Luke is 5 months old!

As of January 13, Luke is 5 months old.  He's eating oatmeal or rice cereal with fruits or vegetables for at least one meal a day - usually dinner.  So far he seems to like everything, especially applesauce & bananas.  He's still a very demanding, high maintenance baby which my sister says he gets from me.  He wants constant attention, & if you're not giving it to him he will scream and cry until you do.  It's very exhausting but he is so totally worth it!  He loves to be held & walked around all the time (no sitting for him!).  He will turn his body around & kind of push away so that we will face him out.  We just bought the baby bjorn carrier & he LOVES it!  I can't believe we went this long without it.  I'll put him in it & just walk around the house or do chores & he is completely content.  The only time that he's not needing constant attention is when he watches his Mozart Baby Einstein DVD - that thing is a lifesaver when I need a 25 minute break.  He loves grabbing his feet & trying to get his toes in his mouth - it's so cute.  He doesn't like tummy time & will scream until he flips himself over or someone turns him.  Everything goes in his mouth, especially his hands.  He will sit in his exercauser, johnny jump up, & bumboo in short spurts - no more than 10 minutes before he's crying to get out.  We have 2 swings - 1 upstairs & 1 down, but he will only sit in it if he's watching his DVD - he does not like the swing otherwise.  I think it's because of his need for attention & dislike of being alone. 

Some other things he loves are being outside, taking a bath, looking in the mirror, seeing other babies, listening to me sing to him, funny faces, being tickled, & Oprah - & I'm not joking - I swear he loves her!  I DVR'd an interview that she did & when she was on the screen he would smile & laugh at her.  He obviously thought she was talking to him.  I played it again the next day to show Brad & sure enough, he did it again!  Then, tonight at my friend Jennifer's house we were watching the newest Oprah interview that she DVR'd where Oprah meets her half sister that she never knew she had & again he lights up & smiles only when she is on the screen talking.  It was so cute!  He also likes it when we read to him.  His favorite book is the Cat in the Hat.  He lights up & smiles real big as soon as I start reading that one.  He always laughs at the same spots in the book too (I'm know it's just the way I say the words but I like to pretend that he understands!).  He is the most precious baby & I love him more than life!  Here are some recent pics.

This is Luke in his high chair - look how dirty it is!  That's from one feeding.  He insists on grabbing the spoon & guiding it to his mouth & that always makes a huge mess.  I've since cleaned the chair & it looks like new again (for now at least).

Luke in his Bumbo - he really doesn't like sitting in it much but was happy to smile for the camera

He's naked in the next few pics because he had just spit up all over his clothes - we go through at least 2 outfits a day & several bibs

Luke loves Bunny, but I'm not sure what Bunny thinks about him yet

                                                He looks so happy in his cowboy pajamas!



Christmas Week In Review

I've had no time to blog because we've been so busy the past week.  We spent Christmas with my family in Bryan, but just a few days before that my new niece was born.  Her name is Mia & she is just precious!  Here are some pics to recap most of the past week.  The smaller ones were taken with my iphone & so not the best quality.

First of all, here is our Christmas card for this year

This is the pic used to create the card.  Luke was exactly 3 months old when it was taken.

This is my 3 year old niece Madison - another love of my life!  She comes to visit us often, & we love to have her. She came before Christmas & stayed with us for a few days. 

Luke loves his cousin - look how happy he looks

This was after a trip to the book store.  Madison wanted to ride in the stroller with Luke so we let her.

We went to the mall to see Santa & waited in line over an hour to see him - actually Brad did while we shopped - he's the best!

Below is the pic that we bought from the mall people

We made smores

The small chiminea fire went out & for some reason we couldn't get it relit

                             So, Brad brought out the big fire bowl & that worked even better

This was taken the day after Christmas with my iphone so it's a little blurry, but oh so cute!

                        Another with my iphone - Madison got this baby doll stroller & Luke fit perfectly - isn't he such a doll?

And last but not least - the newest addition, Mia, with Luke.  She was 9 lbs at birth!  Luke weighs only 5 lbs more at 4 & a half months.



Sleep Training

Luke has never been a good sleeper.  His naps are super short, & he wakes frequently during the night.  He doesn't know how to put himself back to sleep, and will cry everytime he wakes until we get up, put his pacifier back in, rock him, pat him on the back.....then repeat as needed (which is usually a lot).  He's never slept through the night, and wakes to eat every 2-3 hours.  There are some nights that he is up every hour.  It's exhausting, especially since he wakes for the day at 6 or 7 AM.  I just finished reading The Baby Whisperer, Baby Wise, & Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child.  All 3 books stress the importance of sleep and a sleep schedule.  It's been pretty difficult so far, but we are really trying to get Luke on a better sleep schedule in hopes that it will not only help him to sleep through the night, but also make him a happier (less fussy) baby!

Today was a great day for sleep!  Brad put him down at 9 & he slept until 11.  He then ate, played, & was back down at 1 & slept until 3.  Next he took a 30 minute nap at 5:30, bath at 6:30, & in bed by 8.  He woke up crying a few times between 8 & 9 which is pretty normal for him.  Brad thinks the key to getting him to nap is letting him cry for a few minutes.  I've always been against the crying it out method, but it actually seems to be the only thing that works for him.  He was in a great mood today & I know it's because he got the sleep that he needed. 

Here are some pics of my happy baby today.

This was his 30 minute nap at 5:30 - I didn't want to put him in his bed since it was such a late nap so I just turned him on his side with his pacifier & he fell asleep



These are after his bath & bottle

I love this sweet little face - it melts my heart!!  He's so worth the sleepless nights!

Luike's 1st Road Trip to Mississippi

We had a southern Thanksgiving with Brad's family in Greenville, Mississippi this year.  The drive would normally take at least 10 hours but we broke it up & spent the night in Louisiana so that Luke wouldn't have to sit in his carseat for that long.  Here are some pics from that trip.

This is what he did most of the time in the car

Or he chewed on Sophie

followed by more of this

Luke & I at Mama D's (Brad's mom) - I love how he crosses his arms to sleep

We also celebrated Christmas early

Luke's sweet Christmas outfit



We had a wonderful Thanksgiving/ early Christmas with the Etheridge's!

Shots

Luke had his four month shots yesterday.  He's up to 13.8 lbs.  He's in the 25th percentile for weight, 20th percentile for length, & 50th percentile for head circumfrence.  He was so happy laying naked on the table, smiling & cooing - he had no idea what was about to happen!  When he got his shots he immediately screamed, turned bright red, & cried.  I picked him up & was able to calm him down within a minute.  So, overall I think he was pretty tough about it.  He slept a lot yesterday and was cranky when he was awake.  I think that his little legs were sore because he normally loves to stand when we hold him but yesterday he wouldn't stand at all.  We decided to give him some baby tylenol last night & he seemed so much better within the hour.  I hope that he's feeling better today!  Here are some pics from yesterday, & a few from the night before.

This was in the car on the way to the Dr.  He's wearing his "Christmas Rocks" outfit with matching rocker hat (& a bib because he's a spitter!)

Dad & Luke in the waiting room

I LOVE this sweet little (big) bald head!  He does have a little hair & eyebrows, it's just really blonde so you have to look real close

These are from the night before his shots.  He loves his exersaucer!

He also LOVES watching the TV.  Is that bad?

I just realized that he's not smiling in any of these pics so I'm including a collage with pics of him smiling.  These were taken with my iphone, so the colors are weird & some are a little blurry.  He was 3 months old.

Teacher Gifts

Last night I put together the Christmas gifts that Luke is giving his 5 teachers at daycare.   

I found these super cute stockings at Target

 

I filled the stockings with hot cocoa mix

A warm apple pie scented candle

And some holiday M&Ms

So this is what was inside each stocking

With a little tissue paper & gift tag added, here is the finished product - I think they turned out pretty cute!

I hope his teachers enjoy their gift!