Four Months Old

our little guy celebrates his four-month-birthday today, and no one is more surprised than me, mommy. where did the time go? four months seems like such a short time and a lifetime all at once. and the fact is, it IS someone's lifetime-- adam's! four little months on our earth and what a difference those little four have made in all our lives.

i feel like we've hit some milestones and moved from mysterious newborn with random schedule to a pretty content and predictable little baby boy. i know we have teething, diaper rashes, and crawling just around the corner, so we are doing our best to enjoy this peaceful time, where everything we say is funny, sleeping all night still means 12-hours at a time, and meals are simple and easy, with most still coming from his bottle.

adam, when you're eating you hold my fingers, then release. hold, then release over and over playing with our hands and i love it so much. you take your other hand and explore our faces, touching mouths, noses, cheeks and eyes, as if you're trying to figure out what everything is and why it is there. little do you know you have miniature parts of your own. however, you do love to stare at yourself in the mirror and often with a curious face. who is that cute baby, you must be thinking. you've gotten over your fear of being on your back, which is such a relief. you frequently lay on your back to play, sleep, and no longer cry at diaper changes or bath time. you spoil us with twelve hours of sleep each and every night-- in fact, this weekend, you slept in till TEN one morning! your daddy and i couldn't believe it! we were very worried that you weren't feeling well, but you were a-ok and just snoozing in late. hey, that's what saturdays are for, right? we're glad you've learned that early on.... :) you wake up happy every morning, ready to greet the day and play and smile at everything-- mommy and daddy, otis, the kitchen lights, your toys (you definitely got this from your dad, not me!!). you're content to sit and watch mommy as i make coffee, feed otis and let him outside, and make your bottle. you've recently discovered your feet and inspect them with great curiosity anytime they catch your eye. you just started eating rice cereal every day and you love it. you like to "help" with the spoon, grabbing onto our hand with your tiny hands and pulling to get the spoon into your mouth as fast as possible! in fact, if we're too slow to give you your next bite, you start to cry! you're obviously a food lover, like both your parents. last night, i gave you the spoon to hold on your own since you seemed so interested in it. your face lit with a triumphant smile and you immediately put it into your mouth on your own to inspect and suck on. actually, this is the reaction you have to most anything you can get your hands on these days. you attempt to taste the world-- toys, clothes, blankets, faces, hands, etc. we now have to take stock of all your toys for the first time and make sure they're adam-safe. we don't want any stray parts ending up in your belly! i am sad that, at this time when you are so very curious about everything and everyone around you, we are in the middle of winter and can't spend too much time outside. with highs in the 20's this week in dc, i am always careful to bundle you up and move you from inside, car, inside. i will be so glad when spring comes and we can play outside together. but at the same time, i am not wishing this time with you away. in fact, i only wish time would slow down! you have grown and changed so much. when i think of that teeny tiny baby in the hospital, the little one who wouldn't even fill out his newborn-sized clothes, and then i look at you-- our plump, happy, curious little baby-- i can't believe how you've grown and changed! the words "four months" sound like such a short time, i know that they are. but it seems like forever since you joined our lives. you amaze us daily and we love you with all our hearts.