Rolling!

One month and one day exactly after he first rolled from tummy to back, Lawson rolled from back to tummy! And it is definitely NOT a fluke, as he has done it TONS since that first time! He rolls to get his toys and paci now. :)

Lawson got a DOC band on Wednesday (a whole post on that is coming, I just want a chance to scan the photos from the doctor first!), and for the first 48 hours we had to do what are called skin checks. Skin checks consist of removing the band every three hours to make sure his skin is tolerating it (it's hypoallergenic foam, but it's just a precaution). If the red spots go away within an hour, we can put the band back on. Last night, one of the red spots had become irritated because he had slept hard on it, so I left the band off until right before bed and put some CJs on the spot to clear it up (CJs is AWESOME by the way, it's like my Windex from My Big Fat Greek Wedding. I recommend it for ANYONE, not just babies. We use it on everything in our house! Most scents are all natural so we prefer it over any other cream or paste). While the band was off is when he first rolled. He continued rolling several times after that, but all with the band off. I actually got teary eyed and told Chris I knew he wouldn't roll anymore once we put the band back on. My biggest fear with this band is that it will cause developmental delays. That's why it was so important to us to get it on quickly so it could come off quickly and wouldn't hinder any milestones.

Well, today he ROLLED WITH THE BAND ON!!! It took him a little longer, but he's done it several times since then, so he's got the hang of it! I almost cried I got so happy, because this means hopefully he can overcome the band being in the way with his other milestones.

Here's a video of his first roll....sorry I am so loud, I was excited, ha!



I promise a post all about the DOC band is coming soon! I just have to find time to get the photos scanned! :)

Have a great weekend!

Solid Foods

Unfortunately, this won't be a post filled with cute pictures of Lawson's first time eating solid foods. We haven't started them yet. :) We had originally planned to wait until 6 months, which is in line with the AAP's new guidelines for solid foods, but now I'm thinking we may not make it that long. We may start at 5 months or a little after. Lawson is eating like CRAZY this week. He has upped his milk intake by 6-7 ounces per day. I am giving it a couple of weeks to see if it is just a growth spurt and if it passes. If not, we will probably begin solids. He is showing readiness in every way except his age (not 6 months yet).

Chris got me the Baby Bullet for my birthday, and I plan on making all of Lawson's baby food at home. After researching it, I just am not comfortable with additives, sugars, and other unknown things that could be in jarred baby foods (even organic!), not to mention the cost savings! We plan to start Lawson off with organic brown rice cereal, sweet potatoes, and avocado...yum! I will definitely be posting pictures and details once that time comes.

If you are interested, I would highly recommend checking out wholesomebabyfood.com. That website is amazing and has lots of great information and recipes for making baby food. The spinoff site, wholesometoddlerfood.com, is pretty cool too!

Lawson's high chair is set up and ready to go! I plan to have him sit in it with us during dinner times these next few weeks to get him used to it.

Here are some cute random photos of my sweet little man! Happy Monday!

Early morning smiles

Watching TV with his lovey and his paci in his bouncy seat. He's such a man, ha!

My boys sleeping. :)

Four Months Old!

Lawson, you are FOUR months old!

Here is what you are up to:

• You are 13.4 pounds (18th percentile)
• You are 25 inches long (50th percentile)
• Your head is 16 inches around
• You are in the 7th percentile for weight for height. You are still tiny, even though you have chunked up pretty good!
• You have little baby rolls on your legs now. It's so cute!
• You wear a size 1 diaper
• You wear 3-6 months clothes (FINALLY!!)
• You LOVE your Jumperoo
• You talk a LOT now! Your lips try to mimic the shape of ours and you make lots of different sounds.
• You laugh at us now, and it is seriously the sweetest thing I think I have ever seen!
• You have learned to "fake cry" and it is so funny! We don't laugh at it in front of you because we don't want to encourage you, but you fake cry whenever you don't know what to do with yourself. You will sometimes be smiling while fake crying! Goofy boy!
• You light up when you see Daddy or I and it's so sweet.
• You are so alert and playful. You actually show us when something is interesting or funny to you and you clearly have your own personality now.
• You want to sit up SO. BAD. You are so close to sitting on your own, but not quite yet. When you are laying down, you try to sit up and end up doing baby crunches! :)
• You slept for the first time UNSWADDLED last night! I thought it would be a long night, but you did so good and slept the same as you normally do. I am so relieved that I won't have to go to college with you to make sure you are swaddled. :-P
• You found your feet and they are one of your new favorite toys.

You and Daddy are two peas in a pod.

Jumping!

You have grown SO much!



We love you sweet boy! We can't wait to see what you will learn this month! :)

2011 Recap

Now that I have a free minute with a napping baby, I thought I would do a quick recap of 2011.

January:

I turned 24 (I was pregnant in this picture and didn't know it yet!)


We found out we were expecting a little miracle!


February:

We saw Baby Payne for the first time, a little blob.

March:

A quiet month, but a growing belly!

April:

Baby Payne is a BOY!


Revealing to our families.

Dakota gets a big girl room in anticipation of Lawson's arrival


May:

Dakota plays T-ball



Dakota's dance recital


STILL growing belly!


June:

Lawson's room is almost done!


Lawson is growing!


July:

Baby shower thrown by my mom, sister, and wonderful friends.

Lawson is so spoiled!

Getting a glimpse of Lawson



August:

Maternity photos


Another glimpse of Lawson

Dakota turned FOUR!

I was in TWO accidents with Lawson this month, and visited L&D six times! Not the best month in 2011 at all!

September:

Lawson is here!!!


Adjusting to life as a family of 4


October:

I went back to work and Lawson went to daycare


Lawson's first Halloween

November:

Lawson's first Thanksgiving and hunting season! :)


December:

Our first Christmas as a family with Lawson

2011

There is no possible way that any year could ever top 2011. 2011 is the year I became a mommy, and there's nothing in my life that will ever compare to that. 2010 comes in a close second since that's when we got married, but still not as good (sorry Chris, haha!).



It's so hard to believe that my tiny six pound baby is almost four months old and has already doubled his birth weight!

Watching Lawson grow and learn new things is the most amazing thing. It's also very bittersweet. Chris and I get so excited when he does something new, but there's also this little pang of sadness at the fact that he's growing up. We are just amazed DAILY by the things this little boy can do! Just this past week, he has found new sounds and is really close to sitting up on his own. It's so crazy how he literally changes over night. He will wake up some mornings and have a new "skill" to show off to us! It makes for some ROUGH nights sleep-wise, but I love the new milestones he is hitting.



One of his absolute favorite things to do is talk to us. He really thinks he is so big and tries so hard to make his mouth make words like ours. His little face concentrates so hard when he is "talking" or listening. We spend many nights and early mornings just laying in bed and talking to him. I have so many cute videos of him talking, but I can't figure out how to upload them here. Maybe some day I'll have time to figure it out. :)

Here's to a wonderful 2012 filled with many blessings and lots of love! Happy New Year!

Christmas

We have had a wonderful Christmas! We still have one more to go with Dakota and Chris' family, so we will probably do that one sometime next weekend.

Our kiddos are so blessed and loved by their grandparents, aunts, and uncles, and got more gifts than they know what to do with! We will definitely be doing some room cleaning this week!

Santa Baby...

Haha!

Lawson playing at the Bland Family Christmas

Playing at home

Here is what Lawson did most of the time we were opening gifts. He just smiled at everyone. Or he slept. He did that a lot too, ha!

Lawson got a Jumperoo from Grams and Pops, and he LOVES it! He plays in it every day!

His Auntie knows Santa, so he was hoping she put in a good word for him on Christmas Eve. :)

Dakota got lots of clothes!

And what she really wanted...a Nintendo DS.

DS games...sorry the picture is blurry, I was feeding Lawson and playing camera man. :)

Purse from Aunt Cara

Jewelry box from Aunt Sonya

The other toy, besides the DS, that she has been asking for over and over- a Barbie house! From Licia and Chuck.

Me and my silly monkey. :) Love this boy!

We are so blessed and couldn't have asked for a better Christmas, and especially are thankful for the reason we celebrate in the first place! We enjoyed spending time with family and just relaxing for a few days. I will never forget this Christmas because it was Lawson's first. Even though he slept through a lot of it and had NO clue what was going on, we did, and we love watching him be a silly boy! Merry Christmas!