Caitlin,
You are 3 months old today! I think every monthly post is going to say this, but this has definitely been the most fun month with you so far! We don't go back to the doctor until September 29th for your 4-month check-up, so I'm not sure what you weigh, but you are defnitely growing. You are still wearing size 1 diapers and mostly 0-3 months outfits. You are very long and lean. Like Mommy, your hair has started falling out! I think you look like a cute little old man with the balding up top - it kind of reminds me of Pop-Pop. :)You usually eat between every 2-3 hours during the day, and breastfeeding is going better than in the past. I'm still fighting the thrush, but it's not as bad as it could be thankfully.
What are you up to this month? You are becoming stronger each day. You are still working on holding your head up, and we do tummy time almost every day. We're also thinking you might be on the verge of rolling over! Most of the time, you do really well with holding your head up, but we still have some bobblehead episodes here and there, mostly when you are really tired. You have decided that you are not a huge fan of sitting and would rather stand with us supporting you. Your little legs are so strong! When you are laying on your back or leaning back on our legs, we can pull you by your hands and you can sit up and sometimes stand up. It seems that this month, you have really discovered that there's a whole new world out there. Every little thing is so interesting to you, especially the TV. I think you the bright colors are so interesting to you. We discovered this while we were at the beach. Everytime we sat with you any way but directly facing us, you would turn your head to get a good look at the TV. It was pretty funny, but we have started trying to limit your TV time at home. We do let you watch the Phillies though. We figure that can't really hurt since we are expecting you to be a true Phillies fan. You also seem to really like the mobile on your crib that Nanny & Pop-Pop gave you. We tried it when we got it from them, and you could have cared less. Now, when I need to get something done upstairs, I can lay you in your crib and turn on the mobile and you will just lay there and look at all the animals and talk to them!
You have become a drool machine. It seems like it happened out of nowhere. All of a sudden, you started drooling all over everything. We haven't broken out the bibs yet, but I suspect that it won't be long. You definitely know Mommy and Daddy now. When someone else is holding you and we walk by, you will follow us. Or if you hear our voices, you will look for us. I have to say that it makes me feel so good that you know who we are. All this hard work is totally paying off! You are also starting to "talk" more and squeal. That is one of my favorite things to do with you! You "talk" to me most when I say "Ah Ah Ah" in a singsong voice or "Aaaaahhhhh". It's so cute that I think I could do that with you all day every day. You have also found your hands and feet this month. You try so hard every day to get your hands into your mouth and keep them there. You are getting better at getting them to your mouth, but most of the time they move on you and you can't get them back. You get really frustrated when this happens. You also bend down to try to get your mouth to your hands instead of bringing them to you. It's pretty funny! You also fight your swaddle blanket with all your might to try to get your hands loose! Your feet are fascinating. When you will sit in one of our laps, you notice your feet and can't take your eyes off of them. You even lean over to get a better look at them. You have also acted like you want to put them in your mouth - I mean, at this point, I think you'll put anything in your mouth. We've tried a couple times to help you put a foot in your mouth, and when we do, you make this face like "Eww, that is not what I expected my big toe to taste like".
We took you on your first big roadtrip and vacation this month to Avalon, NJ. You did amazingly well in the car. It tooks us about 4 hours and 30 minutes to get there with a 45 minute stop to feed you. We spent a week in Avalon with the LeNoir family and let's just say that you were not neglected while we there. We all spent the week playing with you and loving on you. You slept in the pack n play in our room, and you did great being in a new place. We had a couple nights where you were up during the night, but other than that, you slept very well! We took you to the beach 5 out of the 7 days, and like your Daddy and me, you were a total beach bum. Mommy carried you down to the beach in the Baby Bjorn while Daddy did all the heavy lifting by carrying a backpack, a little tent for you, and 2 beach chairs and an umbrella. You slept really well on the beach. I think the waves were really soothing to you. You slept in my arms when we were on the beach, and the snuggle time with you was just what I needed before returning to work this week. We also put your toes in the sand and your feet in the water. You didn't mind the sand, but after a few minutes, you started doing the flamingo pose. The first time the water hit your feet, you were a little shocked and cried a little bit, but after that, you were not bothered by it at all. You didn't seem to love it or hate it. We've already talked about booking the house in Avalon again next year, so we'll see what your reaction is then! We were a little paranoid about you getting sunburned, so with our pediatrician's permission, we slathered you in a ton of sunblock and sat under the umbrella the whole time.
Speaking of work, I started back this week, and you started Daddy Day Care. The transition has been a little easier than I expected. Both my boss and the CFO are on vacation this week, and the fact that you are home with Daddy during the day has made it so much easier on me. I know that you are in good hands and that Daddy is taking good care of you. I also worked from home on Tuesday and today, and you and Daddy came to work yesterday to have lunch with me, so that has definitely helped. It was so much fun to show you off to all the people I work with. Of course, they thought you were the cutest thing ever. I'd have to agree with them. The pumping thing, while kind of awkward, is actually going better than I expected as well. I am able to work while I'm pumping, so that's nice, but I can see how it's going to get old very quickly. I've only done it for 2 days now, and it seems like all I do is pump. I'm just glad that the logistics of it seem to be working out, and I have one less thing to worry about while I'm at work.
Let's talk about sleeping. There's not much to say here other than GOOD JOB! You are consistently sleeping through the night for about 8-10 hours. Some nights you wake up around 4am and we just give you the pacifier and you go right to sleep. We have started to establish more of a routine (bathtime, put your jammies on, sometimes a bedtime story, nurse and then bedtime), and I think that is really helping you. We have been trying to get you to sleep no later than 9:30pm, and if that happens, you are up between 6:30 am and 7:00 am. Naptime is going ok as well. You usually take about 4 naps a day, and lately, it's been 4 1-hour naps. That's ok, but we are working on getting you to take at least one longer nap during the day. We are also still swaddling you for naps and at bedtime. We left you unswaddled one night and you slept until 5:30am. We think that was a probably a fluke because the next day, you could not sleep without being swaddled. We also think that if you had been swaddled, you would have slept longer. We have also concluded that you do really like bathtime. The past few nights, you have started kicking your legs and splashing during your bath! You get so excited - it's so cute!! We also will lay you on our bed after bath and your little legs and arms just go crazy. I will have to try to get it on video and post it soon.
Another month has passed way too quickly, but we are having so much fun with you. We can't wait to see what the next month brings!!
Love you like no other,
Mommy
Here are your 3-month pictures with your bear:
For comparison, here you are at 2, 1 and zero months:
