Stats: Month Four

River at four months:

Weight/Height: 16.4 lbs 26 inches long

Sleeping: River is sleeping through the night!!!  I have no idea how or why or if it will even last but this has been a fantastic month for sleep.  We are still following the same routine with naps and bedtime: keeping his naps to no longer than 3 hours at a time, keeping the room dark and quiet at night, and these things seem to really be working.  I usually nurse River around 6 pm, we have bath time, and then we all end up in the living room for family time.  He starts getting fussy and ready for bed somewhere between 7-7:30 and I rock him to sleep with his favorite blanket.  River is still sleeping in his bassinet in our room.  I get him up for a dreamfeed when Shawn and I go to bed around 10 pm.  A dreamfeed is simply picking the baby up out of bed and feeding them while they are still asleep.  Trust me: it works.  A friend of mine refers to this technique as "topping them off".  I started doing the dreamfeed when River first started sleeping through the night.  This last feeding of the day basically fills the baby up and allows him to continue sleeping without needing to wake up in a few hours for a feeding.  After the dreamfeed, I place him back in his bassinet and he sleeps until morning. I wake him up at 7 am so that I can feed him before I go to work.  On the weekends, he has been sleeping in until 9 am!  It's a whole new world, little guy!

Feeding:  River is still breastfeeding like a champ and putting on good weight.  I feed him in the morning before I go to work and then pump around 10 am.  I am home from work around 1 or 2 pm, just in time for his next feeding.  He is currently nursing 6-7 times a day, sometimes more.  During the day, we don't follow any sort of schedule, we feed him on demand, following his cues. River is a thumbsucker now and has learned to self soothe, no longer using me as a pacifier.  We are still giving him probiotics every night before bed and he has had no digestive issues at all.

Health: River started teething this month.  His hands are constantly in his mouth and he gets quite fussy at times when his gums start hurting.  We have been using Hyland teething tablets and recently purchased a Baltic Amber teething necklace. The combination of these two remedies really seems to help. 

Personality:  River babbles and coos constantly.  He has been so smiley this month and giggles when you tickle him.  He is SO ticklish and laughs and coos when you squeeze his big thighs.  He is the most cuddly baby and still loves to be held and rocked.  He enjoys tummy time with the girls, they set all of his toys up in front of him and entertain him for as long as he will hang with them.  My mother in law gave me a Sakura Bloom ring sling as an early Christmas gift and River loves it.  He is snug as a bug while still being able to look around. River's eyes are still blue and we are so curious as to what color they will eventually be.  

Milestones:  This month, River celebrated his first Thanksgiving, went on his first road trip, met his grandparents (Shawn's parents) for the first time, and helped decorate his first Christmas tree.

This was a really, really good month buddy.  You are growing so much so fast but you are just the sweetest little thing.  You are very, very loved.