Toes . . . Yum!

I knew it was just a matter of time! As I mentioned before Max discovered his toes a week or so ago. Like everything else he plays with he has been trying to get them in his mouth ever since. Yesterday he was sucessful. He was so pleased with himself and he seemed to think that his toes tasted great!

I hope that my next post is that he is rolling over. He has done it a couple times and he gets so close! He ends up on his side all the time, but he just doesn't quite make it all the way over. I would think that his big ole baby belly would help in getting him all the way over, but maybe it is getting in the way!

Exersaucer Fun!

Max had his first real experience in his exersaucer today. We tried it a week or so ago and he just didn't seem ready. He just flailed his arms and seemed to be very confused. He also had a hard time sitting up in it.

I gave it another try today and he loved it! He couldn't decide what he wanted to look at first, there were just too many fun things. He has been getting so much better at controling his hands. He is now able to grab on to things fairly easily, which made the exersaucer all the more fun. I love the little spit bubbles in the second picture - he was trying really hard to

make the animals talk to him!

What a week!

Max has had a very eventful week! He is no longer being swaddled at night when he goes to sleep. He has officialy graduated to the sleep sack. It is basically a wearable blanket that keeps him all cozy at night. He has been in the sleep sack all week, and so far things are going pretty well. He only wakes up once a night, usually between 3am and 5am, then he goes back down until about 7:30ish. All in all, he is not doing too badly. I feel like I am getting enough sleep and so is he. We will need to begin putting him to sleep earlier soon so that he is up when we need to go to daycare in the morning. My first day back is August 11th, which is right around the corner!

Max has also discovered that there are neat little things attached to the end of his legs that he can control, well sort of. . . I keep telling him that they are his feet, but I don't think he is too interested in what they are called. No matte what you call them, they are his new favorite play thing. He grabs them all the time, especailly during diaper changing time. He seems to like his feet more than any of his toys right now. He hasn't quite gotten them into his mouth, but I am sure this milestone is just around the corner!

Last but not least Max and I had lunch with two of my mom's co-workers this Tuesday. Angela even had a gift for Max, an adorable little quilt that she made. It is so cute! It is covered with frogs, tutles, and all kinds of cute little things. I layed Max on it for the first time yesterday and he seemed to think it was pretty cool, but I did have to make him promise not to spit up on it. He even posed for a few pictures! Thank you so much Angela!

He Grew How Much?!

Max was such a big boy yesterday! He had quite the day. Not only did he turn four months old, but he also got to see Dr. Spewak for his four month appointment. I was relieved to see that there were no sick kids in the waiting room. I have had mixed emotions about going to this appointment - I have been dying to know what my little boys weighs but the thought of him getting more shots breaks my heart. We did the fun stuff first. Max weighed in at 17lb 3oz, which puts him at about the 75th percentile. More shocking than his weight was his height - he is 27 1/4 inches tall, or I guess maybe long since he doesn't really stand up yet. His height is in the 95th percentile. He has grown so much in the last two months! He put on over 5 pounds and grew almost 5 inches! The doctor actually said that Max is the perfect size . . . for a six month old. I now understand why I had to buy him a whole new summer wardrobe in 9 month size! It is hard to believe now that I was worried he wasn't gaining weight initially.

Dr. Spewak said that Max looks great. He is hitting all of his milestones just like he should. We think he has started teething. His hands are always in his mouth and he is drooling like crazy. He has also been a bit fussier than usual and I actually had to break out the baby Tylenol last evening. Dr. Spewak also gave us the green light to start solid foods, although I think we will wait until closer to six months to embark on that journey. Max just doesn't seem ready at all right now.

I am very proud to say that I have been doing much better about giving Max his tummy time. In fact, he doesn't really seem to mind it so much anymore. We are able to get him to do over 10 minutes before he starts to fuss and then I can usually get a few more minutes in before he really starts to melt down. I can see a huge difference in how strong he is and how long he is able to hold his head up on his tummy. I guess it really does build strength. To celebrate is four month birthday Max rolled over twice last night when he was on his tummy. He hasn't done that since he was about a month old - which was a complete accident at the time I am sure. I will have to see if he continues to roll in the next few days.

Since Max is getting so big it has been getting more and more difficult to swaddle him when he sleeps. Only one problem, when he isn't swaddled he doesn't sleep. Last week I started swaddling him with one arm out and last night I left both arms out and he actually slept from bedtime until 6am! Shocking. I guess he is just about ready to move on to the sleep sacks at night. My little boy is just growing up so fast!

Future Truman State Alum?

Last October Brian and I joined a bunch of friends for a road trip to Kirksville, home to Truman State University and where Brian and I first met. While taking taking a stroll around campus I came to the bookstore, and they had baby clothes!! This t-shirt was the first piece of baby clothing I bought, I was barley into my second trimester at the time of our trip. Brian of course, thought is was silly, but I just couldn't help myself. Now here we are nine months later and Max is almost too big for it! This isn't Max's best picture, he had just woken up from a nap, but I wanted to get picture before he is too big for his shirt. We have an appointment with the pediatrician on Friday of next week. I am very curious to see what my little one weighs.

On a sadder note, two of my co-workers were hit by a drunk driver while crossing a street in Philadelphia. They love the Cardinals and were in town to see the game. They are both in critical condition and can use any positive thoughts and prayers you can send their way.

Max's Big Day

Here are some pictures from the Max's big day - his Baptism! He is how officially a member of the Catholic church.

It felt like Max's baptism was an entire weekend event since all of Brian's siblings took the time to come into town. It is always fun to see the kids - they are all getting so big! We had family pictures taken on Saturday morning, so look for those to be posted once we get them from the photographer. It was a bit of a challange to get all the kids to cooperate, but I think there will be some nice shots to show for it.

As we sat in church waiting for mass I couldn't help but think that five years ago, Brian and I were on that alter saying our vows. It has been a great five years! We even have a little one to show for it. Max's baptism followed 11am mass on Sunday. The baptism was beautiful, Father Bommarito called all of our family and freinds to stand on the alter beside us throughout the whole ceremony. It was amazing to see all of the people that took the time to celebrate our little man. I cried, of course. It still feels so amazing to think that we are parents, we truly are blessed. Max was great throughout the entire ceremony. He didn't let out a peep and even smiled at Father B a few times.

After the ceremony we went to have lunch at Guido's. While the drinks were a bit slow to come out - sorry everyone - it was fun to spend time with all of our family and freinds. Max enjoyed lunch from his car seat where he slept almost the entire time. He did eventually wake up as a reward for the people that hung on to the bitter end.

It was a wonderful weekend and I don't think it could have gone any better!

Happy 4th of July!!

Max is enjoying his first big holiday. I was all excited to put on his All American Baby outfit this morning. He looks pretty cute! With the baptism right around the corner we are pretty busy. Brian's brother, Andy, got into town last weekend with his wife and kids and his other brother, Jeff, and sister, Kathy, will get in today with their families. Our fourth of July will be spent out at Mindy and Jack's with all the kids running around. I think it will be a great way to spend the holiday. Enjoy your holiday and check back next week for details on the baptism!