I've decided that if babies could seem like four-month-olds at birth, then maybe I would consider having more of them. I am just not a newborn baby person; when babies start to seem like little people, that's when the fun begins! I really loved it when both the kids hit their four month marks because that's when they went from baby-lumps to baby-people. Over the three weeks that we were in the bay area, Livia not only had a growth spurt, but she also had a developmental-spurt, if you will. From the time we got there to the time we left, she seemed like a very different baby. And now that her personality is really starting to come through, it is clear that this little girl is a hoot, and she is probably going to be another strongly opinionated Pace girl. She will go from perfectly content and happy to give-me-what-I-want-or-suffer-my-wrath in seconds, but once she has what she wants she is perfectly happy again, like she had never gotten upset in the first place. But really, Livie is just so happy all the time; she makes Marc and me laugh constantly. She'll sit in her swing or the play mat or bouncy chair and chatter at her toys and laugh, and it is the best thing to watch and listen to. And she is so strong; she can hold her head up really well and look around the room. We had her four-month check up yesterday, and even the pediatrician noticed how well she could hold herself. Speaking of the four-month check up, her measurements were 13 lbs 11 oz and 25.2 inches. That puts her at the 41st percentile for weight and the 82nd percentile for height. It looks like my girl is going to be tall! I was laughing though because I realized that Roman was 3 oz bigger at two months than she is at four months. He was such a tank. And since she is so strong, it looks like we are going to have to stop swaddling her at night because she is trying to roll over already. Marc and I have had to rescue her a number of times from being smashed into the side of the crib because she's moving around so much in there. Tonight she was lying on her play mat absolutely resolved to roll over, and she actually looked like she was going to do it for a bit, but she couldn't quite figure out how to pull her shoulder out from under her. But she's close, really close.
Our four month old Livia: is the happiest baby ever; has the best smile; is really ticklish under her chin; is so close to rolling over back-to-front and is getting really frustrated that she can't quite do it yet; will put anything in her hands into her mouth; is a pretty good sleeper (thank goodness); is drooling like crazy (teeth must be on the way); is such a talker (she can say "ma ma" [especially if she's upset]) and is happiest when she can have a one-on-one "conversation" with someone; can grab the toys on her bouncy chair and play mat; loves to look at herself in the mirror; has recently become really interested in what Roman is doing. I think that Marc and I have been incredibly lucky in that we have such happy, easy going little babies. And while I cannot wait for Livia to be up and running around and playing with Roman, I am definitely loving this baby phase with her.
