A 4 Month Rolly Polly

Austin is 4 months old now. As Summer would say... "Holy Smackeroles!" I can't believe how big my Little Man is getting. He had his 4 month check up on Tuesday and is doing fabulously. He weighed in at 14 lbs and 15 oz, which definitely surprised me. I thought for sure he was more in the 16 - 18 lb range. But he's pretty much right at the 50th percentile for weight. His height (and for the life of me I can't remember how tall he measured) was up in the 80th percentile though... which doesn't come as a shock to anyone who knows his 6'5" daddy. :)
Other big events from this past month... Austin got his first cold, which, as luck would have it, happened to coincide perfectly with his first trip (naturally). Both Dixie and Summer kept trading off illnesses throughout July, and Austin kept managing to avoid them. However two days prior to him and me flying out to California, he picked up Summer's nasty cold and ended up being sick and congested for the whole week we were visiting my family. Ugh. But the poor little guy played it off like a champ. Even with his chest congested, and his runny nose and cough, he still didn't complain and was all full of smiles. What a trooper.
And yes, as mentioned, Austin's first big trip of his life was to Carlsbad, California where he went to see his Uncle Mark get sealed to Aunt Jenna in the San Diego temple. :) Only Austin and I were able to go because we just couldn't afford to fly the whole family out there again. (We were just there for Christmas this past year as well as summertime last year and our budget just can't handle a trip like that every 6 months.) :) But it was a very enjoyable trip. The weather was gorgeous and it's always super fun to spend time with all the family. (Thanks for a perfect excuse to head out there, Mark!) :)
And the big news of the day... Austin started rolling over! His first official complete rollover happened yesterday. He was able to roll over all the way over and get his hand out from underneath him. He did it again this morning with ease and even propped himself up like he'd been doing it for ages. At this rate, crawling will be just around the corner! :)
Other than all that, Austin is our same old super sweet little guy. He is SUCH a happy baby. He is chatty chatty chatty and LOVES to have a conversation with anyone who will sit and 'talk' to him. He gurgles and coos, all while keeping the biggest smile on his face.
He's developed a death grip that will tear the flesh right off of you (particularly your underarm) and it's becoming rather painful to hold him at times... but it's a price well paid to just be near this cutie.
We are attempting solid foods (rice cereal) these days. We tried feeding him some prior to our trip to Cali, and he wasn't seeming terribly interested in it. We tried it again while on vacation, but still not a whole lot of enthusiasm. So I'm just taking my time in getting that started.
And speaking of things he's not interested in, we still cannot get him to take a bottle. This boy has never wanted a pacifier or bottle. It's breastmilk straight from the source or nothing at all. (TMI?) :) I don't really mind other than that it makes it really hard to be away from him for any length of time. He has started sucking on his fist a lot (I think he's starting to teethe) and is even starting to go for his thumb on regular occasion (but Mommy and Daddy are discouraging that as much as possible) and I did actually manage to get him to take a pacifier on the plane ride home, so maybe a bottle would be a possible option at this point??? We'll have to see.
Anyway... life is just plugging away with a 4 month old. Austin is the center of attention from his sisters. They love and adore him. We all do. And we couldn't be more thankful for the joy he has brought into our family. Loves!