Official 4-month stats

Lincoln weighs 16 pounds, 12 ounces

and is 26 inches long!

At least we got one of the two right last week. :)

Both are the 75th percentile, so our little guy is not so little anymore!

Favorites at 4 months:

*Mommy & Daddy*
*Electronic toy cell phone (so it begins...)*
*Bouncy seat*
*Eating*
*Rolling over tummy --> back (once a day if we're lucky)*
*Lots o' links*
*Grabbing his own feet*

*Teething*
*Drooling & razzing*
*Vibrating teether bug*
*Laying on our bed & playing (easier to roll over)*

OK, so teething isn't a favorite--it hurts him a lot and he screams--

but he definitely is.

Stranger anxiety is getting better, with only a few freakouts occasionally.

Linc is now on a 4-hour eating schedule! I hardly know what to do with myself.

He is also taking longer naps, typically 1.5-2 hours. Again--

I forgot what it was like to have two hours of free time!

Lincoln and I made our first solo trip to the doctor today

(quote from Dr. Griesemer: "He's a big boy!") and survived.

He was a trooper with shots (screamed, of course, but made it OK)

and hopefully will have a better afternoon than with his first shots.

Since Linc has mutilated the schedule he was on for ages, in the next few days, I'm going to start him on the schedule suggested by the Baby Whisperer. The hardest part for me will be Pick Up/Put Down, I think, because it will be so exhausting, but it's worth a shot. Can't be any harder than Cry it Out, which breaks my heart.

And those are the facts!

Happy 4-month birthday!

Lincoln is 4 months old today!!

And he is all smiles...

Actually, today he's been smiley/fussy/smiley/fussy,

but hopefully smiley is now here to stay.

At 4 months, Lincoln is

26 inches long

and weighs

17.5 pounds!

We'll confirm stats with the doctor next Thursday.

Lincoln looks at Grandpa Mac

Linc plays with Grandma Mac

Favorites at 4 months:

*Mommy & Daddy*

*Electronic toy cell phone (so it begins...)*

*Bouncy seat*

*Eating*

*Rolling over tummy --> back (once a day if we're lucky)*

*Lots o' links*

*Grabbing his own feet*

*Drooling & razzing*

*Teething (but no sign yet)*

*Vibrating teether bug*

*Laying on our bed & playing (easier to roll over)*

Linc still has stranger anxiety and has started screaming when

we try to put him to sleep--and we thought he fought his

sleep hard before!!! He is also completely off his usual

eat--play--sleep schedule the last week or so. Very bizarre.

Maybe he's growth spurting.

4 months!! Where has the time gone?

How much of a ham is Lincon?

SO much a ham!

Just like Grandpa Mac! (my dad)

Lincoln has discovered his feet!

And he loves them...

Love this last pic in spite of my finger on the left--

how did I do that?!

LAST DAY OF SCHOOL!

School's out for summer!
School's out forever ---> or at least until August 11
Skipping the next line (because blowing up the school is something our students would say)

More pencils
No more books
No more teacher's dirty looks ---> and no more students cussing at me!

Out for summer
Out till fall ---> is August fall??!
We might not go back at all ---> now THAT is the truth!


Yes, today was our last day of school in Nixa. Hallelujah! The kids got out before noon, Cheryl dropped in with baby Reagan (he is a doll), we all went out to a long lunch (blissful) and now I'm sitting in my empty classroom enjoying the glorious silence!

I survived my first two months of being a working mom. And a nursing/pumping mom. It wasn't easy, but I did it!

Now for the wonderful summer with my beautiful baby boy. We're going to have so much fun! Hanging with Grandpa & Grandma and Uncle Z, going to ballgames, taking a trip to St. Louis, going to the park, taking walks, swimming with Auntie Kristy, celebrating Linc's first Fourth of July!! (one of my favorite holidays), watching Linc grow and discover new things...I'm getting teary typing this (really. Relief & joy are starting to overwhelm me).

HOORAY!

Sleep, blessed sleep

Aah, sleep. 8 hours of sleep in a row. Blessed, blessed sleep!

If only...I haven't had more than 5 hours of sleep in a row since Lincoln was born.

Everyone new we see or see after a while asks me, "Is he sleeping through the night yet?" And I respond, "No, of course not. You're funny!"

That makes me wonder...do most babies sleep through the night by 3 1/2 months? Is Lincoln spoiled/overly hungry/conditioned to eating in the night? He will sometimes sleep 5 hours in a row (I read somewhere that pediatricians consider sleeping 5 hours in a row "sleeping through the night" for babies), but recently that's been few and far between.

Lincoln will skip his 9 or 10 pm feeding and wake up to eat either 5 or 6 hours after his previous feeding, and then sleep another 2-4 hours, depending on his mood. But the last couple of nights, he's been up every 2-3 hours wanting to eat. I am exhausted!

So really, everyone out there who knows anything about babies or has had any experience with babies--when do most sleep through the night? Or does it just depend on each individual baby? Should I not feed Lincoln in the night, but try to get him back to sleep (i.e., let him scream it out) without eating?

This is another of my questions for the doctor in 2 weeks!

Odds n Ends

• My dad retired a week ago Friday! May 1 was officially his last day of work. He is SO excited to be retired, and he definitely earned it: 38 years and 2 weeks of federal service (Army + Post Office) = a lot of work and putting up with a lot of crap! He's planning to take it easy for a few months and then possibly find a little part-time job, although I'm not sure he'll even last a few months. :) He likes to be busy, so we'll see when he can't take the relaxation anymore and has to find something to do!
  


• 7 1/2 days of school left!! (including today) This afternoon is graduation, which knocks out another half day. It is awesome to be almost done. I've almost survived my first round of being a working (nursing/pumping) Mom! I'm so looking forward to the summer--Lincoln and I are going to have so much fun!!
  


• Have I mentioned that we have the most adorable, most fun, most wonderful baby in the world?! :) Here is Lincoln's Elvis impression:

Hunka-hunka burnin' love. Uh-huh.

Weight

At 3 months and 1 week, Lincoln weighs 16 pounds (based on the "weigh myself and then weigh myself holding Lincoln" formula).

Next doctor visit: Thursday, May 28 for 4-month checkup, official stats & more shots (ugh).

Our boy is growing like a weed and is SUCH FUN!