The end of an era

There are several eras I'm referring to that relate to each of our family members. So off we go with a monster update!!

- Last night John slept through the night. He went down at 7:45, we gave him a bottle while asleep at 11, and he slept through until 8:00. I just can't describe what a relief this is. It has been almost 3 months since he started waking 2-10 times a night because of the reflux. Then when the reflux was under control, he had some bad habits and wasn't able to fall back asleep. I had the week off from high school lessons this week, so I stayed home with John and really worked with him on his ability to self-settle. We got rid of the pacifier as well. He used to wake up every 30 minutes or so during naps needing the paci, now I'll put him down, he'll fall asleep within 5 minutes and stay asleep until the end of the nap. It's just heaven, both for us and for him.

- John's reflux is so much better. The increased dosage of Prevacid has really done the trick. He is so happy and not fussy now that he's feeling better!! He's been eating lots of baby food. So far, he's had squash, sweet potatoes, carrots, and peas. Next up is green beans, and then we'll move on to fruit!!

- John is getting his helmet off in 12 days! I'm so excited. His little head is looking really awesome. I'll be sure to post before and after photos when treatment is over.

- I have been back at school for a while now, but I've really enjoyed having Tuesdays off to stay home with John. My schedule is probably going to change a little bit more because I got cast as the lead in the opera at school. There are only 4 characters in the opera, and it's in Italian, so it will be a LOT of work. But it's a great opportunity to learn such a big role. I'm so excited to get back onstage again after a relatively performing-free year last year during my pregnancy. Andy is such a great husband and daddy for being so supportive!

- Speaking of Andy, we don't have great news about him. Unfortunately, Google has decided to close their Phoenix office. We were pretty devastated. Of course he is welcome to stay with the company if he's willing to relocate, which we're not. So he's looking for a local position. We're just very disappointed since Andy absolutely adored working for Google. I am just praying he can find something he likes as well.

Other than that, we are doing very well. We are enjoying watching John grow and develop. Right now he loves to "stand" with us holding him. He also has an Exersaucer where he can stand up and play with his toys. He is so happy and sweet and is such a blessing!

4 months old

John is 4 months old today and had his appointment. He was a good boy for his shots - he only cried a little, but it always makes me cry too.

We stopped using the Zantac about a week ago after noticing that John seemed to be agitated and have trouble sleeping about 4 hours after taking it. Sure enough, when I called the pharmacy, the side effects include agitation and insomnia. Perfect for your baby, right?!?!

The doctor seemed pleased about how he was doing on just Prevacid, and we adjusted his dosage for his weight. He's 17.5 pounds (90%) and 26 inches (90%). At least he is proportional now, last time he was 95% and 50%!

I also talked to him about John's sleeping. It has definitely been better since dropping the Zantac, but I wanted to know what the doctor thought was normal. He said that a 6 hour stretch is considered sleeping through the night, and anything after that is just gravy. I thought that was really interesting.

Then I told him that John isn't quite there yet, most nights he only goes 5 to 5 1/2 hours. It could be the pacifier or it could be hunger. The doctor recommended that we start solids to help him with his reflux and sleeping. The rice cereal in his bottle is doing wonders for his reflux by thickening the formula, but isn't really calorically enough for him, so we'll start yellow veggies this week.

He also had a middle-of-the-road suggestion regarding John's pacifier, since we're a little hesitant to let him cry for too long until the reflux is definitely under control. He suggested to let him fall almost all the way asleep with it, and then take it out just before he falls asleep. That way he can still soothe himself some, but won't expect it to be there when he wakes up. We'll give it until the end of September, if this doesn't work by then, I have a 4 day weekend that I'm going to use to go paci free!!

Then we had a helmet appointment. He goes in every week for adjustments. 2 weeks down, 4-6 to go! It was a busy day!

(New helmet pics posted in our online photo album)