5 months

today our little londonberry turned 5 months old! or as i have heard dave saying "she's 5 months old, which is almost 6 months old which is almost a year!" he can just shut up with that kind of talk.
it's been a pretty eventful month for london what with rolling over and eating cereal and all.
london first rolled over from her back to stomach just before she turned 4 months back on july 2nd. since then, she has been rolling over non stop. however, she isn't that fond of being on her stomach, so she'd cry shortly after arriving on her tummy.
finally on july 16th, she rolled over from her stomach to her back. it has only happened a few times so far, and the first couple of times i wondered if it was just a fluke. maybe she was laying on something and it helped her over?! i finally decided that she did actually do it, but she hasn't totally convinced herself yet. she is getting there though...doing it a little more often. i figure she'll be a pro at it by the end of the month!
she also ate cereal for the first time on july 21st. i had planned on trying to start feeding her and taking pictures and video BEFORE we called the boys over to check it out, but dave didn't know of this plan. so he called for the boys and the chaos followed. it was actually a fairly good plan as i had hayden videotape while i took pictures and dave fed london. on top of it being a bit chaotic it was also A LOT messy. not too much different from the boys' first feeding.
however, i have tried several times since and it is one of the messiest, most annoying things ever. i honestly don't remember it being this difficult with the boys. as soon as the spoon goes in her mouth, she immediately pushes it out with her tongue...cereal going everywhere. she also loves to keep her head down which doesn't make getting the spoon in very easy. i usually hold the spoon above her head to make her look up and then shove it in. she also loves to try sucking on her bib which just makes the mess even bigger.
i have not been very religious at feeding her cereal due to the pain that it is and due to the fact that i have 2 other kids running around. it really is a totally different ballgame having the 3rd one! with the boys i remember being pretty good about feeding them their cereal almost every day. oh well, she's certainly not starving!
the other week i tried finding out if london was ticklish anywhere and i hit the jackpot with her collarbone! i had her CRACKING up that nite. it was THE BEST SOUND i have ever heard and i didn't want to stop. i have tried almost every nite since then and it's hit or miss. sometimes she laughs and other times she stares at me like...really mom? this again? but i just can't get enough of her laugh.
london also is spending her very first weekend away from us this weekend...we aren't even with her to help her celebrate her 5th month! dave, talan and i are all in chicago for lollapalooza and hayden and london are staying with grandma and grandpa. from what we've heard so far, she's doing fine other than not sleeping during the day...but i tried explaining that she never really does.
she still sleeps great at nite. she still heads to bed around 9:30 after taking her last bottle and she stays asleep until somewhere between 8 and 10:30am. i actually had an entire week this month that she woke up EVERY MORNING after 10am.
she usually takes a short morning nap shortly after waking up...usually this nap takes place in her swing, something she's starting to like more and more. then she'll usually take a fairly long nap in the afternoon around 1pm. however, just last week she decided to start a whole new schedule where she has become harder to put to sleep....usually we'd feed her a bottle, swaddle her and lay her down in her crib. even if she was wide awake we wouldn't hear a thing from her, she'd just put herself to sleep....but for the past week or so she's been wanting someone to hold her until she falls asleep before you can put her in her crib. and the napping has become pretty bad. she's back to taking only a couple little cat naps during the day which can get frustrating for both me and her. it ends up making her a bit grumpy but she won't sleep any longer. hopefully she goes back to her old ways SOON!
on top of having her first weekend away from us, london also took her first trip this month. the whole family, including mom and dad, all drove to cincinnati for a day at kings island (fireflight played once again...check out the main blog for those photos) and another day at the cincinnati zoo (again, check out the pictures on the main blog). london proved to the world she is the baby super champion of the world on this trip. it was HOT (over 90) and very sticky. yet london stayed mostly in her carseat being pushed around in the stroller both days. and they were LONG days. we hardly even heard a peep out of her. she would sleep a little, smile, stick her feet in her mouth and just basically look around and take it all in. she made our little trip SO much easier than it would have been if she were a different baby! london is simply delightful!
she continues to love most things and hates very little. other than being on her stomach, we really can't come up with much that she doesn't like. i highly suggest everyone get a baby just like her!
we love you so much, londonberry! we miss you so much, but we'll see you soon!
happy 5 months!!!

i wear my sunglasses inside

today i put london in her bumbo seat in the living room so she wouldn't be stepped upon by her brothers while i was in the kitchen.
not long after, i started hearing lots of laughter and then was called into the living room to check it out. i have to admit, it was pretty funny. and london even seemed to like it.
i'm guessing she wasn't stabbed in the eye while they were trying to put the sunglasses on, as i didn't hear her crying. but at least i know she wasn't stepped on. i mean, i guess she wasn't stepped on...but who really knows with those boys.

BACK to sleep, london, BACK!!!

apparently london missed the memo in which it talks about how babies should sleep. which is on their BACK. either that, or she's just fighting the system. here is how i've been finding her recently:

first solid food (if you call runny cereal solid)

feeding a baby food just isn't that much fun the 2nd and 3rd time around. i mean, it was still a camera worthy event and exciting to an extent, but really, i'm not all that fond of the mess and time feedings take. bottles are just so much easier. however, we figured since she is over 4 months now, it's probably time to start her on baby cereal.
so this evening we broke out the camera, and video camera and gave london her first taste of oatmeal cereal. she seemed to like it but isn't so great at getting a ton of it in her mouth. then she liked to take breaks in between spoonfuls to put her hand in her mouth. cereal and drool were everywhere.
dave called the boys up to watch the production, something i was planning on waiting until the end simply to avoid a bunch of chaos. but it ended up working out well since hayden was there to video tape while i took pictures and dave fed her. it really didn't excite the boys too much, so after a bit they headed back downstairs and london finished her cereal in peace.
hopefully she'll be a little less messy when veggie time rolls around.

4 month check up

today we went to see dr. newcombe for london's 4 month check up.
everything looks great and she seems to be a big girl!
today she weighed in at 14 pounds 6 ounces which puts her in the 75%. she was 25 3/4 inches long which puts her in the 90%.
the dr. told us we can give her cereal at any time now and we don't need to come back until she is 6 months.

waiting for the dr.:
her stats:

4 months

today london avery turns 4 months old.
london continues to be the best baby EVER. she is pretty much always happy and she's a terrific sleeper. what more could we ask for?!
she still is just taking 4 ounces of formula at a feeding and is eating about every 2-3 hours. she takes her last bottle around 9:30 and then will sleep through the nite waking up somewhere between 7 and 9 on most mornings. now if only we could get the boys to sleep in like that!
she still only takes short little cat naps throughout the day, but i'll keep that if it means she continues sleeping so well at nite!
she went into a pool for the very first time this month and she loved it. she could have just floated around for hours i think.
she is talking more and more these days, and sometimes when she gets going she doesn't stop! she often likes to start this in the evening while we are watching tv. she gets so loud that you can't even hear over her. but it's the cutest thing you'll ever hear. she also will talk back and forth to you which is the greatest.
she is very attentive to things and will follow you around the room, just laying and silently watching you. she seems very curious as to everything that goes on around her.
she has been rolling all the way over on her side but didn't finally roll all the way over onto her stomach until just the other day. she rolled over for the first time on july 2nd. and ever since she's done it once she just keeps on doing it. however, she is still not a fan of being on her stomach for long and she still doesn't roll back over to her back, so once she rolls to her stomach, it's not long before she starts getting unhappy.
she still enjoys her bouncer seat and has really liked the boppy pillow as well. we never had a boppy pillow with the boys but someone recently gave me their old one and london has thought it is great!
at the end of the month london has really been reaching out and grabbing objects. she will hold and play with a rattle when we give it to her. she really concentrates on grabbing things, especially when she's laying under her play gym. she'll try to reach up and grab the toys hanging above her. it's been cool to watch her progress with this. she's getting to the point where she wants to play with toys and can actually do it.
she still loves to be swaddled and it's the only way she'll really sleep. she still loves her baths and water. she loves being held, but she also loves just laying on the floor. she loves to talk. she loves her brothers...especially hayden who can make her smile like nobody else can.
we still really can't find too many things she doesn't like. mostly being on her stomach and sleeping during the day. she also still isn't that fond of her swing. but that's really about it.
i just can't believe london is already 4 months old. she has been such a wonderful addition to this mad house. we're really hoping she stays this calm and happy!
we love you so much, london! happy 4 months!!!

bath time