Vivian at Four Months

Vivian had her four month check-up yesterday. Because our pediatrician moved offices across town, I am too lazy to make the trek twice in two weeks, and Vivian's appointment got scheduled with Theo's two year check-up. (More on that later.)

She did well, despite having another cold which started with a clear runny nose on Friday.She weighed in at 13 lbs 13 oz, which put her in the 41 percentile CDC (31st percentile on the WHO scale), and measured 26 inches (92nd percentile CDC, 89th WHO) with a head circumference of 16.54 inches (69th CDC and 76th WHO). She is not blowing raspberries of any kind that we've noticed, and despite rolling from her back to her belly consistently for a week while traveling, now that we're home she seems to get stuck on her belly again. That is not generally to her liking.

At four months, she was sleeping like a champ. She went to bed between 8 and 9 something almost every night, and slept 6-8 hours (and once even over 9) on her own in the bassinet with no interruptions for feedings. She finished the night with 4-6 hours in the bed with her mother, nursing on demand without fully waking either of us. Then she would get up for the day between 8:30 and 9. Traveling didn't seem to affect her too much, although she was not a big fan of the car travel as it forced her to go longer between feedings. She generally wears out after about 1 hour and 20 minutes of awake time, but could go 2 hours or so with encouragement, also known as entertainment. She naps in the sling, car seat, or the bassinet, and is fairly consistent about a longer afternoon nap in the bassinet starting just after her brother around 1:30. Most days she slept longer than him, and on one occasion she slept until well past 5 p.m. We had to cancel our afternoon plans as a result. She does sometimes stay awake for three hours before her big night sleep. Woe be anyone who got in the way of her rest.

She loves to eat, although she does not love to burp. Vivian guzzles her food and as a result generally has to burp (typically followed by an urp) after two to three minutes on one side. She will finish off that side, and either be full or repeat the process on the other side, with one side tending to suffice the earlier it is in the day. She prefers to eat every two hours or more often, and starts to cluster feed every hour or so before bedtime. Most of all, she likes to make sure milk is available on demand, regardless of how long it's been since the last feeding, and she likes to nuzzle up and also sleep on the breast using it as a pillow. When crying, she switches to a funny heh heh noise when presented with food before literally diving in with an open mouth. If her mouth weren't full, I swear she'd be sighing with satisfaction.

At four months she is beginning to reach for toys. On the airplane ride home at four months and two days, she started shoving things in her mouth. Usually that results in a few moments of gumming followed by some serious howls. I thought she might be teething since the mellow girl got so upset that whatever reached her mouth didn't satisfy her. But the doctor confirmed that there were no teeth coming in yet, which didn't really surprise me as Theo was six months before his first teeth appeared.

Vivian seems to love polka dots best, and she still adores anything with a face. Her favorites are a stuffed fox which is super soft from Jelly Kitten brand, a flat "Big Fat Chick" not-so-stuffed animal that is super soft and cuddly, and a knit block that has a bunny and polka dots. She still loves the blue hippo from Tiny Love that I clip to her play gym, possibly because its belly has polka dots. She seemed to be very fascinated by my new polka dot shirt as well, which is what clued me in to the dot preference.

She also likes to wear dresses, because she can pull them up and chew on them as well as fiddle them in her hands. We put her in the exersaucer when we returned, and although she hasn't figured out how to spin herself around she definitely enjoys standing and playing with the toys. She's generally happy on her back on the floor or bed, but doesn't get enough tummy or floor time. She also seems fine with the Johnny Jump Up, even if Theo runs by and she's just turning in circles.

She's well into her 6 month (at least in American sizes - the European sizes seem to be a more accurate fit based on age) pajamas, and getting close to outgrowing some of those in length. She also fits just fine into 6 month pants even though I thought they would be big on her. Some of that might be the excess bulk from the cloth diaper, but it seemed to hold true while traveling as well, when we used disposables. In other clothes, she can still fit reasonably well into 3-6 month stuff, but most of the 3 month items have now been retired. I did save a few dresses with wide necks that could be layered over long sleeve items since it doesn't really matter how long they are. Once they get shorter, they magically become a shirt or tunic, hence the versatility of girls' clothes.

Vivian is extremely ticklish on her collarbone and the usual ribs and inside of her thighs. She still likes a good foot rub, has no hair to speak of, and a generous amount of fat rolls in the thigh area. She now laughs just because I laugh at her, without the need for actual tickling, which is super cute. She also loves to be tossed into the air or even just lifted and lowered, a game known by the name elevator around these parts.


She showed no real preference when we met relatives and friends overseas, but over the past week has shown a distinct preference for mama. She's okay as long as I can be found, but did not do stellar when left with other caregivers. Part of that probably stems from the fact that we haven't even tried to give her a bottle for weeks due to traveling combined with laziness. Part of it is also that she is under the weather with a cough and another cold.

But overall she got an excellent report from the doctor. She refused to sit up when he tugged on her arms, instead locking her knees until he stood her up instead. She does love to stand, and she likes to be jiggled by tugging her arms. Theo loves to move her hands for her to dance or make the Wheels on the Bus motions, and she seems to like the kisses he demands of her.

Five months is just around the corner, and the time seems to be flying by faster than I can account for it. I hope to have some pictures posted soon. We took giraffe photos in Europe using a smaller substitute giraffe as well as with the actual animal once we returned.