Daniel is becoming more and more interactive every day. He is smiling, giggling, and cooing all the time. One of my favorite things is that he thinks John Hudson is the funniest thing that ever happened. Seriously, John doesn't even have to be doing anything funny.at.all and Daniel is cracking up! Which, of course, makes John laugh and then we're all laughing.
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| We started using the double stroller this month. So fun! |
Daniel boy loves his pacy. He sucks constantly and is even learning to take it in and out by himself! John Hudson also loves to help Daniel put his pacy back in when it comes out. Daniel has been gnawing his hand and drooling constantly for the last month, but we have yet to see any teeth pop through. He seems pretty uncomfortable with it, so I'm hoping they arrive soon. In the meantime, he is wearing his teething necklace (which really seems to help the fussiness), and I give him Hyland's teething tablets occasionally.
On January 27th, just five days after his four month birthday, Daniel rolled over from his back to front! We were shocked because its usually front to back first. But, so far Daniel has done everything differently than John Hudson did, so why not this too? He was quite proud of himself. On February 4th, he rolled over front to back. No more leaving this little guy alone! He's still not rolling over on a regular basis (he'd rather lay there and scream), but we now know he's capable!
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| Almost all the way over! |
Daniel still can't tolerate any dairy products or gluten. Talk about accountability with my eating! I feel like I've adapted though and find its much easier not to eat dairy when its not the holidays (all those sweet treats and dinner parties about killed me!). I hope to try a few raw dairy products around 6 months to see if he can tolerate those. If not, we'll continue the no-dairy, no-gluten thing for as long as it takes. But, Daniel is still loving his mommy milk and is growing like a weed. His chunky legs are so fun! Around Christmastime, he weighed 14 lbs. I can't even say how many times a day we nurse. Since we're home most days, I'm really able to feed Daniel on demand, which is a blessing. I'd say he eats on average every two hours. Sometimes longer, sometimes shorter. I so enjoy that time because it reminds me to slow down and enjoy. Also great for catching up on reading (when I'm not lassoing the toddler or having to peep in the other room because things are "too quiet" if you know what I mean).
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| This boy loves to swing! |
I often call Daniel my "mystery baby" because I never really know what he wants and needs. One day I think I've finally figured him out and then the next day he's changed his preferences. This is a good thing for me because it keeps me on my toes and fully dependent on the Lord. He knows Daniel. He created Daniel. He helps me be a mommy to my little guy even when I feel like our entire day is a big match of trial and error. We just try everything. Some days he likes to swing. Some days not. Some days he loves to sit in his bumbo seat. Some days not. Some days laying on the floor looking at toys is really fun. Some days it seems to be torture. Some days we figure out the magic combination early in the day and have a content baby, and some days we do a lot of bouncing, shhh-ing, and praying.
One thing that has been pretty consistent about Daniel is that he doesn't seem to require much sleep, which is very sanctifying for this sleep-loving Mama. During the day, Daniel takes a few very short naps (by short, I mean like 15 minutes!). Its a rare thing for him to sleep more than an hour during the day. He seems to be so stimulated by everything that its really hard to settle him down for a nap. I try to lay Daniel down for a nap every day as soon as John Hudson goes down just for consistency's sake. Some days he sleeps more than five minutes. Some days not. Night sleeping has been a roller coaster, too. For about a month after Christmas, we were having really hard nights where he was up sometimes every 30 minutes. But for the past three weeks or so, he's been doing much better (minus the last three nights where it seems we've digressed again). A five hour stretch of sleep is golden to me right now. I pray every night that I can praise God for the sleep I do get and trust Him for the sleep I don't get. I want to love Daniel as myself and serve him, even during long nights. I'm also trying to remember that these sleepless seasons are just that: seasons. They seem oh so long when you're in them, but snuggling and tiny baby in the night is actually such a short (and sweet) time. Lord, help me to have this perspective!
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| We started swaddling Daniel at 4 months. It seems to be helping him rest. |
But don't let all this not-so-fun stuff fool you. We are in love with our Daniel boy. He is a precious gift from God and we wouldn't trade him for all the tea in China. God has great plans for this sweet boy, and we are honored to have a front row seat.
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