James First Taste of Rice Cereal

So apparently there are a lot of opinions about when an infant should have his first taste of "solid" food.  And by "solid" food, I mean a mushy mix of rice cereal and breastmilk.  The more recent pediatrician standard is 6 months, while some common baby books mention the trends of 4 to 6 months, and others say that some rice cereal in the bottle earlier than 2 months will help a baby sleep at night.  It's a bit exhausting to listen to/read about.  And I don't know which one is right (or if there is a right answer), but our munchkin was drinking 3-4 6-oz bottles a day plus nursing 2-3 times and still looking super hungry, so we decided to introduce rice cereal.  Just a few "bites" in and he really took to the spoon and seemed to like the rice cereal/milk mix.  Looks like we'll be adding a "dinner" of 1 tablespoon of rice cereal to James' daily routine:  (It was a really slow process, so I tried to clip together some highlights, but please forgive the phone conversation in the background)

A visit from Grandpa James and Uncle Keith

This weekend, Grandpa James and Uncle Keith drove up to Minnesota to visit.  

Little James was super excited to hear the news :)

But Grandma James and Uncle Keith left a bit late on Friday, so little James had to entertain himself by watching TV with Dad on Friday afternoon.

They arrived late Friday night and Saturday morning we went shopping for brewing supplies.  Grandpa James received a brewer's kit and was really excited to get some more supplies for his first brew (which I hope to mention more about in a future post - approximately 4 or so weeks from today).

Saturday afternoon we watched football on the deck; it was the first time for James to wear his sherpa outfit:

Little James and Uncle Keith.  One of the few moments where James wasn't fidgeting and Keith could actually hold him.

Grandpa James babysat on Saturday night, and Patric, Keith and I went to Real Steel at the IMAX.  I totally recommend.  Very cute movie, with great action.

Sunday we went to the Mall of America.  Goal: get Keith a pair of shoes.  Result: Grandpa James +3 pairs of shoes, Patric +1 pair of shoes, Grandma James +gloves/scarf/hat for Grandma Theresa, Keith -no shoes.  Oh well, we tried.

Grandpa James and Uncle Keith left later Sunday afternoon.  It was great to see them, and for Grandpa James to see how much little James has changed since August.  What changes will happen by the time we get to Kansas in a few weeks?

Happy Three Month Birthday, James!

Three months ago today, this little munchkin was born.  He was 20 1/2 inches and 7 lbs 15 ounces when he arrived.  Today he is 25 inches and ~14 lbs.  He has gone from cute little ball of complete helplessness to a range of facial expressions and the ability to actually hold his head up.  He has gone from eating every two hours (completely oblivious to day versus night) to sleeping 7 straight hours the past few nights.  He's grown so much in the last three months, and I can not wait to see what the next three months will bring.

Look at my belly!

Tummy Time!

Check out that noggin.

James and his friends

This past weekend, we celebrate our friends engagement with a football bbq on Sunday.  James dressed up in his best tie for the occasion...

But that outfit didn't last very long and he changed into his fleece vest and sweats instead.  

We had quite the packed house with Patric, James, and I, plus newly engaged M & L, recently moved N & B with son L and daughter M, and L & K with daughters A & A.  We convinced the boys to take a picture with all the children (and Sugar, A's doll).

Boys and the children, plus Jackson and Sugar (the doll)

View of the game from the kitchen

James also got some play time in with one of his girlfriends, A.  She's one month and one day older than him.

James - Week 12

James' Week 12 stats:

Weight: 14 lbs with diaper

Height: 25 inches (but head is still misshapen)

Sleep: 7-8 hours at night

Head: a bit bobbly still, but definitely making progress.  He can hold his head steady when moved from laying to sitting, but doesn't like holding it up in his bumbo.

Clothing: retiring the 6 month sleepers this week and moving up to 9 month; he's still good in 6 month onesies and 6 month outfits with separate tops and bottoms.

James after a tiring tummy time on his boppy.

James giggling at the tv.

Patric and James (they were dancing to Old Time Rock n Roll)

Bath Time and Play Time

Some milestones:

James has move out of the hammock in his bath tub because he's just getting SO BIG!  Here's a video of bath time this past week, which he thoroughly enjoys:

He's also starting to grab and play with the toys in his play gym.  It may have even resulted in a teary-eyed moment from me last week when he actually used both fists to grab his blanket.  Can I still blame tears on the hormones at 12 weeks?