I have really been trying to keep track of little things Carter does each week when he learns something new. I know I haven't remembered everything, but I want to document it all before I forget. I am also including his week by week pictures that I take. I am amazed at how fast he is growing. He has his 4 month appointment today. I can't wait to see how much he's grown, but I am not looking forward to him getting more shots.
Week 1
In the first week or bringing Carter home, I remember he was already crying tears. They absolutely broke my heart. The doctor did say he noticed that he cried out of the wrong side of his eyes. Who knew? He was crying out of the corner of his eyes on the outside instead of the inside. His tears would run down the side of his face instead of by his nose. Never really paid attention there was a right and wrong way for that. LOL One of my friends was sad that her baby didn’t have tears yet. I said trust me, you don’t want them because they will break your heart!!!
Week 2
In between week 2 and 3, I started Carter on formula. I messed up the breastfeeding thing and actually weaned myself down. So, he started on Enfamil formula. He spit up a ton! I constantly kept bibs on him, because he was always spitting up. We changed to Similac to try it out. He didn’t seem to do that bad on it. We still use it to this day.
Carter also had his first Easter when he was 2 weeks old. My grandma, his great-grandma, just love him in his little grown man outfit. She just couldn't get over it. She just squeezed him to pieces.
Week 3
Week 4
At week 4 is when I started noticing that he could focus. He would see something and start just starring at it. One of the big things he really liked was ceiling fans. It was mainly at other people’s houses though because ours are white and I think they blend in with the ceiling. Our friend’s have brown ones. Here he is starring at one.
Week 5
We started noticing he was grabbing things now. He’s had toys hanging on his car seat for a while by now, but he was finally starting to reach up and play with them. He has a plush frog that sings, and I later got a duck that vibrates balls around in its tummy. He LOVES the duck!
Week 6
My sweet boy started to smile. This time I could tell it wasn’t just gas. He has finally learned to smile at me if I’m being silly or just watching him. I love his sweet smile! He has my dimple too, so that makes it even sweeter.
Week 7
Following the smiles finally came some laughing. It is the super funny hysterical laughing, but he does giggle a little. It’s almost like what I call at work, my “fake laugh”. It’s kind of like huh huh. Haha It cracks me up.
Week 8
I’ve written down “tongue”. Hmm, it’s been so long that I can’t really remember what this means. I think he started sticking his tongue in and out of his mouth like he finally found it.
Week 9
He has started to hold a few things. I put a rattle in his hand and he would actually hold and shake it around, but he couldn’t do it for long. He would drop it after a few shakes. Progress.
Week 10
There must not have been anything I noticed here, because I don’t have anything written down for this week.
Week 11
He has started to pull on things like, um, my hair! When I go to lie him down, he will reach up really quickly and pull on something like he thinks I’m going to drop him. He usually gets a hold of my hair or my shirt. I guess he thinks I’m going to drop him. It’s really sweet though, because it makes me feel like I am his protector and he is grabbing me to save him. Aww. Lol
Week 12
We’ve started to stand him up. I’ve heard many myths about this making them bow-legged and so forth, but I verified with the doctor that this is not true. He loves to stand up. I guess he is so tired of lying on his back and starring at the ceiling. So, he loves to be standing up looking at stuff. The doctor said this was jus t fine. That was actually his way of telling us. He said, look up at the ceiling…as Kyle and I looked up…he said it’s boring and there’s nothing fun up there. Haha
Week 13
This week, I noticed he was starting to put things from his hand to his mouth. Yes, this included his hands, but he was starting to put his toys in his mouth too. I was so excited when he started doing this. I love watching him learn to do things for the first time.
Week 14
Week 15
I took Mr. Carter swimming for the first time. He actually liked it. I just knew he would freak out and I would be devastated that he hated the water. It has been so hot this summer, that it really felt like bath water. I bet that is why he didn’t mind so much. I bought a float based on the blue float picture on the front. I get home and take it out thinking ok, so I guess I got red. Well, when dad blew it up, it was not very much red at all. It was PINK AND PURPLE!! Oh geeze. Kyle will kill me. LOL So, I went later that day or the next and bought him a blue one and gave Reagan the pink one. I had to buy him little swimmer diapers and put his hat on. The doctor said not to put sun screen on him until he was 6 months old. I forget the reason, but ok. So, the float has a little shade over top. He stayed in the water like 45 minutes probably in his super cute little Gymboree swim trunks and surfer shirt. So cute!! He was pooped after swimming. I guess the heat and all wore him out.
I know this is a really weird thing to notice, but I noticed his snot for the first time. He cried and had snot running down. I was freaking out thinking he was sick, but I never really saw any more. I guess it was just from crying.
This week, he started to wake up during the night again. I was so confused and bummed. He had been sleeping through the night since 2 ½ months, so I was so confused why he was waking up now at 4 months. It just so happened I got my bump.com update for that week, and it said that around 4 months, babies go through a wakeful period. They start waking up at night. Some wondered if it wasn’t growth spurts or what. I would feed him a bottle and he would go back to sleep. Some people said don’t feed them, but I would rather do that than try to rock him or let him cry. It worked for me.
Week 16
Week 17
I saw him reach down and grab his foot for the first time. Once he found that thing, he loves it now. You will look up and he will have his sock pulled off or trying to stick it in his mouth. He grabs his foot and does his arm in and out – in and out. It cracks me up!
He began eating cereal the night of or after his 4 month checkup. The doc was ready to start him on solids. Yah!! I was so excited. He said to try cereal for a few days to get him used to the spoon and that it may take him a while. I was expecting to give him this by a bottle, since that is all I’ve ever heard. Nope. He actually wanted us to put it in a bowl and make it ketchup consistency. He said in bottles people tend to make it too thick. He loved the cereal. I would laugh so hard when he would eat it, because he would start diving towards the spoon like a pig! Haha I just knew he was going to shove it down his throat and gag.
This week, he also started noticing textures a lot. I would notice while he was sitting in my lap, he would scratch my jeans or khakis to feel the ridges. Then, he scratched Derek’s mesh jersey. He got to where he was scratching everything! I got hear him at night on the monitor scratching his mattress. He is so silly. Again, I love to see him discover new things. He gets so excited.
Week 18
He finally has started to giggle. It’s not a long length giggle, but I put him up on my chest and lay him back. I pull him forward and at the same time go “boo!” He just laughs!! It is the sweetest, most precious thing ever. I could sit all day and listen to him laugh.
Week 19
Carter had his first food!! Green Beans!! Gross!! Haha I don’t like those either! He made an awful face the first few bites, but he would always swallow. He ate the whole tub, surprisingly. Halfway through though, he was still making faces but would eat it. He had that for 3 days before I moved on. I think then he had peas, sweet potatoes, and squash. I forget what order already. Then, I tried all of the fruits – bananas, pears, peaches, and bananas. He likes everything except the green beans, and I’m not sure he likes the peaches really. I don’t know why…those are my favorite!
We have a roller!! The first time he probably really rolled over, none of us saw him. He was in the floor playing when Kyle went to the bathroom. He came back in there, and he was on his tummy. We weren’t sure if he rolled on his own or if he pulled over on the play gym. A few days later, I finally saw him roll himself over. Watch out now!!
I know this is really gross, but along with solid foods comes solid poo!!!!!!!! I know gross and TMI right? Oh well!! I laughed so hard the first time I saw it. I told Kyle – Carter had an actual turd!! LOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL! That word alone makes me laugh. Takes me back to when me and my sister used to argue over how it is spelled. I said turd and she said terd. When I type them, they both have red lines under them right now. So, I guess that is not even a real word, but you all know what I mean!! Hahaha Anyway, the next day, I talk to my dad. He said I’ve got a first for you to write down in your book. I said what? He said Carter had two little turds in his diaper today and I flushed them down the toilet! Hahahahahaha I said yeah, I noticed that last night, but the one I saw was smashed in his butt cheeks and never hit the diaper. LOL I kept smelling him and peeking from the side, but I never saw a thing. I decided to change him anyway, and there it was!! Smashed tater! Gross!!! Oh the things we talk about when we become a mom.
Also this week (he’s been a busy boy), I noticed he would almost reach towards you if someone else was holding him. He doesn’t fully do it, but almost!
Week 20
My baby is growing up. He slept on his tummy for the first time. Now that he can roll over, he thinks it’s the coolest thing. So, he now thinks he should sleep on his side or on his tummy. The only thing is that he can’t roll back over to his back. So, when he gets on his tummy, he can’t get back over. So here I am up at night going to flip the bacon when he wakes up and gets angry. He can’t crawl yet, so he gets frustrated when he can’t move. When he’s on his back, he is gone in no time. He can’t do that on his tummy yet.
I go to pick Carter up at mom’s house, and she says…Carter has learned something new today. I said what? She said he can scream now. I was thinking ok, he probably screams when he cries? No, he like SCREAMS! It is the funniest thing ever. It’s like a deep down throaty scream. Once he figured that out, he did it for 2 days straight! He would be eating and all of a sudden scream. It was a fun thing for him. He wasn’t mad or anything, he was just having fun!
He also has learned to make a B sound. He puts his lips together and goes B…B..Bwoh Bwoh. Not sure what he is trying to say if anything, but it’s cute.
He is learning all kinds of things with his mouth these days. Now, he has learned to fill his cheeks up and spit by blowing out on his lips. Yeah, so cute UNTIL he has a mouth full of baby food and gives you a squash shower. Not funny! He has actually gotten in trouble for that and gotten his first…spanking I guess you could say. I LIGHTLY smacked his arm and said No! He just looked at me. It got his attention though. It’s cute, but not so funny when his mouth is full of food. He will learn one day.
Week 21
The just not fair words have come out of his mouth….dada. This is not fair. Mama is with him and taking care of him majority of the time, and he has to go and say dada first!! The doctor warned us this would happen, because it is easier to say. The M sound is hard for them. He goes dadadadadada. I am convinced he thinks it’s cool and doesn’t really know he’s saying it. J It’s still so cute though, and I don’t mind because I am just so excited he’s saying something. He combined that with that scream one time and was like DAAAAADAAAAAAA!! HAHA I said we are almost home to see DADA!!!
Man, I can’t do anything these days without Carter trying to do it too. If I have something in my hand, he wants it too. He reaches at everything now. He wants what I have. I was sitting in the floor next to his play gym. Next thing I know, he has scrunched up to me on his back and was grabbing my newspaper out of my hands. He reaches out for my hair when I’m leaning over him or my necklaces. One morning I was cracking up at him and it probably was mean, but I had something he was reaching for and twirled it around over his head and he was swatting at it like a cat. It was so cute, but that was probably mean. LOL
Week 22
I finally moved my poor child up to a size 3 in diapers. I am such a bad mom. I still had him in 1-2’s. He could have been in size 3’s for a while by this time because the weight was 16 lbs. He was 17 lbs at his 4 month appt. LOL Mean mom!! I tried Huggies this time instead of Pampers, and I don’t like them as much. I think they smell funny when they get wet. Kyle doesn’t notice, but I do. I think we will be buying a new box really soon of some Pampers.
Week 23
My baby is REALLY growing up now. He is cutting his first tooth!!!!! Barbara noticed when she had him that he bit down on her finger, and it kind of hurt. She washed her hands and went exploring. She found a tooth coming through on the bottom left side, if you are looking at him. He would just gnaw on your finger when you put it in there. The next day, mom had him and she could tell her had a little fever. She gave him some baby Tylenol to break the fever and make him feel better. He was a little fussy. By the time I got there, his cheeks, knees, and wrists were red. Poor baby. I could tell he didn’t feel good. Mom had been using Baby Orajel during the day. I stopped and got some Hylands Teething Tablets from Wal-Mart on my way home. I heard people swear by those! They are tiny little tables that dissolve instantly under their tongues. I put them in his bottle that night hoping it would make him sleep better. I think that may be why the last few nights before he was so restless. He would toss and turn and I would be up all night turning him over or adjusting him in his bed. I thought it was because I had taken his bumpers out of the crib. He was starting to move around, and I didn’t want him to get tangled in them. Now though, he was moving around and knocking his head into the railing. I thought that was why he was waking up, but I bet it was from his teeth. He slept all night on his tummy after those tablets. The only bad thing about sleeping on his tummy is that he wets on his clothes. Not sure how to prevent that.
