Another month gone and past...

We've done it! We've reached four months (last Thursday)!! CJ is doing phenomenal. He had his four month check-up on Friday with Dr. Katz; she said he is doing great! Here are his stats: Wt: 16lbs, 1oz//Ht: 26inches//HC: 16.5inches. For weight, he is in the 75th percentile; and for height he is in the 50th.

Prior Stats:
2 months (02.20.09) Wt: 13lbs, 9oz//Ht: 23inches//HC: 16inches
1 month (01.20.09) Wt: 10lbs, 12oz//Ht: 22.25inches//HC: 15inches
2 weeks (01.02.09) Wt: 8lbs, 6oz//Ht: 21inches//HC: 14inches
1 week (12.23.08) Wt: 7lbs, 5oz//Ht: 20inches//HC: 13.75inches
Birth (12.16.08) Wt: 7lbs, 8oz//Ht: 19.25inches//HC: 34.5cm

Overall, everything is looking good. He is rolling over from back-to-tummy both ways now!! And can successfully grasp a small toy and place it in his mouth; however, from time to time, CJ does get a bit frustrated/over-excited if he can't make the toy to his mouth. Also, his head has that right lateral flexion that I mentioned. I've been doing all my tricks and "games" to help him strengthen and lengthen the one side of his neck, but I wasn't able to do that much. I asked Dr. Katz about it, and she agreed that physical therapy would be the best thing for him. His diagnosis is Torticollis, which is a just fancy medical term for muscle shortening). We have our appointment on Thursday afternoon with Eleanor Campbell at Advanced Physical Therapy in Cranford. I used to work as a PT Aide there!! I've worked with Eleanor, and I have learned so much from her. Dr. Katz actually refers patients to her; I'm glad we saw eye-to-eye on CJ's PT! It's going to be a bit strange being on the parenting side of the treatment when I used to be the one helping the patients! In addition to being prescribed for therapy, CJ also had 4 booster shots, and the Rotovirus stuff... Saturday he developed a fever (most likely due to the vaccines); but to err on the side of caution, I called the answering service at my pediatrician's office just to inform them. And I did exactly as I had expected... Tylenol and lots of loving and cuddling!

On a very happy note, CJ started Rice cereal!!!!!! On Friday night, he loved it. He was a big fan. Saturday, not so much... On Sunday night, I made the cereal quite a bit thicker and he actually enjoyed it, and got most of it in his mouth (instead of spitting it out). I will say though, mixing rice cereal with the right amount breast milk is definitely a science that I need some practice with! I always have trouble making the right "recipe" to get it to a consistency that CJ likes... All in all, he has done well with the cereal. In about 4 weeks or so, we'll also be able to start veggies and then fruits... It's amazing how it all happens this quickly.

I've started to scrapbook CJ's photos (finally). My mother has a Cricut machine, and I decided to take advantage of her new gadget. It's not as great as I had expected it to be. Perhaps I haven't used it to it's full potential yet; nevertheless, I do enjoy it. I printed out close to 400 pictures that have been taken over the course of the last four months. I've only scrapbooked 4 or 5 pages, and they are just from the day CJ was born!! Now that all of CJ's pictures are on disc, I will also be taking the time to upload them to a website for viewing shortly. I certainly won't be uploading all 400, but I'll definitely upload a decent amount!

How time flies....

Tomorrow, CJ will be 15 weeks old... and in 10 days he'll be four months old!! Time flies incredibly fast, too fast really. We've had tons of lovely development in CJ-land... As far as him holding his head up, he's doing a fantastic job. He never wants to sit back anymore, he pulls himself forward... Even when we put him in his car seat, we have to push his head back so we can buckle him in; man, he is NOT a big fan of that!! His neck has the slightest bit of lateral flexion to the right, but that is nothing Mama can't work on. He turns his head both ways perfectly, and I think he might be starting to recognize his name, too!! He definitely turns towards my voice when I call him. But I'm not sure if that's just because it's my voice?? Who knows!? In a crowded and busy room/store, if I talk, immediately CJ's head finds me (or Daddy's). It's a beautiful thing.

CJ is very busy learning how to roll over! Tummy time is great, he actually likes it (at times). He's very chatty when we lay down together... He is trying to move and has figured out how to scoot himself backwards, and gets frustrated if he's trying to reach a toy that is in front of him. He can roll with only a little difficulty from tummy to back. When he is on his back, he has no problem rolling onto his side! He tries very hard to roll onto his belly; his head goes and he just can't figure out how to move his top leg to help him roll over! Very frustrating for me to watch because CJ gets frustrated... But I know in a couple of weeks, his little muscles will be stronger and he'll be able to do it all on his own!!

Laughter is a key to a wonderful day! (For me at least.) We can get CJ to laugh at a lot of different things; raspberries on the belly, "flying" like an airplane, Mama doing arm lifts with CJ on the floor many other various games and silliness! Of course I'm very biased, but he has such an adorable belly laugh!! He still gets the hiccups like crazy, poor little man!

As far as sleeping, he does much better. He is usually up between 1 - 3 times until he wakes up for the day. He doesn't like to nap for me very long... So, when I'm by myself, it's a bit tough to get stuff done. But somehow I still manage to get the laundry put away (usually) and get some house-cleaning done (as much as I can).

On top of all that, he is a little chatterbox at times!!! I wish i just knew what he was saying half the time! (But hey, don't we all?) He squeaks and smiles and giggles and coo's all in one at times... CJ loves to blow bubbles, and he is drooling like a maniac at times. He can put his hand in his mouth with no problems and is starting to try and grab toys when we hold them in front of him.

As far as his size, when we went to the doctor aroudn 3 months, he was weighing in at 15lbs!!! (What a chunky monkey!) We're not exactly sure where his weight and height are now, but he is out of (most) 0-3 month, and 3 month clothes, and well into 3-6 and 6 month outfits!!! I can't beleive it really; I feel like just yesterday I was dressing him in little newborn onsies that were still a little big on him...

Anywho, I think I'm pretty much up to date. CJ was baptized on Saturday, March 28! It was a BEAUTIFUL ceremony, and Monsignor Brown did a lovely job. I couldn't have expected/asked for/attended a more beautiful and touching Baptism. I felt truly blessed to be surrounded by my family and friends. As soon as I get some pictures from some family, I'll be posting them... along with all the other pictures from the past four months. I'm still trying to debate where I'm going to upload them all to! I feel so busy sometimes and feel like I don't get accomplished all that I need to or want to!!