Tanner Ross || 4 months

oh tanner boy! how fun and full this last month has been!

so much growth, development, and changes too.
the cuddliest little boy who gives the best snuggles.
we have our four month well baby check on thrusday and I'm so anxious to see where his stats are!
if I could, I'd go every  month just to do a stats check. it feels so good as a mama to see that confirmation that your baby is growing and thriving well. I am beyond thankful for healthy, growing children.
one of my favorite parts of our days is when my sweet baby boy wakes (whether it's in the morning or from a nap) he is so smiley and happy. no doubt that sweet smile can pick up my mood and bring so much light to the day. this boy is heaven sent. and his mama is ever so grateful for him.
four months later and I'm finally starting to make the bed again. boy does it make a difference in my day. if I get the bed made, I feel so much more put together, and I at least accomplished one thing that day ;) I've also been meal planning our dinners again and these two things are making life feel like we're getting a hang of things and back to 'normal' or more so figuring out our new 'normal'.

age: 4 months

stats:
               birth: 8lbs 2 oz  --  21 inches
 2 days: 7lbs 11oz
 12 days: 9lbs 1oz
                                1 month: 12lbs 4oz  --  23 1/2 inches
                     2 months: 15lbs  --  24 inches

                                                 3 months: 17.4 lbs  --  (from the scale at home)
                        --4 months: we'll find out on thrusday!!

clothes: 6/6-9 month

diapers: size 2

Tanner name sign // Quincyjeanart

banner // hooray everyday
jesus saves bro shirt // imperishable clothing co

F I R S T S
10/15- rolled from front to back.
10/19- first flight! to palm desert and he did so so good. so content like it was nothing. the drive home from the airport after a long week away was another story ;)
10/25- first swim! at nana and papa's condo in palm desert. he did so well in the water and seemed to like it. he lasted in the water (until being over it) longer than we had expected.
10/28- first trip to the pumpkin patch! hung out in the ergo with daddy the whole time while sister and I enjoyed all they had to offer :)
10/31- first Halloween! we went with the most simple of costumes- a baby bear. mom did not soar high with halloween costumes this year and we went with quick and simple.
11/8- (election day!) started rolling back to tummy too. no more leaving him on the bed/changing table!

E A T
still exclusively breastfeeding. and going strong! my goal is to breastfeed for at least one year. I went 13 months with harper and wouldn't be opposed to going a little longer with tanner if he and I are both happy with it.
he tends to nurse about every 2-4 hours.
he had been taking a bottle quite well. but we only make it happen 1-2 times a week, if that. and about a week ago he was no longer interested and made it clear he preferred his milk right from the source :) but with some practice this last week, we've had some improvement and he's taking it again.
it can be a hard thing for me because I love nursing and hate keeping it from myself and my baby. but I also know I need to be able to give myself the break that I need when it's needed. and the hubs and I need some kid free date nights. we''ll get there.
I've noticed this little guy eye my food a couple of times- but we still have a couple of months until that door is opened!

S L E E P
overall I still can't complain, but strong little man started breaking his way out of his swaddle. because of that (and that he's rolling over) we've done away with the swaddle during night time sleep. with harper, after the swaddle we transitioned her to the zippee and it worked out great. we've done the same with tanner now. because of having more freedom and also all of his developmental changes this last month, night time sleep is a little less solid than it used to be. and will be until he gets used to the freedom of his arms being able to move around. since then the norm has been 1-2 wake ups.  but not bad! we're transitioning and working on it.
he's still sleeping in our room in the pack 'n play at night (which we're thinking we might change here soon! but to be across the hall just seems so far away!).
naps are in his crib in the nursery.
2-3 naps a day. in the morning after being awake about 1.5-2 hours he's ready for one. then another nap later in the afternoon for a couple of hours. this afternoon one usually overlaps harper's 1-4pm nap. yay! #momwin :) and then there's sometimes a quick later afternoon/early evening nap. kinda depends on how long the previous two naps went for.

P L A Y
playing playing playing!!
just last week he started reaching and grabbing for toys and it's so much fun. I love watching him take it all in and hold a toy in front of his face in amazement. I can just see his little mind working and learning.

---things I want to remember---
--oh he started making the sweetest little noises when being rocked down for sleep.
--overall he does great in his car seat in the car. UNLESS he's gotten super tired and might be a tad hungry. then he is MAD at me! not a fun ride home like that... the good news is Harper just deals with it and doesn't follow her little brother's lead.
--oh drool. it comes and it goes. but so much chewing on fingers and teething toys. the teeth seem to just cause discomfort here and there, but not constant.
--on 'typical' days we have a routine, but not a schedule. wake, eat, play, sleep, repeat.
--harper caught a cold this last week and shockingly tanner has not got it. I'm praying he won't! both babes have been loaded with essential oils and the humidifiers.


P H O T O  D U M P

I'm loving this age right now and I know each month is just going to get that more fun. I'm loving learning his personality. I'm loving the chunky thighs. and I'm most certainly loving being a boy mom! and though brandon's starting to disagree with me, he's still definitely a mama's boy! ;)

3 months

2 months

1 month

birth

xoxo

-Brittney

follow along on instagram @brittneyhjelseth

Tanner Ross || 3 months

oh my sweet tanner boy!! you fill our hearts with sooo much joy!
such a squishy, little love bug.
one of my favorite things to do is look back at the previous month's post and see all the changes that have come our way in just a few short weeks. and boy, oh boy have you grown! the way it's gone the last three months, I don't expect anything different though. you're such a big little babe and everyone is always so shocked to hear your age. but then again you've always been sitting at the top line (or higher) on those growth charts :) and it's one of my favorite things about you! your chubbiness makes you oh so cuddly and your round face and heavy cheeks are what I always dreamt for in my babies.

age: 3 months

stats:
               birth: 8lbs 2 oz  --  21 inches
 2 days: 7lbs 11oz
 12 days: 9lbs 1oz
                                1 month: 12lbs 4oz  --  23 1/2 inches
                     2 months: 15lbs  --  24 inches

                                       **3 months: 17.4 lbs  --  (from the scale at home)

clothes: 3-6/6 month

diapers: size 2

Tanner name sign // Quincyjeanart

banner // hooray everyday

at three months, this little {big} guy has DOUBLED his birth weight! shocker, right? ;)

F I R S T S

watching a seahawks game with daddy. but there's no doubt there will be a thousand more!
playing in the sitting play seat.
pushing up with his arms at tummy time.
away from mommy at bedtime while I was out with some girlfriends.
walk with auntie and cousin lleyton at chambers.

E A T

nursing sessions have spaced out a bit and are more regular. every 3-4 hours for the most part. that is until we hit another growth spurt! then I'm sure we'll experience the nurse, nurse, nurse all day long. but we're having a little more regularity and freedom in our days so we're enjoying it! it allows for more play time too :) he's also doing well with the bottle! though we don't offer it all that often... hopefully he won't get to refusing it.

from the looks of him, clearly he's eating just fine ;) I mean come on.. those cheeks!! and the all over body rolls as seen in the picture above :)

P L A Y

giggling!! oh the giggling!! tanner boy LOVES to play in the mirror. and when we play/sing to him he's full of giggles and squeals. this age has become so fun and the way he focuses on everything around him, he's soaking it all in and learning his surroundings. he has been loving to be in a sitting position, so to put him in the play seat for a few minutes at a time has been fun. 

S L E E P

a good handful of nights we've gotten uninterrupted sleep and this guy has sleep all through the night (10:30-7ish)! it's certainly not every night. but we enjoy it when it comes. most nights include one wake up. then it's nurse, and right back to sleep. I'm still doing the 'dream feed' with him. he goes down for the night around 7:30/8 then, before we go to bed around 10:30 I top him off to get a longer stretch of sleep before he wakes to eat.
naps are usually quite smooth as well. it's often 1-2 smaller naps in the morning time and then I've been getting him to take his big nap at the same time sister naps. hallelujah!!!!! having both babes napping at the same time for about two hours is so great for us all to get a little rejuvenating for the rest of the afternoon/evening. it can be hit or miss but he sometimes gets a small late afternoon/evening nap in as well. or I'll just put him in the solly wrap and he'll usually catch a couple zzz's in there.

other things I don't want to forget:

he's good with his car seat but if we aren't in the car driving or moving in the stroller, he doesn't like to stay asleep in it. usually ;)

we had a couple weeks with more spit up than we had been used to, but it's now settled back down. which I'm glad about! it was causing my laundry pile to increase with us all going through more outfits each day!

SO much drool. could teeth really be making their way????

he gives his big sister the biggest smiles of all. with such ease too. she hardly has to do a thing to get the smiles out of him. its warms my heart SO much. and makes me a little jealous too.

this month we've really gotten into a swing of our new normal. Tanner is more predictable and we've got our daily routine down. well as well as we can with a THREE month old and a toddler :)

the need to burp after eating, is quite minimal these days! which is so great so little tummy bubbles aren't causing any discomfort.

hair is coming back in on top where it had thinned out. and this sweet boy has THEE cutest hair line!! it's absolutely one of my favorite things.

in general, he's comforted by me and my touch if he's having a harder time falling asleep for naps. this never worked with Harper! she always wanted to be soothed by being picked up.

Tanner's favorite things: 
looking/playing in the mirror! propped up to sitting to be able to see what's going on around him. standing too! little guy loves when I hold him to stand on his feet. such big smiles- like he's proud of how big he's getting! so funny, but he loves when he's startled! I can 'scare' him with a 'boo', he gets startled, and then gives the biggest smiles and giggles. we might have a thrill seeker on our hands ;) boy does he love to play with big sis! Harper is so into Tanner and loves to play with him (as best she can at his age) and he gives her just the biggest smiles. I love seeing their sibling bond grow.

I still am blown away at how good/easy of a baby our little one is. (I mean I know things can change and phases will always come and go) BUT he is so go with the flow and has such a good demeanor and calm personality.

P H O T O   D U M P

this one KILLS me. everything about it. especially those facial expressions!

xoxo

-Brittney

follow along on instagram @brittneyhjelseth

Tanner Ross || 2 months

oh Tanner boy!! 

here we are- two months in already and it's like you've always been here. it's so natural to have you apart of our family and it's as if this is how things have always been. a few hiccups here and there as we've adjusted over the last weeks, but overall you fit right in and fill a space in our family that we didn't even know was there.

you are so sweet, so content, so go-with-the-flow, so cuddly, and so calm.

(all that being that we've kept you well fed and well rested) :)

we've had a few days this month where some fussiness has come on. you just seemed to be so alert and the stimulation around you wouldn't let you relax and sleep :) but we've overcome those hard couple of days and are well back to our normal! you've discovered the paci and are so soothed by it.

and let's talk about chunkiness!! you take the prize for this one. 

the rolls are multiplying, those cheeks are getting too sweet to resist, and your belly. oh your belly!! hashtag hearteyes. allll of the hearteyes!!

boy has he ever grown since last month!!

age: 2 months

stats:
                 birth: 8lbs 2 oz  --  21 inches
2 days: 7lbs 11oz
12 days: 9lbs 1oz
                             1month: 12lbs 4oz  --  23 1/2 inches
              ** 2 months: 15lbs  --  24 inches

clothes: 3/3-6 month

diapers: size 1
(but really you should be in a size 2 by now, we're just trying to use of the rest of the 1s)

Tanner name sign // Quincyjeanart

banner // hooray everyday
onsie // golden hill design

F I R S T S

your first laugh. oh my heart! I haven't a clue what you laughed about, but oh it was the sweetest sound.
first seahawks game. first time alone with daddy and away from mama. first nap in your crib. first time to the fair. first blowout. first trip to costco. first bottle from daddy.

E A T

clearly by your weight, you eat, and you eat well :) growth spurts seem to be a constant thing around here and so nursing has been a constant things as well. I think just this last week we're coming off of a growth spurt though. nursing has been a little more regular of about every 3ish hours. but not always, sometimes it is more frequent than that. except for at night. even through the growth spurts, you've been able to keep your night time sleep the same. 

we tried a bottle for the first time just last week and you did so well. it made me so happy and yet so sad! you're getting so big to be taking a bottle and I get weepy that I'm missing out on a nursing session with you while you take it. 

P L A Y

so smiley these days! and the oohhs and aahhs. we all LOVE how you 'talk' to us. especially Harper. "Tanner's talking" she'll often say :) and tummy time- you don't oppose it. you're getting so strong and seem to actually be quite content and comfortable on your tummy. you are so so alert and keep your eyes on me whenever I walk by in the room. we won't tell daddy, but I'm pretty certain you're a mama's boy ;)

S L E E P

you're a champ here! we've slowly and gradually gone from 3-4 hour stretches this month to now 5-6 hours stretches at night. you just wake to nurse, and then it's right back to sleep without a peep. every night I say to Brandon "I can't believe Tanner is this good". it's down for bed by 8pm (in the pack 'n play in our bedroom), a dream feed around 10:30/11pm, wake to nurse around 5am, back to sleep until 6:30ish, where then you just want out of your swaddle and into our bed :), and back to sleep until about 7:30am.  

for naps, you will let me cuddle you, but quite often you'd prefer to be swaddled with white noise and your paci and be put down so you can go to sleep on your own. this is the same with night time sleep. you tend to take your biggest nap during the late afternoon. which I can't complain about because sometimes it will overlap with sister's nap!! #praisehands!!

**other things I don't want to forget:**

• the sound of your first laugh
• you've started taking more of a liking to the swing than before
• burping isn't quite as essential anymore. you used to get upset with little bubbles that needed to be burped out
• you're still gassy though! toots all day long :) such a boy!
• with the rate you're growing we could be out of three month clothes anytime now! but not surprising the way you like to eat :)
• you completely light up and smile when you spot Harper in the room! talk about melting my mama heart!

happy two months, my baby!!!

xoxo

-Brittney

follow along on instagram @brittneyhjelseth