Jack is 3 Months Old

 

 

Jack is 3 months old today and I can easily say that we have officially settled into a pretty comfortable pattern around here.  Jack is so laid-back and mellow and rarely cries (in my opinion, that is).  I have come to the conclusion that he really only fusses/cries for three main reasons: he's hungry, he needs his diaper changed or he is tired.  Other than that, his noises are simply his way of communicating and expressing himself.  My days are filled with a lot of cooing lately!

 

In his two month post, I mentioned that I was pumping a bottle of milk to give to him before bed and then "topping him off" by nursing him until he fell asleep.  In actuality, that lasted for only about a week.  I found that we had settled into such a nice groove that the bottle of milk wasn't even necessary.  Just after he turned two months old, he started sleeping from about 8:30 pm to 3:30 am.  He would nurse for a quick feeding and then sleep for another couple of hours.  Pretty good for a two month old.

 

About a week ago, he officially starting sleeping through the night!  He gets his bath around 7:30 pm or so, gets his pajamas on and then nurses until he is full.  Most of the time, I put him to sleep drowsy (but not sound asleep) in his crib and he will sleep from about 8:30 pm to 6:30 am.  Ten hours! 

 

 

 

Jack takes a GOOD morning nap for me (2-3 hours) and I try to time things so that that is when I run errands or do projects with the girls.  For now, while the girls nap in the afternoon, Jack is usually wide awake and we have our play time together.  We do a lot of exercises and playing with his toys.  Ideally, I would like to work it out so that he naps along with the girls in the afternoons, but I am enjoying my one-on-one time right now.  And I know that that is not likely to happen until after he decides to shorten his morning nap.

 

 



We discovered that Jack likes to be propped up a little on a pillow when playing on his play map.  Not only is it more comfortable for his head, but he can reach his hanging toys a little better.  It's a win-win situation for him!

One of Jack's favorite things to do right now seems to be sitting outside.  After dinner, when Jack is the most antsy, we simply put him in his bouncy seat, carry him outside, set him in the driveway with us ... and he loves it.  I get so many smiles from him!  He kicks and coos and it just makes for a happy time for all of us!

And, if the bouncy seat becomes a little too confining for him, Jack will lay on a blanket in the yard.  He is so relaxed outside, that he will often just drift off to sleep while the world around him just continues ... (And by "world around him," I mean two loud, big sisters making lots of noise).

About six weeks ago, I started taking Jack to church with me on Sunday mornings.  Sometimes I take Samantha with us (she is old enough to understand a little bit of what is going on now and she can sit through the mass with me pretty easily -- especially if she knows that there is a donut for her afterwards!  Sophia stays home with Steve because she is just too little to sit through a whole hour with me right now).  I really enjoy this time alone with my little man.

I start back to work, teaching two nights a week, in about 10 days.  A little part of me is nervous about leaving my little man behind and having Steve handle all three kids by himself.  He is great with the girls, but an infant (especially one that is breastfeeding) makes it more challenging.  And even more difficult is the fact that I will be gone during dinner and bath/bedtime routines.  I am hoping to work together as a team this week so that he feels more comfortable with everything (and so do I), thus making for a smooth transition back to work.  As Jack gets older, I know that it will get even easier.

Time just seems to be passing by in the blink of an eye lately.  The summer is almost over, which just seems unbelievable.  I really loved having an infant during these warmer months because it was so easy to just throw Jack in his car seat and go places (for a walk, to the store, etc) without having to bundle him up and warm up the van first.  After all, that is what I was used to doing with my other two babies.  It also made it pretty easy on me because Jack loves going for rides.  He immediately settles down as soon as the vehicle is in gear and backing out of the driveway.

The next few months will be filled with even more exciting changes in this little guy.  I can't wait!