4 Months!

"Mom- could you speed this up a little?"
 

Well, here we are again! Hayes turned 4 months on June 11th and we continue to be amazed with all that our little man learns and discovers every day. We are officially in all 3-6 month sleepers and mostly 6 month clothes. Hayes is one big boy! He had his four month checkup on June 18th, and here's the rundown...

Weight:16 lbs, 3 oz (75th percentile)

Height:26 inches (80th percentile)

Loves: Hayes loves to sit up like a big boy! His favorite place is sitting up so tall in his Bumbo chair while having conversation with anyone who will listen. He also has developed a love for his toys-- especially the balls, which thrills his Pops. Hayes would much rather be sitting, standing (with help) or kicking while stretched out on the floor than to be held these days, but Mama is usually able to steal some snuggles when he's sleepy, thank goodness! This boy is BUSY and at this rate, I should probably start training for a marathon to develop the amount of endurance I'll need to keep up with him when he starts walking running. We still love outside and enjoyed our second trip to the beach a couple of weeks ago. Hayes also loves to sing "If all the rain drops were lemon drops and gum drops" and can't get enough of tummy kisses and tickles. We're most likely to get a laugh during these activities! His little social personality continues to develop every day and we couldn't love it more!

Sleep: Well ladies and gents, we've hit the four month sleep obstacle. Our little man is still a great sleeper, all things considered, but he has reverted back to one middle of the night wake up each night, usually sometime between 3 and 5 AM. Sure, it's not ideal, but the kid definitely needs that middle of the night bottle, as evidenced by his rapid chugging. Mama doesn't have the heart to make him cry it out (nor am I sure that I ever will), so for now we'll just keep doing what we're doing in hopes that maybe one day a full night of uninterrupted sleep will return. In his defense, he does go back down very quickly and his random awakenings outside of this are minimal. He will sometimes lay awake in his crib and talk for an hour or so after the feeding, but he's gotten pretty good at putting himself back to sleep, which makes it easy for us to hit the hay again (halleluiah!) with minimal effort. Thank goodness for sleep sound machines with a projection setting. :)

Food: We hit a bit milestone this month with the start of rice cereal! Hayes wasn't too sure about the texture at first, but he has gotten the hang of it and now eats almost 1 tbsp of cereal mixed with his formula at breakfast. He's gotten much better at getting his tongue out of his way and can open wide for big bites. He gets very excited when it's time for breakfast, and will kick his legs and wave his arms while grunting until that first bite.

Personality:Let me tell ya, this little boy has a BIG one! He has become quite animated and good at letting us know when he is less than pleased with our behavior. For the most part he is still our happy, smiley boy, but when something does not meet his expectations, this boy sure does know how to yell! (Yes, I know, he get it from his mama.) His last week of school before summer vacay with Aunt Kirby, Hayes couldn't get enough of being on the floor with the older babies in his class. He lunges for other children when we're out in public, too! He has started to squeal, laugh more regularly and make more definitive "mama" noises-- especially when he cries. I'd be lying if I said I don't love every minute of this, though Cody has been practicing "dada" very fervently with him.

Dislikes:As mentioned previously, we aren't the biggest fan of being held these days. Hayes is much too busy exploring this big 'ol world to sit and snuggle... unless it's nearing nap time. Speaking of naps, he is also not the biggest fan of these. He fights them like a champ, and often manages to get through a day with only one substantial period of rest. He's still sleeping great at night though, so we'll just chalk it up to the fact that he's just not a napper and can remain a happy camper without tons of sleep! (He definitely doesn't get that from his mama.) Hayes man doesn't really enjoy shirts and rompers that have to go over his head, though we're warming up to them sometimes. Daddy is definitely the champ at these, while Mama is still not super comfy with the process and tends to prefer button down attire or apparel with extra large head holes. 

We are loving every minute with our growing, busy boy! Hayes Man, you are the light of our lives!