Abram - 4 Months

At four months Abram still isn't rolling over!  While he is a little behind his sister in that department he makes up for it in size!  At his four month appointment Abram weighed in at 15 lbs 13 oz (55th percentile), was 26.5 inches long (90th percentile), and had a head circumference of 17 inches (75% percentile).  He is super close to rolling over, but he just can't get over his arm.  He doesn't really love being on his tummy anyway, so I can see why he wouldn't want to roll over.  Chloe, on the other hand, spent the first four months of her life trying to get to her tummy.  Once she was able to roll over I don't think she slept on her back again until she was two.  That is what happens when you have a gassy belly. 

Abram still has a terrible case of eczema.  He has it all over the backs of his legs and arms and on the back of his head.  Abram's skin is so sensitive that last week Paul held him after using shaving cream and Abram got huge, raised finger-print rashes all over his body.  Sometimes when Abram is sleeping he will trash his head back and forth really quickly.  I was so worried about him at first, but then I noticed that he had huge scabs on the back of his head from the eczema.  He was trying to scratch them!  I feel so bad for the little guy.  I always thought that fewer baths were better for people with sensitive skin, but the doctor told us that the new opinion is to bath often and slather body cream all over the body.  So at four months our new routine will consist of a nightly bath and unscented body cream - the kind that leaves you feeling all greasy, because it is nearly impossible to rub in. 

This is called a "Boppy Bottle" and it is Dada's method of giving Abram a bottle.  It knocks him out every time!

Abram still has a goober eye from his plugged tear duct.  The doc still advises to wait it out until he is a year old.  I sounded like a first time parent at Abram's appointment.  I have been really worried about Abram's sporadic arm and leg movements.  I feel like Chloe had more control of her body at this age.  The doctor said he is totally fine and is just trying to figure out how to work his arms and legs.  I don't know if I totally trust her, but I'm going to keep myself from Googling anything in the near future.  Anyway, he had two more shots and the doctor said he looks great!

Abram is starting to show signs of being afraid of strangers.  He loves mostly everyone, but then once in a blue moon a stranger will startle him and he will scream bloody murder.  It is crazy!!  He is such a happy little guy, but some people just rub him the wrong way.  Also, he gets very startled by loud noises.  I have some experience with this since I'm often yelling at Chloe while she climbs all over me as I attempt to feed Abram.  Every time I yell at her Abram freaks out.  He also cries when he hears the lawn mower or if a pan were to crash to the floor.

At four months Abram is smiling, giggling (so cute!), cooing, trying to roll over, holding his head up like a champ, sitting in his Bumbo, showing the first signs at an attempt to crawl, and drooling all over the place.  He still breastfeeds, but sometimes prefers the bottle.  I'm not sure if I will be able to feed him strictly breast milk until he is a year old since he is getting really hungry lately, but I'm going to try.  We'll start solids at six months, so that should help.

That Peaceful Moment of Clarity

Some evenings I swear Chloe and Abram call a meeting to discuss how best to torment me.  Chloe, first you take an entire 24 pack of Popsicles into the living room.  I'll shit all the way up my back and stick my hands in it.  That should buy you enough time to eat two before she catches you.  Then, when she takes the box away, you throw a temper-tantrum.  Cry for so long that you forget what you are crying about.  Stick your bottom lip out as far as it will go and ask for a hug when you are done so that she forgets she was mad.  Ask her sweetly if you can watch an episode of Sponge Bob Pear Pear, your favorite show.  I'll be hungry by then so I'll start crying right when you ask.  This will help her decide against her better judgement.  While you watch Pear Pear I'll be extra cute while I eat my food.  I'll hold my mouth open like a bird and then pretend to chew.  It'll practically kill her.  God, I'm cute.  Mom will probably turn the TV off after one episode, because Pear Pear puts you in a foul mood.  Throw a huge temper-tantrum even if you aren't mad about it.  You've set a precedent, and now you have to stick to it.  When you are done you'll probably have to poop.  But don't tell Mama.  Do that thing where you sneak into the bathroom and take a huge dump in less than three seconds.  Don't wipe.  You never do.  Put your underwear back on inside-out and backwards and leave poopy-tracks on Dora's face.  That's hilarious.  Or,  you can just leave them off and run around the house with poop on your butt until she catches you.  That's funny, too.  Either way, you can't lose.  I won't tell on you as long as you come over and jump in circles in front of me.  Stop every now and then and say "goo goo, ga ga," and boy will I laugh.  I'll laugh so hard I'll get the hiccups, which will really piss me off... and it goes on and on.

These are the nights I check the clock about seventeen times.  I often find myself taking the kids up an hour early for a bath at 6:30 p.m.  After I yell at Chloe 15 times for drinking the bath water that her brother peed in, after Chloe screams bloody murder because she got a drop of water in her eyes and, "my eyes, my eyes, MY EYEEEEES!!!," and after Abram squeezes his own penis so hard he makes himself cry, it happens.  I have this amazing moment.  After all of that chaos and crying and laughing I have this peaceful moment of clarity. 

It starts when I cuddle Abram up to me for his final feeding of the day.  I wipe the little crusties from his eye.  He stops eating to look up at me.  He smiles.  He goes back to eating and I smile as he blissfully falls asleep.  I don't even care this time around that breastfeeding him to sleep is a bad habit.  We won't have this time for long.  I know this time to appreciate it.  I put him in his crib where, like an angel, he will sleep the remainder of the night.  I move on to Chloe. 

If she has her way I've taken her to bed.  Brush your teeth, go potty, two stories, a song, and a prayer are Daddy's rules, but she knows she can hold me hostage for much longer.  Two books always turns into four, six, eight.  I lose count.  I read her a story and then she reads one to me.  I love to just lie there with her in her big girl bed.  It is there that I notice her special characteristics.  Sometimes I see something new, and it's like God is letting me in on a little secret.  I love the way her hair falls in her face.  It tickles, so she sticks out her lips and wriggles her nose a bit.  Then, in a grand gesture, she sweeps her hair behind her shoulder with her hand.  She does it over and over again, because the fan keeps blowing her hair in her face.  I'd stop it if I weren't so damn mesmerized.  I love her soft voice.  It's always been soft, and sometimes you have to be completely still to hear what she is saying.  My favorite sound in the entire world is the sound of her reading books.  She flips the pages so carefully, deliberately.  She looks at every detail on the page and then quietly, thoughtfully, tells the story she sees.

Sometimes she sees me lying there nearly comatose.  She'll reach out, pat my face, and say, "Shhh, Mama.  Close your eyes."  Then she starts singing, "Twinkle, twinkle little star..."  Just like I do to her.  She'll ask me to sleep with her in her bed.  Or maybe we can go sleep in Mama's bed?  "You.  And me?  You.  And me?" she'll ask.  She knows I'm a sucker for pronouns.  I consider it, too, except going to sleep on her own - in her own bed - and staying put the entire night seems like the one thing we are doing totally right as parents.  And even that is up for discussion. 

So, I break free from my two-year-old hypnotist.  We say our prayers and I always, every night, give my most genuine and sincere thanks to God, though it seems futile.  For my blessings are too many to count.     

Our First Conversation

Last weekend I took the kids home to meet their newest baby cousin.  On Saturday night Chloe wanted my Dad to take her up to bed.  Of course, he obliged.  He is wrapped so tightly around Chloe's finger that there was no other choice. 

After reading her about five more books than I ever would have he nearly had her asleep when all of a sudden there was a loud BOOM outside.  It scared Chloe, and she jumped into my Dad's arms.  He brought her downstairs to see what made the noise.  It turns out that a car had backfired and broke down outside of our house.  We explained to her that it was just a car making noise. 

Later that night she woke up, wandered into the bathroom, and started crying.  I was feeding Abram, so I couldn't immediately come to her rescue.  My Dad heard her crying, came upstairs, helped her go to the bathroom, and then took her back to bed.  He slept with her the rest of the night.  Fast forward to last night.

I sat on the couch in the basement and Chloe sat on the end table.  She was kicking her legs, alternating from left to right.  She had helped herself to an Izze sparkling juice just moments before having a seat.  I sat there watching her slurp on her "pop," put it down, slurp, down, slurp, down, when she started telling me a story. 

Chloe: I was crying in Papa's bathroom.  Slurp.

Me: Why were you crying?

Chloe: I was crying in Papa's bathroom.  I said "Waaaaah!"  Slurp.

Me: I remember.  Why were you crying?  Were you scared?

Chloe: Yeah.  I was scared.  Car made a loud noise.  Went BOOM!  Slurp.

Me: That's right.  Then Papa came upstairs.

Chloe:  Papa slept with Chloe.  All better.  I want to see Papa! 

Slurp, down, slurp, down, slurp, down.

I just sat there staring at her.  I couldn't believe my eyes.  I couldn't believe my ears.  I didn't know why she was crying in the middle of the night.  She didn't tell us.  But here she was a few days later just telling me all about it.  Like we were old friends.   

I wanted to dive across the couch and scoop her up, but I didn't want our conversation to end.  I know it was just a conversation about a loud noise that made her cry.  It was hardly a conversation at all.  But it was our first real conversation.  One that I didn't have to initiate.  One that wasn't about Dora or Knuffle Bunny.  It was about something that actually happened to her - a few days ago, even - that made a lasting impression on her memory.  Not only did it make an impression, but she was able to communicate her thoughts to me.  Is it just my post-pregnancy hormones, or is that just so cool?

Fredrick Meijer Gardens

We went to the Fredrick Meijer Gardens for the first time ever last weekend if you can believe it.  The butterfly exhibit is still going on through the end of the month, and since Chloe is totally obsessed with bugs right now we thought it would be right up her alley.  The butterflies did not disappoint.  Chloe was thrilled to see them flying around everywhere.  I, however, had a hard time fighting my human urge to swat at the insects swarming my head.  Chloe found a bench next to a little girl her age, and the two of them just sat there staring at the vegetation for about fifteen minutes.   

Chloe loved this waterfall sculpture at the entrance of the gardens.  She loved every single sculpture we came across now that I think about it.  It was nearly impossible to get her past the first 30 feet of the gardens.  At one point we came across a gang of pigeons.  I said, "Chloe, look at those birdies," to which she replied, "Mommy, those are pigeons."  Next year she will correct my classification of a "gang" of pigeons.  "Mommy, it is called a flock, flight or kit."  Duh.

Chloe loved the mini gate entrance to the children's garden.

Chloe playing in the "Great Lakes."

Abram & Dada

Here we are under the giant horse of which you can really see only the giant hooves and giant *ahem* balls.

Chloe loved rolling down the big hill with Daddy!

Guess Whose Kid

A popular game I like to play is Guess Whose Kid.  At a minimum it requires me, Chloe, another adult, and another kid, but there is no maximum number of players, and the results are always the same.  The rules are simple.  All of the players enter the same room, and I, the playee if you will, must sit in the next room over.  Every time I hear a child being corrected I have to guess which child is up to no good.  In the Guess Whose Kid game I typically score a point on behalf of Chloe every time I hear the following phrases:

Stop eating the sand!

This is an old photo, obviously, but at 27 months of age - you guys - this is still happening.

We don't eat playdough.

How did you get up there?

Stop biting Griffin!

No drinking the bubbles!

There are bubbles on her lips in this picture.  And also she just got done exclaiming "I drink bubbles!"

Don't pick your nose.

Don't eat your boogers!

Put your underwear back on.

What is in your mouth?

Don't color the walls/your hands/on Griffin.

Blue washable marker that has been smeared by tears.

Abram's Baptism

Abram was baptised on April 15, 2012 at St. Michael Catholic Church.  We asked Kendra and Chad to be his Godparents.  They were gracious enough to accept and host the celebration lunch following the baptism.  Since we held the baptism so close to our hometown we had a great turnout.  I think there must have been 50 friends and family members there to witness Abram's big day!  Since St. Michael's typically only allows baptisms on the first Sunday of the month during mass, we had to have the baptism after mass.  Things started off a little rocky since we had to rush the ceremony to accommodate choir practice.  I didn't have the camera or video camera ready so I spent the first two minutes of the baptism frantically looking around at my relatives making crazy charade-like movements in an effort to get someone to pick up a camera!  Finally, my Aunt Lisa caught on and told my Dad and Paul's Dad to get on camera duty.

Uncle Chad lighting Abram's candle.

Even my chill baby cried during his baptism.

Kendra, Me, Fr. TJ & Abram, Paul, & Chad

Chloe, Paul, Mom, Dad, Fr. TJ & Abram, & Me

Doug, Bobby Kay, Fr. TJ & Abram, Me, Chloe, & Paul

Family Pic.  Abram has had ENOUGH!

My Grandma Sally made this BEAUTIFUL cake.  She said she was going to "make a cake," but I didn't expect such a magnificent, giant cake.

This is the cake I had made at Frank's.  It wasn't supposed to have those giant flowers on it, but you win some, you lose some.

Doug, Paul's Grandma T (Mildred), & Paul

Paul, Dad, Mom, Grandma Sally & Abram, Me, & Grandpa Frank

Chloe had such a fun day.  Papa had to work really hard to keep up with her.  Both of them took a little nap during the party.

Abram - 3 Months

Wow!  Abram is three months old, and let me just say he is a perfect angel.  These days Abram sleeps through the night - usually in 8 to 10 hour stretches.  He typically takes one long 2-3+ hour nap in the afternoon, and takes multiple mini naps throughout the day.  He sleeps in his crib and rarely ever cries when we put him to bed. 

Abram loves having a clean diaper, and actually really loves having his diaper changed.  He loves to be spoken to, and he really loves cooing back at you.  He coos so much now that sometimes we have to ask him to pipe down a bit.  I really love his sweet voice, and I forgot how sweet it is to hear a baby coo.  He has a really high-pitched squeak that I am partial to.  Abram thinks that Chloe is hilarious (because she is), and whenever she sticks her face in his face he gives her a grin from ear to ear.  Chloe loves giving Abram big hugs.  I have even caught her trying to pick him up from time to time.  Stinker.  He doesn't mind at all!

My little man is growing so fast.  He is wearing size 6-9 (or bigger) clothing these days.  He is in Size 2 diapers, but I'm pretty sure that Size 3 would be fine, too.  Most of his baby hair fell out this month, but it is starting to grow back.  It is pretty light, but I would say it is darker than Chloe's was at this age.  Abram's baby acne is completely gone, but he does have some serious eczema on his legs and elbows.  His eye still boogers every now and then, but the plugged duct seems less serious as he gets older. 

For the most part Abram doesn't cry unless he gets really startled or hurt (by big sis mostly).  He is also likely to have a fit when he is really hungry.  When he has a poopy diaper sometimes he will complain a little, but he never cries about it.  Abram really prefers his milk in a bottle.  I joke that he will have a preference for bottled beer over draft beer.  I'm not sure if it is because he takes a bottle all day, but he just doesn't love breastfeeding as much as he did when he was newborn.  And I'm not sure what it is about me, but I'm not devastated about it like I would have been with Chloe.  I really don't mind pumping him bottles, though I'm grateful that he still breastfeeds at night like a champ in the event that he does wake up for a feeding.  I would really hate to have to get up and make him a bottle.  I've never been a big fan of breastfeeding in public, so I just bring him a bottle when we go out.  I don't know why I never did that with Chloe. 

Abram isn't really trying to roll over, but then maybe that is my fault.  I don't really work with him on tummy time, and I haven't been teaching him to roll over.  Call me crazy, but I just want him to stay little for as long as possible.  He is already so big, and I'm just not ready for my little baby to be rolling over and attempting to crawl. 

Abram still doesn't really love his bath, but he doesn't cry about it anymore either.  He still loves his pacifier, and I get the distinct feeling that bottles and pacifiers are going to be hard habits to break, whereas Chloe couldn't have cared less. 

Here is a pic from the beginning of the month when he really hated his bath.

Abram isn't super cuddly.  He really likes to just chill in his bouncy seat and watch us.  It is funny, because we bought Chloe a pink bouncy seat, but she HATED it.  Abram LOVES the bouncy seat.  Poor guy... stuck in pink everything.  Overall, Abram is doing well.  When he isn't sleeping he is smiling and cooing.  He is my sweet boy!  I took his three month photos a couple weeks late.  Oops!