Saying Mama & Seeing Mia (and Dylan): 17 weeks

I know, I know. I've been somewhat neglectful in my posting duties, but I promise, I have a pretty good excuse. When Colt and I got married, I started to become very interested in photography. Between finishing college, getting a job, getting pregnant, and having a baby, my love for photography had taken a backseat. Recently, I've decided to try to do something with it. I started Aubree Clark Photography, and I've been posting pictures of photo shoots I've done on my business Facebook page. All of the sudden, my inbox was flooded with messages from people wanting to have their pictures taken! All of the new business has been wonderful, and I've really enjoyed expanding my portfolio. I love being challenged to find new, and unique ways to take pictures. I've worked with some new locations, and its forced me to be more creative in posing my subjects, especially when the background is plain. I've been learning so much. All of that to say, I've been pretty busy with the photo shoots, editing the pictures and still finding time to be a wife and a mother. Oh, and I've been working on some pretty cool canvas photo collages! I guess May has been a pretty artsy month for me! Well I have a lot to talk about so I suppose I should get started...

Cash is now 17 weeks, which means he's officially 4 months old! BLOWS-MY-MIND! Sometimes it seems like he's a completely different baby than he was when we brought him home from the hospital.

Physical: At his 4 month doctors appointment, he weighed 15 1/2 lbs., was 26 inches long, and his head circumference was 17.2. He's about 50th-75th percentile for weight, 75th for height, and 90th for head circumference! Colt and I both have big heads, so that was no surprise. Haha! He's getting much better with tummy time. In fact, he pushes himself up with his arms, so he's almost always looking around when he's on his belly. No more sobbing into the blanket! :) His back, arms and legs are really strong now. He loves standing on his legs and will even take a few steps while holding on to my hands. He tries to sit up by himself all the time. When he's laying on his back, he'll try to flex his abs to sit up and look around. He can't quite make it up yet, but I think the days when he can sit up on his own are fast approaching. He had his second round of shots at his 4 month doctor appointment as well. Unlike the first round, these made him pretty fussy for the rest of the day. He only cried for literally about a second after the shot, but was kind of out of it all day afterward. He didn't get a fever per se, but it got up to about 98.6, which is a little bit higher than normal. Also, we've been battling thrush these past two weeks. I noticed it on his tongue really early, so it was just in the beginning stages. For those of you who don't know, thrush is a yeast infection type thing in the mouth. It sounds disgusting, but its really not. No one notices it unless I show them. Anyway, he was prescribed Nystatin, and that helped temporarily but it came back. Now he is on Diflucan (or whatever the baby form of Diflucan is) and its helping a lot. The only thing that stinks is that I have to put it on myself topically because I'm nursing, and its really sticky. I'm sure it will clear up soon. My mom said I used to get it when I was a baby, and its not serious at all. Lastly, he's in 6 month clothes almost everywhere (sometimes 3 or 3-6 depending on where you go) and size 2 shoes. Our little man is getting big!

Sleeping Habits: The only thing that is consistent is inconsistency. It works for us. Some nights I'll get 3 or 4 hours at a time, and some nights I'll get 8 or 9. I usually average about 4 to 6 before he wakes up for a feeding. I've decided I'm not going to put him in his room until he's consistently sleeping through the night. If his room was right next to mine, I would try to get him to sleep in there, but its all the way across the house. Colt and I both like having that time with him, watching him talk to the TV, play in the sheets, or even just sleep. He falls asleep cuddled up next to me almost every night, but I try to get him in his cradle half way through the night. I've heard every reason for why he needs to be in his crib by now, but honestly, I know when he's all grown up, I'll remember the nights that he slept beside me, and look back on this time with fond memories. He takes naps in his crib, although they don't last very long. He sleeps better in my arms, in his car seat (when we're in the car) or in his cradle. He still makes a lot of funny faces in his sleep, and smiles a lot, although not as much as when he was fresh from the hospital.

Eating Habits: Cash tried sweet potatoes and rice cereal for the first time these past two weeks. I know starting him on vegetables and fruits usually comes AFTER the rice cereal, but we seem to be slipping into a pattern of unconventionality. He's eating solids (Stage One Gerber foods), once a day, and its usually half a container, although sometimes he'll take 3/4 of one. He's mainly breastfeeding, and having a formula or breast milk bottle maybe once every two weeks.

Milestones: He had his first "real" laugh on April 27th caused by the noise that a Target wipe bag made. He thought it was hilarious! He is sucking his thumb, hand, and fingers more often. Although he still likes his pacifier, he'll spit it out at times just to suck on his hand. I think he's beginning to teethe! LAST BUT NOT LEAST is my favorite milestone this week...Cash said, "Mama!" On May 15th! He was sitting in his swing while I was putting on my makeup, and he started to fuss because he wanted to get out. He looked right at me and said, "MAMA". At first I thought it was a fluke, until he said it again a few seconds later. I know at this age, he doesn't know that's what he's supposed to call me, but he's able to make the "Ma" sound now, so its my job to point to myself when he says it so he'll get the idea. I love hearing him say it though.

His Favorites: He loves mirrors, his lion stuffed animal with the toys on the paws "Lionel", and his toy dog "Rolph". He's also really into colors, things that make noise, different patterns, and brightly colored clothing.

Personality: Cash really is the happiest, most laid back, content, and easy to please, baby I've ever seen. He's really playful and babbles ALL THE TIME! Especially when his hand is in his mouth. He falls asleep easily when he's held. He really has been a dream baby. Don't hate...I'll probably have a little troublemaker for my next one.

Nicknames: Colt calls him "Goo" or "Gooey" because Cash says that all day long. Colt even signed my Mother's Day Card from Cash, "I Love You - Gooey". We both call him Cashy, Cashman, or Sweetieface. I still call him "my love" most of the time.

New to this Week (or last few weeks): We've had two birthday parties in the last few weeks. One was Miss Mia Ciampa's first birthday, and the other was Miss Ashlyn Clark's first birthday! We had a great time at both. It was my first child birthday party that I attended with a child of my own in tow. We had a great time. Colt and I are thoroughly enjoying being in the "parent club" now. Speaking of the "parent club", Colt, Cash and I met some fellow parents and their babies at Wiregrass for a lovely evening last Monday night. We met Trey, Jamie and Dylan Keller ad Greg, Megan and Mia Ciampa for some dinner at Cantina Loredo and a stroll around the mall. It was so much fun to get together with couples our own age with children. You should have seen us at the restaurant with our strollers, diaper bags, and baby toys littering the ground and table. We had a blast! We all agreed that Trey and Jamie need to move closer so Dylan can grow up with Cash and Mia.

Goal for this week: My goal for this week, and the next few weeks is to lose 10 to 15 lbs. I've lost all of my baby weight as of last week, but I would like to lose a little bit more. Before I got pregnant, I had gained about 10-15 lbs. due to hormones related to some cysts on my ovaries (and my lack of motivation to keep the weight off). When I got home from the hospital after having Cash, I had only lost about 10lbs. At my first checkup after the baby, a week after he was born, I had lost 20 lbs.! I had only gained about 29 or 30 in my pregnancy. At that point I only had about 9 or 10 lbs. to lose. I've had no motivation to lose the weight. I wanted to lose it, but I didn't want to TRY to lose it like I needed to. Haha! I've had about 3 lbs. to lose for 3 months and I've just recently lost it. NOW my goal is to lose the 10-15lbs. I gained before my pregnancy. I want my Aunt Heather to take some family pictures of Colt, Cash and I when they're down for my brother's graduation, and I DON'T want to look fat! Anyhoo, that's my goal. Will it happen...doubtful!

So that's what's been going on. I hope you enjoyed reading my everlasting blogstopper. :) Thanks for reading!