the Oliver update

Oliver is almost 4 months old now. He is generally a peach of a baby, I must say. Attached to me? Most definitely. Happy when with me? Yes.

I couldn't ask for more.

Since he was about 5 days old, he's gone anywhere from 7-10 hours straight at night (with 10 being more common!)-- though in the past week we've shared more wee hours together than in his entire life up until now, thanks to a springtime cold that has been making the rounds around here. Even with the congestion, he will sleep a solid 6 hours or so before waking with some coughing that simply calls for Mama.

That said, during the day he's been a fickle little guy when it comes to sleep. For weeks he slept for hours of each day happily. In the Moby wrap only, thankyouverymuch. Then he decided he was over naps anywhere and I was lucky if I got 40 minutes in a row. However, in the past 2 weeks or so he's settled into a more consistent pattern of a shorter morning nap followed by a slightly longer afternoon nap, and these he takes in his bed, thankyouverymuch. Good thing, too, because he is getting chunky and carrying him around (even in a comfortable wrap or my trusty Ergo) is downright tiring!

He still does love to be held in a carrier of some sort when awake. As the weather turns and we've gotten to take walks, he will snuggle right in, occasionally looking up at me and smiling the warmest smile I've ever seen.

I'm not even kidding.

But the baby is enormous. I mean, I've had chubby babies, but he takes the cake! I am not exaggerating when I say that he is wearing clothes Elliot wore just a year ago. He is not just round, but also long! After the exhausting, wearisome first 3 months of Elliot's life as we struggled to get into any good patterns of any kind-- including growing-- this has been a welcome change. He has not only thrived as much as any of my other babies, he has far surpassed. God didn't have to do that, but I think He did just for me.

Just to bless my heart and remind me that it's really not about me. Not really.

Oliver enjoys his baths. He enjoys anyone who will talk to him, rewarding them with big smiles that reach all the way to his eyes. He enjoys when Claire entertains him, a task she is given at least once a day when I need to shower or make dinner or switch the laundry or some other such thing.

He does not, however, enjoy his car seat. If we get in the vehicle and he's not ready to sleep, we get about 10-15 minutes of him looking around happily before he decides he'd just much rather have me holding him. And let me tell you: once the crying commences, it persists long and loud. With all the other kids, we've made a long-ish trip by the time they were 4 months or so and, generally, it was fine. I have felt rather thankful that we've not had any trips planned because Oliver is far from a great traveler-- so far, anyway.

Growing, seeing more and more, recognizing voices and experiencing new things (the sun!), absorbing his surroundings, settling into patterns and just as fast settling into new ones. I can't believe how quickly these months are flying by.

But mostly I can't believe how lucky I am to be this sweet boy's mama.