Us, lately

Diaper-free time is fun for Jasper, and can be messy for Mom. Conveniently, we do it right before bath!

This pic is fuzzy, but you can see Jasper is doing a great press-up these days!

I chill with Dad and Wiley in the den.

I play with toys when they're set on the table, which makes outings such as this one more fun!

Monday, Monday

It's Monday and Mom is sick. Jasper, however, seems to be feeling just fine. I know I've posted several pics of him on his tummy, but this one is special because he got himself in this position all on his own. And now he's no longer fussing when he rolls over at night. He is sleeping quite contently on his tummy. Alas, the arms now have to come completely out of the sleep sack. We'd been tucking them inside since he can stay up for hours playing with his hands. Now, however, we want them free so he can tumble around at his leisure and get from front to back if he pleases.

I bought a second sleep sack today so when he, say, pees in one during the night (like last night) I have a back up. The pink and blue ones were on sale for $9.99. The cream colored ones were $19.99. They were out of his size in blue, so I bought a pink one. Hey, I saved $10, and, like the Bumbo, I think it's Seth and I who will have more of an issue with it than Jasper. My boy in pink PJ's. Love it!

Rockin' and Rollin'

At nearly 4 1/2 months Jasper is discovering new ways to move every day. He's still not mobile, of course, but I see very clearly that it is only a matter of time!

He is now rolling over onto his stomach multiple times each night. After a little time on the tummy, though, he gets quite frustrated because he hasn't quite mastered the reverse roll. So, he starts a cranky shriek that tells us we need to go flip him. At first I was worried about him sleeping on his stomach, but it has become very clear that none of us will be getting any sleep when he's on his tummy.

Of course, with the rolling, this boy is moving around in his crib even more. We used to think it was funny when we'd find him in there with his legs kicked up on the side and him just snoozing. Now, it's kind of hard to surprise us. He's often on his side, his tummy, kicking the footboard, hanging on to the bars or reaching through them, or just plain on the other end of the crib than we laid him.

This morning we found him with his sleep sack on completely backwards -- and one arm through. We have no explanation other than there must have been a few rolls involved in getting the thing turned around.

He's also discovered some of the best new toys ever invented: feet. He loves grabbing at his feet or his pant legs. This can make a diaper change quite a challenge. I remember when Lily was about six months old I was amazed at how she could put her feet in her mouth. Now I see that it's just another thing to discover.

A few updates as well: Our new medicine seems to be helping our excessive spit up problem. We're still hoping it helps the snore-like breathing as well. He is also napping quite well. His morning naps are becoming more organized and longer (he used to sleep for 45 minute on the dot). He is also seeming to welcome the naps with less resistance than before. Yeah! All and all, I'd say we're doing quite well.

Fun with Dad

We were super busy last week, and Mom spent most of her computer time working. Here are a couple of pics of Jasper and Daddy from over the weekend. He LOVES to stand up. And he's pretty good at it, too. He can support his own weight, he just doesn't have any balance!

Sssshhhhhhhhhh!

Seth will probably tell me that by making this post, I've jinxed the whole thing, but I can't resist sharing the news!

We just might have broken the no-nap cycle.

After reading books by doctors and getting all of that technical advice, it was actually a very practical solution that seems to be working. Nona, the childcare provider from whom Janet gets most of her kids, passed along how she teaches infants to nap. It's this easy: Play soft relaxing music, lay baby in crib, give them a comforting nap-time saying and walk away. Return to crying baby every four minutes first day. Then gradually increase the time. The trick, she says, is to be consistent. She said it's actually probably harder for moms to pull off because they don't like to hear baby cry. Well, I was willing to try anything.

We started this last Thursday and had two miserable days of hour-long bouts of baby crying. But then, he started to get himself to sleep. Now, it may take 30 minutes, but he will eventually get himself to sleep.

Mom is shocked and elated. Now she's realizing if we can make this work (keep fingers crossed) then I may actually get around to a few chores before the evening!