Construction

Earlier this week we had our front walk replaced and part of the back deck changed.  The walkway looks amazing!  I had to laugh at all the noise it created, though.  The giant jack hammer was going all through Levi's normal naptime, and the cement truck was here at the same time yesterday.  Needless to say, Levi and I got to take a few unexpected trips away from the noise.

He has been really cute lately--back to his smiley self!  It's been a nice change.  This morning I leaned over him with my hair touching his face.  He just smiled at me and gently touched my hair.  What a sweetheart!  On the way home from the mall this afternoon, he fell asleep in the car; however, he actually laughed out loud in his sleep!  So cute!

Here are a couple of shots from the archives.

First time meeting Uncle Steve, February 9th, 2 days old.

March 20th, 6 weeks old

My personal favorite!  March 30th, 7 weeks old.

April 22nd, 10 weeks old

Nathan's aunt, Donna.  May 9th, 3 months old.

Nathan's uncle, Orv.  We had met for lunch before visiting Mary and
Grandma Velma's graves the day after Mother's Day.

What Just Happened?

For the past several weeks, Levi has had a tough time getting to sleep at night.  Tonight began no differently.  Instead of falling asleep during his final feeding, he was bright and cheerful and no longer hungry.  I quietly carried him around our dimly-lit home for awhile, then we sat in the rocking chair.  Levi started happily talking to himself, showing no signs of being sleepy.  I decided to see what happened if I laid him in his crib that way.  What a surprise!  After a few minutes of talking to himself, he quieted down.  After another five minutes I ventured in to see if he was asleep.  He was!  He went to sleep all by himself!  No crying, no tireless rocking, no endless feeding.

But. . . .

He was laying on his stomach with his face in the corner of the mattress and the crib bumper.  He was breathing just fine, but it made me nervous.  I moved him out into the center of the crib, but I left him on his tummy because I was afraid of waking him up.  Tummy sleeping is a big no-no nowadays . . . but he actually went to sleep!  Oh boy.  What are we going to do with this guy?

Four-Month Check-Up

Yesterday we had a doctor's visit for a well-baby check-up and immunizations.  Levi currently weighs 15 lbs 2 oz, and he is 26.5 inches tall.  According to my growth charts, that puts him in about the 60th percentile for weight and the 90th percentile for height.  His head circumference of 41.5 cm. is about the 35th percentile now.  He doesn't look like his head is too small, though, so I'm not worried about that number.

We also asked the doctor if his frequent spitting up is related to gastrointestinal reflux.  He said that since Levi is a happy baby and "his growth is perfect," it's probably just a "laundry problem."  However, the doctor suggested that I could be over-feeding him, so we're going to try cutting down on the amount of time he spends eating each meal.  Plus now Levi gets to have treatments for his cradle cap every other day.

Despite a doctor's visit and shots, Levi still had a pretty good day.  He even made it through my student voice recital last night, although he started running out of steam while we were cleaning up.  He slept really well last night.  :)

Four Months Old

Levi wasn't feeling much like smiling for the camera Tuesday, but I was bound and determined to take his four month milestone picture on June 7th.  In the second photo, Levi is sitting in his Bumbo seat.  He often sits in it while we are making or eating meals; however, yesterday he was starting to get fussy in his usual spot on the kitchen counter, so I gave him a change of scenery: the dining room floor near the cat dish. . . . That's an interesting spot, right?  Poor kid! 





Born to be Wild

Levi and I go for a run six days a week.  He has always enjoyed riding in the stroller.  Although he used to fall asleep immediately, now he prefers to observe the changing scenery.  Once we get home, I bring him into the bathroom in his car seat, and he falls asleep while I am in the shower.  When I'm done, I leave him in there with the fan on until he wakes up, anywhere between ten minutes and two hours later.

This past week he has changed his sleeping habits.  Rather than sleeping from 9:00 to 7:30 without waking up, he now wakes up once or twice at night.  Last night he woke up at 11:30, so I fed him.  Then I heard him again at 4:30, but he never cried.  He was rolling around in his crib and babbling, and he didn't need me at all!  Levi is still a terrible napper, though.  Some days he only sleeps for an hour with no more than ten minutes at a time.  Other days, like today, we get lucky and he has a 90-minute nap in the middle of the day.  I think he's just becoming so strong that his larger body movements are waking him up.

Speaking of moving around, last week Levi rolled from his tummy to his back three times.  (However, he hasn't done it since then.)  On Saturday, he rolled from his back to his stomach.  I was surprised since he doesn't really like being on his tummy.  I turned him back over because he was fussing, and I walked away to tell Nathan what he had just accomplished.  When I came back, Levi had rolled over again and was most of the way off the rug and part way under the couch.  Funny guy!

Just before our run.  That's a tiger hat! :)

After our run.  He's a real wild child!

Playing on the floor with Oliver