A Letter to Isaac: 4 Months Old

Isaac,

You're 4 months old little man!  I've loved spending every moment with you and helping you explore the world around you.  You've grown so much in four short weeks and it seems like you learn something new every day.  I look forward to getting you out of your crib every morning and being greeted by your beautiful smile.  I love the way you light up when you see me by scrunching your shoulders and giggling.  Considering how much you've grown since you were born I know you won't stay small for long.  

In the last month you've gained a little over one pound putting you at 15 lbs.  This was a significant milestone and it meant you had outgrown the bassinet in our room and were ready for the crib in your own room.  It was very hard to not see you sleeping next to me at night.  But rest assured, anytime you've needing something in your crib I've been there for you.  You sleep very well for such a little guy.  Many nights you're already sleeping nine plus hours.  Although there are times when you get fussy in the middle of the night from rolling over or losing your binky, your needs are taken care of in the blink of an eye.  

You have lots of fun blankets and toys to play with and every time I place you on your back you immediately roll over onto your tummy.  See how much you've accomplished!  You can do tummy time on your own now.  Although you've only figured out how to roll in one direction its only a matter of time before you'll add on to this new skill.  You certainly get frustrated but you've already started swimming on your belly and you try really hard to get your knees under you.  Before you know it you'll be crawling around and exploring all sorts of new things.  

You've gone up a size in diapers and are just about to go up another size in clothes.  The 3-6 months clothes are almost too little.  In the last month you've discovered your hands and you're starting to show signs of teething.  You chew on your hands and fingers constantly.  We had to break out the bibs too from all the drooling.  :)  Isaac, you are such a happy little boy.  We have lots of conversations through out the day.  We sing together and tell stories too.  You babble and coo.  You may not have words to articulate but you certainly have your own language and ways to communicate.  I love all of your expressions, sounds and body language.  

You're so cute when I lay a blanket over your legs while you're laying on your back.  As soon as the blanket is down you love to kick your little legs up and instantly roll to the side.  I love how you clutch the blanket and Mr. Bunny and gather them both until their just right and comfortable.  I can always tell when you get sleepy because you start playing with Mr. Bunny positioning the soft fuzzy side next to your cheek and then you cover your eyes.  

You are a true blessing and Papa and I both love you very much!

Love,

Momma.

My New Skill.....

Isaac is super proud of himself and the latest skill he's acquired!  He loves practicing his vocal cords. It's priceless. All I know is look out world once this little boy can talk!

Video:

Fall Festival and Pumpkin Patch

What a beautiful weekend! We went to a fall festival hosted by Country Living Magazine at Stone Mountain Park this weekend with my parents.  I figured it was something to do and a chance to get out and get some fresh air.  When my parents came to visit I had to tease them that they were really only there to see Isaac.  Although it is a little funny how I see them significantly more often since Isaac's arrival!   It's all in good fun but if they're not careful I think Isaac might get his grandma and grandpa Strickling wrapped around his little finger.

Despite the fact we had the stroller Grandma wanted to be "helpful" and carry Isaac.  We laughed later that it's okay to just admit that she wanted to hold him.  Isaac soaked up the love and tried as hard as he could to keep his eyes open to take everything in.  He did finally give up and he took a great nap while we were walking around.  There was a great big pile of pumpkins for Isaac to explore but at first he wasn't too sure about it.  After snapping a few pictures he got really upset, quick.  There was a group of ladies standing near by and all of a sudden they were standing behind us while Frazer was taking pictures of Isaac, talking, cooing and clapping to get Isaac's attention.  Hmmmm...is this a foreshadow of Isaac's future??  He's not even trying and he's already a little flirt!  Despite the attention we were able to capture some great shots for some great memories.

Tackled the mamaRoo!

The adventures of Isaac continue.  Usually when he's enjoying a kicked back ride in the mamaRoo he looks at the colorful spheres but doesn't interact with them.  Well, today was different.  It was so funny to watch the expression on his face as he studied the spheres very closely and intently and then he started to raise his hands and WACK! He sent them spinning.  That was fun!  He stared at them a little longer and the next thing I knew he had figured out how to get the balls out.  Okay, we had a nice little game going.  I put the spheres back in and watched him play a little longer.  Then, he reached for the spheres again, grabbed hold and pulled the entire arm down.  He thought that was hilarious!

Time to Bundle Up

Even though it's Atlanta the temperatures started to drop this week.  It was only in the 50's with lows in the 40's.  So, it was time to bundle up.  Although he looks super cute all bundled up this little guy produces so much body heat he's sweating by the time I get him in the car.  I didn't think it was possible to see beads of sweat on a 3 1/2 month old.  Well, I was wrong.  I guess I'll have a few challenges to overcome when winter really hits to keep him warm without overdoing it.  

I'm Getting Big....

While in the process or updating and organizing photos I couldn't get over how big Isaac is getting.  It's like all of a sudden he's started filling out.  A couple of weeks ago he was just a skinny little thing and now his little cheeks are getting chubby and his arms and legs are filling out too.  It's so easy to miss it when watching him play and grow everyday.  The pictures really do capture everything!

Boys Weekend

This past February I started a program called One Dream.  The short explanation is it's a personal development program that consists of 5 retreat like weekends.  The fourth weekend started October 6th.  The first two weekends of this program I was carrying Isaac so he was with me on my inner journey of discovery and growth.  The third weekend he was only two weeks old and Frazer and Isaac came with me.  Frazer has been super supportive of my journey and as much I kept saying (before Isaac was born) I would be able to gone to my weekend even though he would only be a few weeks old, that wasn't the case.  The emotional bond was far more than anything I could have ever anticipated and as much as I wanted to go to the weekend there was no way I was going to leave my son.

So, now it was time for weekend 4 and the first time I would be leaving Isaac overnight for three nights.  Yikes!  But, I knew Isaac was in good hands and little boys need bonding time with their daddy's.  I think I was more afraid that Isaac might forget me when I got back.  So to ease my anxiety Frazer sent me lots of pictures and text updates of Isaac and their bonding weekend while I was away.  

The first picture I received was very sweet of Isaac and daddy hanging out on the sofa watching tv.  I'm sure they were bonding over Top Gear or something related to planes.  The second picture was a different story....

Boys Night In

Frazer said he put the bottle on the tray and Isaac reached straight for it.  Talk about a proud papa! I guess I shouldn't underestimate that the British roots run deep.  Perhaps Issac is a chip off the old block.  I guess we'll have to wait and see.  Regardless, they had a great weekend bonding and I was grateful for hubby to send me so many great pics over the weekend to keep me connected.  :)

A New Baby Gadget

Lately Isaac started to express more and more frustration with always having to lay down to play.  In the evening I'll put him in my lap with the bobby pillow and he's shown interest in sitting up.  So one day while Frazer was out running errands, he returned with a new baby gadget.  It's a baby positioning seat to help teach him to sit up.  He wasn't sure about it at first but he's starting to like it more and more.

He was having so much fun playing with Mr. Bunny and looking at the shapes on his blanket that he wore himself out again.  All of a sudden he just crashed.  It was too cute not to capture.  He was so zonked that even as I was removing the tray piece and the blanket out of the way to pick him up he didn't budge or flinch.