April-May 2004

Spongebib Squirtpants

I've been growing a lot. In fact, at 3+ months I've become quite a chubby tubby. Cameron says I have "more chins than a Chinese phonebook," and I have quite a few rolls and dimples elsewhere, too. I am also developing what Cameron calls "baby-pattern baldness," having already lost a lot of my newborn hair.  Oh well, like father...like daughter.

Because I've also begun teething—and drooling a lot—my current nickname is Spongebib Squirtpants. It's not very ladylike, but it's accurate.

My daily schedule is still not very predictable. I eat every 3 to 4 hours during the day, but naps have not become regular.  However, evenings usually end about 10:00 or 11:00 PM, and I'm getting pretty good at sleeping 7 to 8 hours each night.

I'm starting to know what I like and don't like—and I'm getting better at telling Mom and Papa when I'm not happy. It's entertaining to watch them jump when I use my voice LOUDLY!  I also have long conversations with Mom, and right now I think it's really fun to blow bubbles, stick out my tongue, and make raspberries. 

When I'm awake, I want to face outward [left] so I can see everything going on around me. I insist that Papa keep moving; I don't like to be still (especially not when Papa's sitting in front of his computer).

My Tante Monique [left] and nine-year-old cousin Jasper arrived from the Netherlands April 30th and stayed for a week. I had a great time with them.

We went to a Koninginnedag (Queen's Day) celebration for children, and we all went to Emerald Downs to see the horse races.  (I slept the whole afternoon, but Cameron and Jasper were both very successful bettors.) We went shopping in the malls, and we went to a roller skating rink.  I didn't skate (Cameron and Jasper did), but I enjoyed watching all the flashing lights.

Mostly what I liked, though, is that Monique and Jasper held me a lot, and sang to me, and told me Dutch stories, and made me laugh.  And when Mom and Papa went out to dinner for their anniversary, Tante Monique gave me the first bottle I drank successfully!  It wasn't half bad!

Four Months Old 

At my four-month doctor visit, I measured 14 lbs, 3 oz. (65th percentile) at a height of 25 5/8 inches (95th percentile). That's big enough to fill up Mom's laundry basket [right]! My head is at the 35th percentile (Cameron calls me a pinhead). I am physically healthy and developmentally right on schedule.  I strongly objected to those awful immunization shots (four this time), but it wasn't bad for long.

Just a few days after my doctor appointment, I rolled over the first time from tummy to back!  I can also competently reach for and grasp toys and other objects—and they all go consistently into my mouth.  I drool non-stop and therefore wear a bib at all times; in fact, I wet through at least two a day. I like sucking on my binky, but the middle fingers of either hand will also do just fine. Right now I like to communicate by squealing, screeching, and screaming at a very high pitch.