I can't believe it--but the boys are 4 months old! They are really getting to be such cute little inquisitive babies--and new things are happening everyday! I'll kinda breakdown each boy here to let you all know how they are doing!
Noah-- Oh my....he is just got the cutest little smile to melt your heart! He isn't quite as vocal as his brother--but he is not missing anything! I think that he really takes in his surroundings and decides when he wants to say something. He is a smiley little guy though, and loves just looking at mom and dad and smiling and cooing at them. He and brother both love the changing table still, and love laying together on the ground and playing! Noah is now 13 lbs, and doing just great! He still spits up a bit b/c of the reflux...but that's a whole other story I will address below. ;( He is fascinated with his hands, and you can see him really try to figure out that he wants to try to hit things with them...getting there! He likes to sleep on his tummy sometimes when he wakes in the middle of naps. Naoh is overall a very happy and pretty easy little guy---but as he gets older he has started to cry to let us know how he feels sometimes--just like his brother! I think that after so much time of seeing Mason cry and then get attention, he has finally learned that he can do that too! Noah is doing fantastic with sitting up! He will almost sit unassisted! Not too long for him! It is so cute--he absolutely adores the TV!! He looks for it! I think that has actually helped him learn to sit. ;) He also rolls over on to his side a lot to chew on his hand when he is on the floor--and one day he almost rolled over! He will be doing all these things very soon I think! He loves to chew on his hand---he puts his thumb in his mouth, and then his other 4 fingers over his face--it's pretty cute! he does not take a pacifier anymore.
Mason-- Oh what a little talker! He is just adorable when he gets under his Jungle Gym playmat (his favorite toy!!)-he just goes nuts and talks and screams and thrashes around--it is hilarious! He will do that for long periods of time--it is so nice to see him so happy! He has become a more happy baby in general-- he really likes to interact with mom and dad--he will hold on to our hand and look right at us, and then imitate cooing/talking noises that we make. It is like a little conversation! He seems to be pretty independent--just does his own thing when he is on the floor or looking around. He is still our dramatic little guy though ;)-- he can go from 0-10 in 2 seconds! He is a very happy baby--but when something upsets him, it takes him a while to calm down again. He is not quite as strong as Noah with sitting up and rolling--but he is not far behind--and is doing great!! He too loves to chew on his hands--but he likes to stick his entire fist in his mouth! Then when he gets really excited he screams and then shoves his fist in his mouth--it is so cute!! We thought that he had a really gnarly case of Cradle Cap-- but nothing we were doing was helping (it was on his face too)--and then when we went to the doctor this week he said that it was actually Excema. So, we got some prescription cream--and it is already almost gone!! Oh-- Mason is 13.8 lbs!
So, they are both still struggling with their Reflux issues. A few weeks ago we actually saw a Pediatric GI specialist. Turns out they both had Reflux and Colic--can you believe it!!?? Poor dudes. The Colic is pretty much disappearing, but the Reflux is actually Peaking about now (4 months)--so we are seeing quite a bit of spit up. Good thing is that it should be gradually getting better now. However, he wanted us to get Upper GI tests for both of them to ensure that they do not have any stomach blockages, etc.... both of the tests came back clean! He decided that we should try Erythromycin to help empty the stomach quicker so that they are not spitting up as much volume. We tried it for a bout a week and a half, and it wasn't really doing anything--so we stopped. So, after a few months of trying different medicines and such-- we decided they are Ok for the moment, and as long as they don't get any worse we are just going to live with it and hope they get better (and do a lot of laundry!). They are still on Prevacid (to reduce the acid in the stomach), but that is it. I sure do not miss putting syringes in their mouths all the time!
We just wanted to make it as comfortable as possible for them, and reduce the amount of damage to their esophagus, but the medicines don't really do much--so it is Father Time that will be the prescription!
As of yesterday--we did start them on Rice Cereal! I actually had a hard time with this for some reason--like I was already forcing them to grow up too fast or something.....I don't know. All the doctors told us to go ahead and start though because it would really help with the Reflux as well.
They seemed to really like it yesterday! yeah! This morning Mason really liked it again, but Noah was a little unsure.....we'll see tomorrow!
They get their night time routine and such at 6:30 and 7, and then they are usually asleep between 7:30 and 8:30, and then they sleep until about 3. I feed them at 3, and then they go back to bed until about 6:30 or 7. Noah usually wakes up at 6:30 on the dot and just plays in his crib. Mason is more like Mommy.......for those of you that know my morning demeanor....you know what that means....;) He sleeps a bit longer--and usually only is content in the crib for a few minutes before he realizes he's hungry. So, they are sleeping pretty good at night for their age! The doctor says at about 6 months (maybe a little before) we should be able to drop that 3am feeding! A few times they have gone for 10+ hours--but that is rare.
The Lopez household is ever-changing, and we are loving watching the little dudes grow!
Enjoy the pictures!
(as you can see I am obsessed with their little feet ;)
