Yikes, we are already at 5 months! I feel like Nolan is still such a new baby in many ways, but he is definitely big enough to fill out his 6-9 month clothes!
Nolan 5 months
Nighttime sleep: Has anyone ever heard of the “4 month regression” in baby sleep? I never did until Nolan started waking up more at night this last month. After 4 solid weeks of random night wakings, I THINK we are back down to one waking per night. A few times this week he slept all the way through (like, as in 12 hours!), but this is still few and far between. He goes to bed around 7-7:30pm and is up for the day anywhere between 6:45am and 8:45am.
Naps: It really is different every day, but most days he gets 4 naps, each about 45 minutes long. If the naps are longer, he may only take 3 naps, but that is an exception to the rule so far.
Temperament: His personality is starting to come out more and more. He is really interested in what we are doing around the house, and I catch him watching Addie play a lot. He also stares at me while I eat now, and it is funny to see the wheels turning in his head. “Hey, why can’t I have some of that good stuff?”
Likes and Dislikes: Nolan loves playing with Daddy, who can get him laughing so hard! He also loves when Addie makes faces at him or plays “Patty cakes” with his feet. He likes spending time in his car seat as we cart him around everywhere, but he also loves to roll around on the ground. I am trying out toys to see if he will start to grab at them, and he is not really there yet. He will hold something if I give it to him, but he is not really interested in reaching for anything yet.
Milestones: He rolls! He started rolling from back to tummy a few weeks ago, and sometimes sleeps on his tummy now. Problem is, he can’t roll from tummy to back, so he gets mad when he is on his tummy too long. We started solid food this week, and rice cereal is all that he’s tried so far (except a tiny bit of banana I let him sample). Most of it comes right back out, but I’m sure he will get the hang of it soon! He still only has 2 teeth, and he has figured out how to spit with all that drool coming out!
Look at those teeth!
Nolan 4 months
Nighttime Sleep – Nolan is giving me a run for my money in the sleep category. He was getting much better at sleeping at night, but then he began teething, and started waking up multiple times per night. I know he doesn’t need to eat 5 times every night, so it was frustrating to try to figure out what to do. I gave him some pain medication, and that seemed to help, but now that the teeth have broken through and he is still waking up, I don’t know what to do. The doctor suggested starting solids to see if maybe he is just hungry and needs more calories. I really didn’t want to start solids quite yet, but I’m willing to try anything to help him get a long stretch of sleep at night.
Naps – His naps are completely unpredictable. Some are 45 minutes, some are 3 hours. I never know what to expect in the nap category. He still takes 4 naps per day, especially if they are all 45 minute catnaps. He is awake for about an hour to an hour and a half in between naps.
Nursing – Still nursing 5-6 times a day for 10-15 minutes. And maybe we will be starting to add solids:)
Temperament – Nolan is still such a happy little baby! Even when he is completely exhausted and won’t sleep, he rarely makes a peep. Yesterday he woke from a 45 minute nap and I tried to wait and see if he would go back to sleep since I knew he had to be tired. He ended up crying for a little while, but as soon as I got him out of bed, he was happy as can be, and stayed happy for the next 3 hours! (We were out to dinner, so he was awake longer than usual.) Oh, and he got his 4 month shots a few days ago, and laughed through them!
Likes and Dislikes – He likes to eat his fingers (or anyone’s fingers that are close enough to grab), kick his legs, lay in his playgym, take rides in the car, be entertained by Adelyn (or anyone else), and stand up on your lap. He dislikes being put in his bed, and usually fusses before naps still. I am toying with the idea of sleep training. Is this a good time to do it? Does anyone have experience sleep training at this age? I am continuing to use the pacifier to get him to sleep, but I don’t know if that is a good long-term solution.
Milestones – 2 teeth (both bottom) broke through, one on the 2nd, and one on the 12th. He is still drooling a TON, so I invested in some bibs:) He is still not really rolling over yet, and can only get from his back to his side. He likes tummy time, but hasn’t tried to roll onto his back.
Weight: 15 lbs 7 oz — 60%
Height: 25.5 in — 78%
Head: 17.5 in — 73%
Nolan surprised us while we were in Utah by cutting his first tooth! He was 3 months, 3 weeks old. Is this super young?!? I was so shocked to find it, since Addie didn’t get her first tooth until she was almost 6 months old. The poor kid is drooling like crazy, chewing on his hands constantly, and can’t even hold onto his own teething rings yet!
Addie attended her first ballet class on Wednesday. She was so excited to wear her new leotard and ballet slippers! She loves to dance, so I’m thinking she will really enjoy her class. This was her first real away-from-mom activity, but she had no problems letting me drop her off and leave:)
Dance Class
Nighttime Sleep – We are officially down to ONE waking per night. Yay! He goes down about 9pm and wakes once sometime around 4am or 5am, then sleeps until 8am. I am totally fine with this, as now I can get at least a 6 hour stretch of sleep at night.
Naps – He takes 4 naps per day, each anywhere from 45 minutes to 2.5 hours. He is starting to fight the swaddle a little bit, and usually gets both arms out by the time he is done sleeping. But I’m not sure I’m ready to stop swaddling yet.
Nursing – He still nurses every 3 hours or so, 5 times per day and once during the night. (4 or 5am is considered “night” to me:) He takes about 15-20 minutes to nurse.
Temperament – Nolan is still a calm, happy baby most of the time. I love how cuddly he is (Addie was not very cuddly) and how he is entertained easily, especially by his big sister, who LOVES to play with him.
Likes and Dislikes – He LOVES sucking on his hands and wrist. Now that he has some limited control over his arms, they are always in his mouth! I caught him holding his binkie in his mouth yesterday, and I thought it was so cute! He loves the bath, playing in the play mat, looking at our faces and smiling, laughing, and even enjoys tummy time.
Milestones – He found his hands! His head control is okay, but he is still pretty unsteady. I have yet to try the Bumbo. He mostly hangs out in his bouncy seat, on the floor, or in our arms. He is trying to roll over from back to tummy, but can only get halfway. He didn’t have a weight check this month, but based on my bathroom scale, he is about 15 lbs.
Nolan at 3 months
Nolan smiles
I am loving this little boy! He is smiling and cooing and even starting to chuckle a little bit. I was just thinking the other day about how children are a challenge as well as a joy. Right now he is 10% challenge (because he still wakes me up in the middle of the night:) and 90% joy. He is cuddly and happy and oh so cute!
Addie is split a little more evenly I think. This week she is potty training herself! After all the bribing and forcing for months and months, Zac and I had given up trying to get her out of diapers. But last Saturday she decided that she was going to wear big-girl panties, and she has only had a few accidents since then! We are beyond excited! But….the challenge now is getting her to sleep. She has always been a good sleeper, no a GREAT sleeper. I have always patted myself on the back for that one victory I have with her. She sleeps well. But now…she is into stalling before bed. Sometimes it takes an hour of her coming out of her room multiple times just to get her to stay in there. And it usually ends in tears or frustration and her FINALLY falling asleep. Also, she has started waking in the middle of the night and coming into my room and asking for a stuffed animal, or to sleep in my room, or to go to the potty, or just to chat. I’m not sure what to do about it, since I’m trying to be patient with her requests to go potty. I usually just put her back in her bed and try to let her know that yes, it is still bedtime.
Motherhood is full of uncertainties and questions, and I feel like I’m learning more every day how to be patient, loving, and selfless. I guess we take the challenges with the joys. My personal goal is to focus more on the joys than the challenges. It is easy to get bogged down with trying to do everything right (which no one can do), but how overwhelming is that? From now on I will be grateful for the time I get to be with my kids and for the love they bring into my life, and let the frustrations roll off my back a little more.
