Shake, Rattle, and Roll!

One month older means more new "tricks!" Oh what fun it is to watch baby Callan get bigger and learn new things each day. He is such a sweet baby, full of smiles and coos, with a little personality that is shining through more and more. :) Here's what he's been up to in the past month:

Roll Baby Roll! Callan is all over the place. He has fully mastered rolling front to back and back to front, and he uses that to his advantage to get around on the floor. He loves to roll all over his playmat, reaching and grabbing at his toys and whatever else he can get his hands on. Speaking of which, he is a grabbing maniac! I don't know how his hands can move so fast. He has overturned numerous bowls of baby food, the container of kitchen utensils, and even the knife block! I have to constantly be on the lookout for things within his reach and get them out of the way before he sees them. He also likes to grab at me...he loves grabbing my arms, my face, my hair, and sometimes those little pinchers hurt! But it's fun to watch him become so active, although the prospect of having three extremely busy boys running around in my future makes me feel really tired. I think it's time for a nap!

Eating continues to go very well, and there hasn't been a thing Callan has turned down. His new favorite things are graham crackers, and I've been trying to teach him how to eat baby puffs. He can pick them up, but he doesn't quite know what to do with them. If I put them in his mouth for him, he can eat them with no problem. I just keep putting a few on his tray at mealtimes, knowing that he'll get it eventually! The only challenge we've faced lately has been that he doesn't like formula very much. On Thursdays when our nanny comes, or when I leave him at home with Brad some nights, he sometimes refuses the formula that he is offered. I've been trying it more and more at home in an effort to get him used to it, and I think he's starting to come around. I just have to get it really warm! I'm still nursing, too, but I think he might be weaned a little earlier than Leyton was. My body is starting to show the signs already. :(

Callan loves his brothers so much, and gets really excited when he sees them. But, he's developed a very funny squeal when he sees one of them coming and doesn't want to be bothered. He lets them know that he wants to be left alone! He also screams bloody murder when either one of them takes away something he is playing with. I'm sure this is only the first of many ways he'll be telling his brothers to back off!

Sleeping...hmmm, or the lack of it! Let's just say that the past month reintroduced some sleep challenges. For some reason, after moving Callan into his crib and experiencing a few really great weeks of sleep, all of a sudden he started waking up again...a lot. In fact, right at the end of the month, he had a few nights where he woke up every two hours starting at midnight. It was pretty excruciating. So, I started letting him cry a little bit, and that seemed to help. He began putting himself back to sleep a little better. Then, the turning point came just a few nights ago when he flipped over onto his tummy. Finally---peace! I think he is just a tummy sleeper. Since we all figured that out, he's been waking up only once for the past three nights and taking really great naps during the day. Thank heavens!

And finally, the biggest news of the month is that Callan is sitting up all on his own! I was starting to get worried because I knew I had not been practicing with him like I had with B and L. Frankly, I just wasn't taking the time to sit down with him and practice like I probably should have. I finally started working with him daily, and within a week, he was doing it all on his own! He still prefers to roll around, but he's sitting for longer and longer stretches every day. What a big boy!

This has been a big month for Mr. Callan. I am so proud of my handsome baby boy!