Ava is 4 Months Old!

Every month it is hard to believe that Ava is another month older.  Where does the time go?  We are having more and more fun with her though as she is growing and getting more active.  She loves to play now, is getting better at grabbing toys (and putting them straight in her mouth), has found her feet and loves to hold onto them!  She hasn't rolled over yet but she is very close.  She's doing much better with tummy time and can hold her head up well but still doesn't like it and often will just lie there ready for a nap!

We had her 4 month doctors appointment a couple days ago and she is doing great.  She's 15 lbs 15 oz and 25 5/8 inches long.  Still in the 90-95 percentile for both weight and length!  We thought maybe she was "thinning out" but apparently not.  She's a chubby one and we love it!  She is still sleeping VERY well both at night and during the day--the doctor said there wasn't anything wrong, just to be thankful that we have such a good sleeper!  We are supposed to now have her on her tummy for the whole time she is awake in order strengthen those muscles since she spends so much time sleeping on her back.  We also found out she has "cradle cap" which is a harmless skin condition on her scalp but it requires some elbow grease during her baths now!  She's so easy going though, we have to scrub her scalp with a toothbrush and she just smiles and plays like it's nothing.  I even was able to clip her toenails while she was awake today and she just let me do it!

Ava's Schedule at 4 Months:

7am: feed and go right back to sleep

10am: feed and then play!

11am: back to sleep for my two hour morning nap

1pm: feed and then play for an hour

2pm: back to sleep for two more hours

4pm: feed and then...more play time!

5pm: back to sleep...

7pm: feed, play, bath, read books with daddy

8pm: back to sleep...

10pm: feed and go right back to sleep

7am: do it all over again!

Ava has responded really well to this schedule and now her days are very predictable.  She rarely cries to eat anymore, she wakes up and either sucks her thumb or coo's in her crib until I come get her to feed her.  Then we play for an hour, she goes back in her crib and immediately starts sucking her thumb again and falls asleep in a few minutes.  She's a wonder baby!

There are more pictures in the Album "Ava in July" of her swimming in her bathtub outside, grabbing her feet, going for walks and playing.