5 Months Old

From this:


To this:
DJP is 5 months old today! I cannot believe it's been that long and how much he has changed.

He is still teething with possible signs of teeth starting. Stuck my finger in his mouth to apply some orajel and there were bumps instead of smoothness on his gums. An the amount of drool has increased yet again, if that's even possible. (Still looking for a viable use for all this drool...)

DJP has rolled over from his back to his tummy however neither Jason nor I have seen this actually happen (he's done this at some point during the night/morning before we've gotten him and also on Grandpa P's bed but we think he cheated...)

He loves butternut squash-finishes the entire jar in one sitting! Definitely did not like peas (me either kiddo!) and is okay with green beans. Jason and I were wondering if DJP remembers the taste of butternut squash from last Christmas when Grandma P made butternut squash soup and mommy tried some?!?! Next up is either carrots or sweet potatoes.

DJP continues to smile easily (even when extremely tired like he was today since he'd only taken a total of an hour's nap all day), still not always sleeping through the night (dr. says 8 hours at a time...Jason and I laugh...it's about 5 if we're lucky! Kiddo wakes up with a hefty diaper and starving!) and is loving his exersaucer. He definitely likes the part where he throws toys on the floor and mommy picks them up (ha ha...that doesn't last long!)

We're back!

We have returned home from our looooooooooooooooong vacation (2 weeks) to SC and FL. I think DJP's way of expressing the last hour was perfect-he cried/screamed and was just inconsolable. I told him, "Kiddo, Mommy feels the same way but she's not crying!" That's what happens when we've been stuck in the car for 10 hours...

We're happy to be home and able to sleep in our own beds since we had the opportunity to use 5 (yes, five) different beds on this trip. Last night, Jason said, "Just sit here a minute and enjoy the fact that this is our bed." I just laid down and sighed. Yes, it is our bed and went to sleep.

Cook-Out

When Jason lived in Raleigh, one of the places he would stop at on his trip home from Elon was Cook-Out which has burgers, hotdogs, fries, onion rings, hush puppies, and milkshakes. We were looking for somewhere to stop for awhile to get DJP out of his carseat when Jason saw a sign for Cook-out. Off the interstate we went. We found Cook-Out but there was a surprise. All the Cook-Outs that we had seen were only drive thrus-this one was a sit-down place. So we went in, had some burgers, fries and hush puppies along with some Cajun seasoning. Yum!

What we saw on our trip south

Unfortunately there is no photographic evidence of what we saw due to the fact that pictures taken at high speeds in a car with an iPhone would just be a blur.

First, traffic came to a standstill on 81 due to 'blasting.' The construction crews were out in force and needed to use some old fashioned methods to clear dirt and rock. We did not see nor feel anything except dirt and trees being moved. This was okay by us since DJP was sleeping.

Once traffic got rolling again and a half hour later we pass the Extreme Makeover Home Edition tour bus. A bit ironic since they were filming a few weeks ago in Baltimore while working on a girls' home (one of my cousins went to help out).

Another vehicular sighting was a semi-truck decorated as a Tootsie Roll! I haven't seen that in a long time. Makes me want to go buy a Tootsie Roll...don't think my teeth can handle that now with all the dental work.
All in all, the ride so far has been uneventful.

4 Months Old

DJP is now 4 months old (yes, it's been more than a month since I last posted...sorry DJP has been getting most of my attention lately because he's a tad bit cuter than the computer!).

DJP went to see the pediatrician on Monday and he currently weighs 15lbs and is 25 3/4 inches long. He also got the second round of shots for Rotavirus (one more round at 6 months), which was not much fun for him. It was interesting to see his reactions-the first needle he didn't know how to react and the second we saw him turn as red as our furniture and forget to breathe. He did seem to be a bit more irritated after this round of shots, but was fine again once we were home.

Currently, DJP smiles all the time, giggles, rolls over from his belly to his back (close to rolling from back to belly), likes to "stand" with assistance of course, enjoys watching lights and ceiling fans as well as cars and trucks go by if he's near a window, grabs small toys and attempts to stick them in his mouth (if they don't fit, he throws them down), and eats a bit of cereal (oatmeal is his favorite with rice a close second and barley is just nasty) two times a day in addition to his yummy formula. [Does this sound like a singles ad for babies?] Every 5 to 7 days DJP will be trying a new food-this week we'll probably try peas or green beans. So far, he's not disliked any of the cereals and enjoys making messes!


DJP has also been teething for a month. It started slowly, mainly in the evening when the drool factory would start and he'd want to put fingers (didn't matter whose they were) in his mouth. Occasionally, he will have his fist in his mouth and start to scream-this is when the baby Orajel comes in handy. He makes the best faces when he tastes this stuff, but it works especially in conjunction with teething tablets.

Another first for DJP was a mini-vacation! We packed the car and went to Ocean City, MD with Grandma Cass over the July 4th holiday. We took DJP out to the beach late one afternoon and let him feel the sand and the water on his feet. He neither cried nor giggled, but seemed to take in the experience especially how his feet "disappeared" in the sand when the waves receded.


DJP also had his first sleep over this past weekend when his Eckerd "cousins" M & J came to visit. He was in awe of M's walking skills (took copious notes for future reference) and J's napping abilities (3 hours! Mommy wishes for that every day...just once!). At one point, Aunt Niki came over, expecting mass chaos and the house was quiet-all boys were napping and so was Aunt Melanie! All in all having three children under a year and a half in one house went smoothly-helps when they are outnumbered by adults! It was sad to see M, J and their parents go home, but hopefully we will see them soon!


DJP's next adventure is a longer car ride to South Carolina to visit his cousins and then on to Florida to see Grandma & Grandpa P and Nina & Papa.

School's Out for Summer

It's over. No more. Time to refresh and rejuvenate. More time to spend with the little one (who is 3 months old now)!

DJP has changed so much in the last couple of weeks. He now smiles and giggles all the time. He rubs his eyes when he's tired. He likes to "stand" more than sit (with assistance of course!) He is getting ready to start eating cereal because he's consistently taking 40 ozs. of formula at feeding time. The time he is spending on his activity mat is increasing and so is his tummy time, which he still is not fond of. I don't think he'll be fond of it until he can move himself around...I'm NOT ready for that! He is also starting to teethe. The drool factory started this past weekend and he decided that he likes his fingers as well as anything else that gets near his mouth. Jason and I broke out the teething rings that we had gotten as presents and they are within arm's reach and in the diaper bag along with a ton of bibs (Nina, there aren't enough now!) and burp cloths.

It will be nice to see all the changes that happen in the next couple of months.

Pomp & Circumstance

Today is graduation day at WLHS. Due to the fact that graduation is held at Merriweather Post Pavilion and is at noon, we only have a half day of school. Yipppeeee! I am extremely lucky that I do not have to attend the actual ceremony since my graduation duty was to cover another teacher's class during graduation rehearsal. I thank my lucky stars that I do not have to be outside in the heat and humidity collecting tickets. However, I do miss getting to see the happy graduates anticipate the ceremony and to wish them well. During senior exams, I did give each of my 8 seniors cards and wished them much success in the future.

Good Luck WLHS graduates in whatever the future holds for you!