4 Month Check-up

Moosey had his 4 months checkup today and it went great! No ear infections! I hope we are done with those for good, I'm sure he does too.

The doctor talked to us about his sleep habits. He said that Brennan needs to start learning how to fall asleep on his own right now so that when he's 6-9 months he can start to self soothe and put himself to sleep. He also said we didn't need to swaddle him any more.

He also said that Brennan should be having all the green veggies right now and no fruit.

It's good that I realize that the doctors advice is only advice. I think kids will eventually learn to sleep on their own. Sara went through some rough periods when she cried but she made it. I'm sure Brennan will have rough periods too. Right now we're swaddling him because it seems to keep him cozy and warm at night and in a good state of sleep. Also he won't take naps in his bed during the day so he sleeps for an hour or two in his swing in the afternoon. I do this so that we can all get some rest, Sara included. When he cries it wakes her up.

I think the most important thing is that we're all rested and happy. I'm sure the hard part will come when he won't fit in his swing any more but by them I'm hoping he's older and better able to cope with being by himself.

Also the advice on the veggies seems well placed but I think I'd rather Brennan get a variety of foods rather than just all green to start. Right now he eats bananas, pears, apple, sweet potato, and peas. I feel good that he's getting some variety in his nutrition. I think the doctor means that we should give him too many "sweet" foods before he has his veggies. If he's going to be in this family though he'll have to eat his veggies and hopefully if he doesn't want to, Sara can be a good influence on him and coax him into it. I'm happy with his nutrition right now, he's getting a variety of nutrients from the different foods. We are probably going to be adding more foods starting this week.

I was expecting his growth to be off the charts but he was in the 50th percentile for everything, height, weight, and head circumference. I guess it's good because maybe he won't be a giant.

Here's how his stats and Sara's at 4 months compared :

Sara: Weight- 11.9 lb Height- 24.8 in Head circ- 16.4 in
Brennan: Weight- 15.1 lb Height- 25 in Head circ- 16.8 in

Surprisingly they are very similar in everything but weight! I thought he would have measured way different. Maybe they will end up being about the same size.

He got his shots today and only cried for a second, I was amazed. Sara cried for a good 15 minutes when she had hers. Also he had a very friendly disposition with the doctor, even smiling at him and he kept his eyes on him the whole time. The doctor says he watches for body language in children and he thinks Brennan has a good disposition. We also discussed him being intense and crying for me all the time. His opinion was it's nothing to worry about and to try to keep getting him to entertain himself small bits at a time.

He has been better this week about entertaining himself. Sara has also done an awesome job at helping. He loves it when she sits with him and he won't cry when she plays with him or talks to him.

I'm glad we've made it to this milestone with him. I feel like things will hopefully get easier from here on out and if not, we'll still make it through OK.