We have been watching Luke grow so much. We learned last week that he weighs 13 pounds, 12 ounces. We were surprised that he didn't weigh more. A month ago, he weighed in at 13 pounds, and I could feel him growing heavier, and looking and acting much older since that time. Perhaps I was slightly influenced by his leaps in mental and behavioral development, and expected him to have physically grown just as much. I realize that a 3-and-a-half-month-old baby weighing over 13.5 pounds is quite big, and I am in no way concerned, just slightly taken aback at the slow weight gain. (My little secret is that I never read the weight gain sections of my baby books, so maybe this is just the way babies grow after their first few months.) Our pediatrician is happy with his growth though. Also I think I read or heard that breastfed babies tend to plateau in their weight gain sooner or more abruptly than formula-fed babies. (Don't quote me on that, as I am only pulling that fact from deep in my mind, and I have no reference to cite this as a fact.)
Luke has grown far more in his development than in his body weight. Some highlights are listed below:
Rolling over
"Stepping" when held to stand
Picking his head up when reclined
Holding his head up when placed on tummy
Rolling to tummy and back to his back frequently
Following people as they move, even across rooms
"Remembering" where his favorite people are.... Luke followed Mommy with his eyes as she walked into the kitchen and out of sight. He turned his head back to Daddy for a moment, then expectantly looked at the kitchen doorway for Mommy to appear. This is no joke! (Again, this is an observation, and not something we read in a book about baby development.)
Noticing non-human friends.... perhaps he notices the animation and the life in their eyes.
Responding to sound and conversation
Sleeping for longer stretches
Eating more efficiently and less frequently
Watching his favorite Baby Einstein video.... we have noticed Luke LOVES the television, so we are limiting his exposure to it, so he doesn't develop bad TV habits.
Ummm, there are definitely more, but I am drawing a blank on some others. While Luke is not in one of his fussy developmental phases at the moment, I can see how much he is taking in from his last big phase. It's amazing to watch him learn and take in the world around him. It is a joy to witness and document his growth!
Since Luke was about a week old, we knew that to get him to sleep well through the night, he needed to be swaddled. We used the SwaddleMe blankets, which are specially designed for quick and easy swaddling. About one month ago, I noticed Luke slept longer during his naps when swaddled, and eventually, we were swaddling during almost every sleep.
We knew that swaddling wouldn't last forever, and we were just waiting for the day when Luke would show us that he is too old (or big!) to be swaddled. Well, that time has come!
On Saturday afternoon, Luke spent about 20 minutes attempting to roll over on his baby gym. He tried and tried, but he couldn't figure out that he needed to tuck his arm under him. He eventually grew frustrated and needed some mommy cuddles to calm down again.
On Sunday evening, he laid on our bed after his bath to read a book, and in a matter of second, he rolled onto his belly. I was so excited for him, but I wasn't counting this as his first "roll over" since our bed is so soft, it was very easy for him.
On Monday morning, Luke played on his baby gym while I was working. I looked over at just the right time, because in that moment, he rolled over all on his own! A minute or so later, he rolled again, from tummy to his back - and not the same direction he rolled originally! I am proud to say, that Luke's first roll was a 360-degree event!
That night, I swaddled him as usual and put him in his bassinet. I came downstairs and listened to the monitor. After a few minutes, I heard Luke crying, so upstairs I went to try to coax him back to sleep. When I arrived in our room, I saw him FACE DOWN, swaddled in his bassinet!
So, on that day, we parted ways with our beloved SwaddleMe blankets. Luke has shown us that he is too mobile now to use them safely, and so we are putting him to sleep without them. Sleep has been slightly more difficult for all of us this week, but we expect Luke will be back in his sleep routine soon.
Since his first roll, Luke has continued to roll over at every opportunity. We now know his favored position for sleeping is on his side or tummy, and that he would love nothing more than to see what is on the underside of his changing table.
Luke has begun to notice his non-human friends around him. About two weeks ago, he watched Ozzy skulk across our floor, and just last weekend, we was engaging with his canine cousin, Summer. Summer seemed to know that she needed to be gentle around Luke. She was very submissive, and allowed him to pet her (with our assistance, of course). Now, if only we could get his canine aunt Reese to be calm enough to play with Luke....
We have to admit, as much as we hate this expression because it means Luke is unhappy, we secretly think it's adorable. Usually, these sad faces are quick and infrequent, so we were lucky to catch it in a photograph this past weekend. We knew we had to get this photo for future reminiscing. What a face!
Luke is now three months old! We can hardly believe how much he had grown and changed. We love every day with him more and more. He is truly an amazing child!
