5 Months Old Already!

I couldn't resist dressing him up in some Hawkeye gear since it is that time of year again!! Owen turned 5 months old yesterday and has definitely changed a lot since his 4 month post. He is really started to soak up his surroundings and it is so fun to watch the little wheels turning in his head as he takes it all in:-) Here are a few of the things he has been up to this month:

1.) 4 month appointment stats from 08/20/10: Weight 12 lb, 10 oz--10th Percentile (just weighed him 2 days ago and he was 13.6 pounds fully dressed), Height 24 3/4 inches--45th Percentile (5 inches longer than when he was born), Head Circumfrence in the 70th percentile (big head= big brain right;-)

2.) Eats around 5 oz, still every 3 hours or so........his pediatrician says we don't need to start him on cereal yet since he isn't at his maximum amount of breast milk per day, but that we can try it if we want. I think we will give it a shot in a couple of weeks......HOW FUN:-):-)

3.) As far as sleeping goes, he is a champion napper at home still and now doesn't even need to be rocked before naptime. He has learned to fall asleep on his own which is such a blessing to know that anyone can put him down for a nap and he will soothe himself to sleep! As far as daycare goes, he does better with napping some days than others......like I have said before, we'll take what we can get. How about nightime you ask? Well, he goes down for bed between 7:30 and 8:30 usually and will sleep until 3 or 4am before he needs to eat and then will go back down until between 6 and 7am. I have chalked it up to the fact that he just can't go a whole night without seeing him mama;-) Thats what I like to tell myself anyway to keep from thinking about that fact that I haven't had a full nights sleep in 7 or 8 months (yes, this started before he was born due to my bladder being squished to the size of a pee)

4.) LOVES to play!!! Is still content in his playmat most of the time and now his main goal is to put all of the toys that hang down in his mouth. It is so funny to watch him get mad when he can't quite get them to his mouth;-) He will pretty much grab whatever you put in front of him which is good in some circumstances and not-so-good in others.

5.) Just in the last month Owen has also really start to interact with people around him. For the first few months he would always look away when being looked at and we were concerned so we asked his pediatrician. Dr. Collins said some babies just have that kind of personality and that he should come around when he got older. Well, she was right!! He now wants to stare at the person holding him and study them. It is pretty fun because he smiles and laughs and seems to carry on a conversation at times with the person that is interacting with him. Love it!!

6.) Tummy time has also increased for Owen. We put him on his tummy more now partially because his pediatrician told us too, but also because he actually doesn't mind it as much now as he used to. Can you blame him for not wanting to lift up that big head??;-) He had figured out that he can hold himself up with his arms and that has made it a lot more enjoyable for him.

7.) Rolled from tummy-to-back this week a few times, but since that day hasn't been very interested in it.....I'm sure it won't be long and we won't be able to keep him from rolling over!

8.) Just this week Owen has started to show signs of being scared of loud noises.....people talking too loud, the vacuum, etc. I was vacuuming the carpet the other day and he normally is content during this time, but he cried and cried until I turned it off and then he was fine. Now what to do? I can't vacuum when his is napping and I can't vacuum when he is awake.....does that mean I don't have to vacuum anymore;-)

9.) Two 10-day courses of antibiotic later Owen is ear infection free!!! Dr. Collins caught the first ear infection when we took him to his 4-month wellness check and started the first round of antibiotics, then his second ear infection was caught when we took him back to the doctor because he had been pretty fussy after finishing his antibiotics. Darn ear infections anyway.....thank goodness for antibiotics! Owen loved the amoxicillin and couldn't get enough of it....he would even cry when it was gone in the syringe, but the other antibiotc he wasn't as fond of. They did the trick though:-)

10.) And last but not least............Owen is a true HAWKEYE FAN!!!! Okay, okay so maybe he is a little young to understand it all, but he sure looks darn adorable in his black-and-gold attire!

Stay tuned for next months update.......Owen will be 1/2 year old!! Thanks to all of you for loving on him and being there for our family through this amazing time in life. We love you all!!