momma's boy, Avery has a an amazing little personality and we love watching him grow into the boy and man he will someday be. His heart seems to burst with joy. He LOVES to smile (so much so that we frequently quote Elf saying, "I love smiling! Smiling's my favorite"), and will throw out a smile to basically anyone from the moment he wakes up to the moment he goes to bed as long as he is not too tired or hungry. His gummy little grin and dimples melt my heart on a consistent basis, and the twinkle in his eye that goes with is impossible to resist. I think Avery is also a very passionate little guy...maybe it is a second child thing as it seems my nephew Caleb has some similarities in this department? While he is happy most of the time, when he is not happy, he will let you know about it and when he does not approve of something, he can push out the biggest pouty lip ever! He rarely sits in the gray/middle-of-the-road zone and is typically either "hot" or "cold."

Physically, my little guy is growing like an (adorable) little weed! At his four month appointment, he measured in at 16 pounds, 6 ounces (67%) and 27-3/4" (99%) long with a head circumference of 17 inches (88%). While this is big, it was surprising because he actually weighs less now than Asher did at the same age even though he started off more than two pounds heavier! (At Asher's four month appointment he was 3/4" shorter, but 4 ounces heavier!) He did great with his four month shots and cried still but was not inconsolable like last time and recovered quickly. He also showed up at his four month appointment with his first TWO teeth! That's right, a few weeks before his three month birthday, Avery started drooling like crazy and chewing on everything. I have heard in the past that a baby's salivary glands kick in at around three months, which is why they typically start drooling at that time, so I thought nothing of it but did notice that he seemed to be a little fussier than normal and was not sleeping as well (although he's never been a great sleeper). Then about one week after his three month birthday Eric was letting Avery suck on his finger when he felt something hard inside...sure enough, Avery had cut his first tooth at three months and 6 days old! As we did a little more research, we could see a white line on his gums which made us think another would be coming soon, and then on his four month birthday the second little tooth cut through giving my littlest man's gummy smile two cute little chicklets poking out! :)

Teeth and body size are not the only things that make this little guy look more like a 6 month old than a four month old. He also has a good head of hair. As you've seen in the multitude of photos since his birth he has always had some rich dark hair, but unlike many babies he really hasn't lost any of it other than the hair on the back of his head the he has rubbed of in his sleep. Eric got his first haircut at 5 months old, and it is starting to look like it will be the same for Avery. At four months, his hair is down to his eyebrows and will soon start to cover his beautiful little eyes if I don't get it cut. I have been avoiding it for a long time now, despite the mullet he is sporting in the back, but I don't want him to start looking like a little girl and I don't want him to have to have hair in his eyes all the time, so Heidi B...if you read this, I'll likely be contacting you soon! :)

In the sleeping department Avery isn't quite where I'd like him to be, consistently getting me up twice a night and sometimes more, but I can't really complain as it does give me extra snuggle time with the little guy. With Asher we were quite spoiled, as he started sleeping through the night at an early age. Avery however, does not sleep well and when he is awake he wants to be with me. Thus, when he wakes during the night he wants me to come back in to nurse him and put him back to sleep. He acts like he is hungry (and he does like to eat), but really I think he just wants the cuddle time. Even during the day, he will take only 15-20 minute cat naps IF we're lucky and usually even those are while being held. As soon as you try to put him down, he will wake up. Even the lady at his daycare is surprised by this and none of us can figure out how he functions on about the same amount of sleep that we adults get! I am praying this changes and that he starts to sleep better soon or we could have some rough years ahead!

Developmentally, Avery is also coming along at a good pace and keeping up with his brother. He loves to laugh, although he cannot laugh long without getting a bout of the hiccups. He loves to watch his big brother and definitely recognizes us and our voices and gets excited by them. He has figured out how to use his hands and continues to get better and better grabbing toys, holding them and getting them to his mouth. He loves to gnaw on anything he can get between his gums (and painfully sharp little teeth) and I frequently have to warn Asher that Avery WILL bite him if given the chance. He loves to be tickled and is VERY ticklish. It may be that I have forgotten, but I believe that he is much more ticklish than Asher ever was. Almost any spot on his body will make him squirm, and if you tickle his back while he is standing his legs will buckle as he tries to get away. He is also a big fan of standing and wants to do so most of the time. His balance is still pretty bad, but he is getting better and will stand on his own simply by holding onto my hand. Finally, on his four month birthday he started to roll from his belly to his back. He did it for the first time right before his four month photo shoot and continued to do it several times throughout the day. Since then however, I have only seen him do it a couple of times, but have no concerns as Asher did the same thing and I am also in no hurry for him to be mobile as our other little guy loves tiny, non-baby friendly toys and leaves them ALL.OVER.THE.HOUSE.

So, I guess that is our baby boy in a nut shell (for now)...Here's his 4 month shoot...