Has it REALLY been that long?

wow. Sorry for the lack of updating. I can't believe i haven't posted since AUGUST! I'm embarrassed. So much has gone on...let me see if i can give you the cliff's notes version of our last 3 months...

September was spent in Montana, and we had a blast. I took a ton of pictures!! Billy went on his first flight,

went to his first parade,

his first carousel ride,

his first football game (and first tailgate, but he did NOT enjoy that),

he met SO many family members (ggma joan, ggma fonise, uncle mark, aunt jeri, uncle adam and a TON of cousins), he learned to actually eat baby food (and discovered his LOVE of prunes, and severe dislike of green beans), he learned how to shake his rattle and put his paci in his mouth, he went (temporarily) from 3 naps to 2 naps a day, he got a little better at sitting up,

we bought him a new exersaucer that he loves,

he learned how to scoot backwards in his walker,

October was even more exciting, but in a much different way. The first 2 weeks were spent bascially lounging at home and meeting up with all the friends we missed. Then we went to AZ for a week, and that's where it got REALLY exciting. First, the good news: Billy perfected his ability to sit,


he rolled from back to front, and he ate an entire jar of baby food in ONE SITTING! Now, on to the not-so-great but not-so-terrible news: He had 4 seizures. Not the kind one typically pictures (falling on the floor, shaking uncontrollably). Basically he had focal seizures where he zoned out and didn't take any breaths for about 30-45 seconds. then he came to and fell asleep almost immediately. Lynda and I took him to the hospital and they admitted him. They performed test after test (upper GI scan, EKG, blood work, urine analysis, EEG and finally and MRI) and he stayed a strong, happy boy through most of it.
Even with the IV in his hand (which he chewed on)

And again with the IV in his head

The tests determined that he had in fact had seizures. They put him on medicine and we haven't witnessed another since (thank GOD). However, the side effects of the meds are less than pleasant (irritability, drowsiness, rage, low appetite...), but he is getting over them!

November thus far has been rather uneventful. We spent most of it working through his new found attitude (thanks to the meds). We recently let a little girl name zoey in on our everyday fun (I watch her while her mommy and daddy work), and it has been wonderful! She has influenced little Billy in so many ways. He talks more, eats more solids, and has even started to use rolling over as a form of transportation :o) We love having her around.

Well, that's all for now! Tomorrow is turkey day, and I'm sure i'll have plenty of fun pictures to post of billy eating!! yay!

Some of Billy's faves (in no particular order)

His daddy

His swing

His grandparents





His mommy

His bumbo

Trees

His bibs

His soft/scrunchy toys

His floor gym

His johnny-jump-up

His hands

His paci

Sleeping

Waking up

Blowing bubbles

Eating

His reflection

His bath

His feet

Swimming :o)

Billy and I decided to go swimming with Sophia and her mommy Amanda yesterday. After his nap I fed him and put his little swimmers diaper on and then i put his sunscreen on and then i put his tiny trunks on.


I didn't want his little belly or back to get too much sun on our walk to the pool, so I grabbed the tee-shirt that uncle David bought him and forced it over his large head. Doesn't he look so much like daddy with the huskers shirt and trunks?
Definitely an "outfit" daddy would wear.

I was excited to put his life vest on him for the first time!! He loved it at first, b/c he could hold on to it.

But when we got in the water, the vest floated while his body sank a little, so the vest ended up pushing those chubby cheeks up to his eyes! :o) Very cute, but not very comfy for him. I told kyle what happened and he said "did you put it on the right way?" and I gave him a little attitude and said "is there a WRONG way to put on a life vest?!?" and then he reminded me of the straps that go between the legs to hold it down. oops. Definitely forgot to use those, hehe. So we are going to try again on Sunday, with daddy around, to see if billy like it better when it's on right!

Billy's 4 Month Check-up

So, today was the big day! Little Mr. Fern had his 4 month check-up. He's doing everything he's supposed to socially and developmentally! Some things he's actually been doing for weeks! I told the doc he was still spitting up, he said don't worry because he's growing. I asked if it's okay that he still sleeps in his swing (because sleeping in his crib on his back makes him spit-up) and he said it's fine. That was great to hear b/c yesterday a nurse told us that sleeping in a swing may lead to a flat head. The doc basically told us that nurse was crazy :o) After a great appointment with the doc came the hard part: the shots. Oh how I hate having to be the one to take Billy to get his shots done! But, it's for the best! He took it like a champ, screaming for a few seconds, then immediately nursing himself to sleep. And now he's acting like nothing ever happened. He's such a toughie!! Okay, now to get to the good stuff: his "stats"

Weight: 14lbs 2oz, 22 percentile
Height: 23.75 inches, 6th percentile
Head: 17 inches, 65th percentile

Basically, our little fern is a real-life bobble-head doll :o) I'm not too surprised; he's gotta have a big noggin to house that big brain.

On to his picture of the day...
We took this last night after his bath. He loves his bath!
Here's a bonus picture because I love his hair!!

Billy has his first girlfriend!!!

Today was a semi-eventful day for Billy and myself. We had to go to the doc, then home for a nap, then a visit from a friend, then, the best part of the day, a visit to see his new girlfriend, Sophia! Aren't they a cute couple?!? I love his little arm around her. It looks like he is doing the ole "fake yawn and put your arm around the lady" trick!! He's so slyyyy!

wow!

It's been a whole week since I posted an update about Mr. Billy. I thought I'd try to post about him everyday, but I guess not! He does so many cute things everyday, but they are the same cute things everyday. Perhaps I'll take grampa rand's advice and at least post a billy "pic o the day."

Here is today's pic:

It's from the day he was born. I can't believe it's already been 4 months since then! He's getting so big so fast! Yesterday he sat unassisted for about 10 seconds!!! Kyle and I had a mix of emotions: excited for our big boy, but sad he's getting so big so fast!

Alligator Jammies

Yesterday I was relaxing by reading a few blogs I follow. One of them (Postsecret) had a link to a very cool website. A new mother realized that all the pictures she was taking of her daughter were when she was sleeping. So, she decided to try to imagine what her little daughter was dreaming about and she staged that dream using various items from around the house (paper, plates, fabric, shirts, stuffed animals etc...). The pictures turned out SO cute! I just HAD to copy her idea. Problem is, Billy doesn't like to sleep lying down. To be more specific, he will only sleep in his swing or his carseat. So he's awake in his pictures, but I think they are still cute! I have lots of work to do to get my pictures/ideas as good as hers, but I'm having fun trying! I decided to make it a water&fishy theme because of his adorable gator jammies! Here are a few pics of my first attempt:

He's holding his breath:o)


I like this next one b/c it looks like he is walking in the sea

Finally Starting!

I decided to FINALLY start blogging (even though i started this blog months ago...maybe even a year ago)!! There is so much that happens with Billy every day (and I have such a bad memory) so I want to have somewhere to document it. I tried buying a journal and writing in it daily, but I just didn't write in it often enough. I think that I might be more consistent with this. So let's get to it!

Billy is officially 4 months old, and still as sweet as can be! He's the happiest baby i have ever met. Even when he's happy or wet or bored, he'll still smile. A few times he has even smiled during a cry fit :o) And he only really cries if he gets overly tired (or sometimes when he's hungry). He babbles to himself almost constantly now. About 50% of the time he'll talk himself to sleep; it's so precious. He's about 14 lbs, but we'll find out his exact height, weight, and head circumference (I'm most interested in seeing how big his noggin has become) on Aug 11th. I'll let you know the details then! He rolled over for the first time 2 months ago, but he's stubborn about it. He won't do it very often. When he's getting in his "tummy time" he scoots forward in a mock-crawling motion. He's great at getting his legs under himself, lifting his head, and he's even able to lift himself with his arms a tiny bit. He's playing with his toys now (mostly the soft toys), and all of them make their way into his mouth :o) Speaking of his mouth, I think he's in the early stages of teething!! He's drooling constantly, and his little fist only leaves his mouth to grab a toy (which promptly enters his mouth) or his bib. Oh how he loves holding onto his bib! And burp cloths, and shirts...I have a feeling he's gonna have a blankie pretty soon, and someday take it with him everywhere he goes!

well, i hear him babbling now; he's awake form his nap! Keep coming back for more updates!