4 score and... actually 4 months

Abbott is 4 months today. About a month ago Tiff and I were at our wits end with a colicy baby that was either crying or sleeping with not much in-between. From the time the older kids went to bed until 11 to 12 at night, one of us was rocking Abbott the entire time in an attempt to keep him happy and quiet until he fell asleep. One good TV thing I found during this time was since I was up I could watch the beginning of the Jimmy Fallon show at 11:30. When he finally fell asleep around midnight he would sleep well until 4 to 6 in the morning which any new parent can tell you any solid sleep beyond 3 hours is gold. He would wake up around 4 to 6 to eat and it was always a crapshoot as whether or not he would go back to sleep at that time. I can recall many early morning trips to the livingroom in a sleepy haze to rock a little boy that refused to settle back down to sleep. Another good TV thing I found was that Fox News replayed The Factor episode from the night before at 4 in the morning.

Abbott during less happier times.

A month later our little diaper full of cries and frowns turned into a bundle of giggles, smiles, and laughs. A couple of weeks ago he decided that swaddling at bed time was not for him, and would no longer take the pacifier at night. Both of these unnerved us not knowing then how we would get him to go to sleep. As most kids do, Abbott figured it out.

The first way had to do with self soothing which he figured out by finding his thumb. I know you're thinking "so what, babies suck their thumbs all the time." Well not our kids. Neither Aidan or Asher sucked their thumbs and had paci's until they were 1, which is when we took them away. This is a whole new arena for us, and I wonder at what point and time do I need to remove Abbott's thumbs.

Self soothing with a little thumb action

The second way, coupled with the first, had to do with sleeping. When it is time to sleep, and he will let you know when he is tired, we rock him a little and then just lay him down. It's just that simple. If he cries we give him a little time, check on him, and if he's fine let him carry on. So now he sleeps better on a schedule and when he wakes up he is all smiles; a completely different kid. Some of you may subscribe to the 4th trimester theory, I know I do. The 4th trimester is the first 3 months after the baby is born where it is all about physiological needs. Sleeping, feeding, and changing is all there is to their life. But once they hit the 3 to 4 month age they move from those physical needs to also having social needs. They react more to your voice, they smile when your eyes lock, they develop more of a personality. Abbott has finally hit that point.

So Happy 4 month Birthday little boy. You have two parents and two siblings that are head over heels for you.