It’s been a little while…

… and I have several things to report!

On the 21st, when Eli went for his second synagis shot (which he did not enjoy any more than the first), he weighed 13 pounds even.  That’s a 2-pound gain in one month.  Dr. Ekanem said he would actually like for him to slow down to a gain of 1-1.5 pounds per month.  I honestly don’t see how I can do much about that.  I feed him when he’s hungry and I don’t feel like I am over-feeding him.  I honestly think that he’ll slow down naturally as he’s getting older.  Seth was a big boy until he started walking, so it may be that he’s following in Daddy’s footsteps.

Eli has been talking and smiling so much lately!  He’s been laughing some, too, but some days he just won’t do it no matter how hard we try to make him.  He babbles and coos and he’s getting louder and more vocal every day.  He’ll actually have a little conversation with you.  It’s adorable!

He rolled over from tummy to back FOUR times yesterday!  So far he’s only done it for me.  He wouldn’t do it for Daddy, Aunt Mic and Aunt Bri, or Grandma, but I don’t think it will be long.  I was so proud of him!  He’s been doing a great job holding up his head during tummy time also, but he doesn’t enjoy it for very long.

Things are starting to get better with me working.  Eli is adapting much better to eating from a bottle while I am away.  I stil don’t like to be gone, but I am getting used to the idea.

Last week, I took Eli to get Christmas pictures taken at JCPenney.  They turned out really nice, and we bought cards to send out. Next week we are going to get family pictures taken when Eli will be turning 6 months (6 months! Can you believe it?!).  Here are a few from last week:

Home for 3 Months

Eli has now been at home for longer than he was in the hospital.  I have been going through pictures from his homecoming, and I can’t believe how much he’s grown.

When he received this onesie, he was a mere 4 lbs and had just got out of his isolette and into the crib.  I didn’t think he would ever fit into it!  He’s come a long, long way.

We are making some strides with tummy time.  He still won’t push himself clear up with his arms, though.

This is his Thanksgiving outfit.  He is usually a very happy baby and is starting to laugh out loud, but most of the time he will only do it for Pappy. 

Here he is on the floor at our new place with his fingers in his mouth as usual.  He’s always done this when he’s hungry, but lately he does it almost constantly.  He’s also been drooling a ton.  I think he’s in the early stages of teething. 

Eli would like to give a shout out to his big cousin Corrinna.  He would also like Josh to know that he was not named after Eli Manning, and he is a Patriots fan!

Trick or Treat!

Eli and I went trick-or-treating with some of my friends tonight.  We didn’t stay out very long, because it got really cold when it got dark, but it was night to show him off a bit!  Here are a few pictures from today as well as some other Fall pics!

RSV Shot

Eli did nothing but ate and slept for the past few days.  I think he went through a growth spurt.  I swear he feels like he’s gained a pound over the last week!  He weighed 11 pounds last Monday when he went to see Dr. Ekanem for his first RSV shot.  I won’t know his weight again until mid-November when he goes for the next one.  Fortunately the Synagis (the medicine they give to prevent RSV), didn’t affect him like his immunizations did as far as lethargy and temperature, but he cried harder and bled.  It made me so sad!  He only got one dose, but because they thought it would be too much for one leg, he had to be stuck twice.  My poor baby! 

By the way, RSV stands for respiratory syncytial virus.  It is highly contagious and common.  For most babies, it’s like a cold, but since it’s a respiratory virus, is dangerous to Eli.  Here is some unofficial information. 

In other news, my Mom fixed Eli’s Halloween costume, and it now fits his stubby arms and legs.  He looks adorable in it!  Trick-or-treat here is Thursday, and I might take him to a few of our neighbor’s houses if it’s not too cold.  I haven’t decided yet.  My Mom also helped me make a new wrap to hold Eli.  We got the fabric at Walmart for $1/yard, so the whole thing cost about $6!  Similar wraps (called Moby wraps) go for $30-40 if bought online, and the fabric isn’t even as cute!  I love it, and he does too!  I’ll include a picture, even though it’s blurry.

First trip to Cabela’s

Seth, Eli and I met up with Seth’s parents and sister to do a little shopping and go for a bite to eat today.  Eli loved Cabela’s, and his Daddy and Pappy loved taking him around and showing him all of the animal exhibits (although he was really only interested in the lights).

Overall, it was a really great day, even though I didn’t get any Christmas shopping done.  Thanks to the suggestion of a mother on a parenting forum that I visit, Seth and I have decided on some guidelines for Christmas presents.  From now on, for Eli and any future children we may have, our kids will receive 4 presents from us, plus a stocking and one gift from Santa.  The 4 gifts will include “something you want, something you need, something to wear, and something to read.” The only thing we’re sure of is that Eli’s read gift this year will be The Night Before Christmas. I want to find a really nice hard-cover edition.

Smiles!

Eli’s first smile

For the past few weeks, Eli has been smiling here and there at random, but not when we’ve tried to make him smile.  As usual, he was wide awake at 5 o’clock this morning.  I had to go to the bathroom so I laid Eli in bed beside Seth.  Seth turned towards Eli and started talking to him: “what’s Daddy’s little boy doing up so early?”  Eli lit up!  We kept talking to him and he just kept grinning!  He’s been doing it more this morning too!

No smiling pictures yet.  I’ve been too busy admiring him to go for the camera.  Here are some others!

A second-hand store find

The shirt says it all!

Relaxing in the sun, dude

4-month shots

That’s right, Eli turned 4 months on Saturday!

He had 3 immunizations–2 sticks and 1 oral vaccine–on Friday. He cried quite hard, and so did I. As soon as he calmed down a little, I nursed him until he went to sleep and he pretty much slept until the next morning. His temperature went up to 102.3 even though I’d been giving him Tylenol every 4-6 hours since his appointment. I almost took him to the ER, but it started to go down and once it reached 99, it hung out there until the next day, which is considered normal after shots. He didn’t eat much at all, but he’s been making up for it the rest of the weekend!  He goes for his monthly RSV vaccination this week.

We went to a few consignment shops for kids’ clothes on Saturday and Grandma Jody bought Eli over $300 worth of clothes for $75. He got some really nice things including a corduroy Gap coat for $6, a Nike onesie for $0.75, an Ohio State windbreaker outfit for $4, and Old Navy Jeans for $2. I highly recommend these shops, and if anyone would like to know where they are, just leave a comment!

Here’s a recent picture of the little chunka chocolate (10 lb 2 oz) at his doctor’s appointment.

More pics without oxygen!

Too cute, huh?!  Eli with my good friend Brooke’s son, Josiah. He’s one month younger than Eli, but had Eli been born full-term, he’d have been about a month and half older.

I love that expression

Cute new coat

My bast friend holding my little man   Beautiful!

Ta-Dah!!

Last picture ever taken with the oxygen!

On the way home!

We tricked you, Daddy!

He can’t quite sit up in it yet!

One proud Grandpa…

…and another!