Hesselblogger: Ryan: Month 4

Ryan month 4 - what a treat! I think I sense a theme here - every new age of his is my new favorite age. It is so fun to watch him grow and learn and become more aware of the world around him. A few highlights for the month:

We took Ryan into the pool at home for the first time all summer and he had a blast! Splashing and kicking his feet and just generally enjoying moving around in the water. He liked it so much that we decided to sign him up for a swim class so he would be more comfortable with things like getting his face wet. He was a baby champ in his class - never crying and just going with the flow whether he was practicing floating on his back or doing tummy time on a raft. We ended up dropping the swim school since it was far away and too close to his bedtime, but now we know what to work on with him in our home pool besides blowing bubbles and making him laugh :)

Speaking of blowing bubbles, his trick of the month became blowing "raspberries" with his mouth. He would stick his little tongue out and thought the noise it made was hilarious. His extreme drooling picked up this month, so between that and the raspberries, we were going through burp cloths pretty quickly.
This month was the dreaded month when I had to return to work after my maternity leave. Fortunately for us, it coincided with my sister Kim getting off work for summer break. So she packed up her bags and moved on over to our side of town to watch Ryan in the mornings while I was in the office. It was wonderful - I never had to worry a bit about whether or not he was safe or loved, which made my days at work a lot easier and more productive. Plus I think it was great for him to form a strong bond with his Auntie and learn that people other than Mom are capable of caring for him. Kim came up with fun games and silly songs that Ryan just loved, and taught me a lot of tricks for calming him. After 8 glorious weeks, she had to go back to her real job and real life, but I am forever grateful for the time she spent watching him and loving him like he was her own.

In the vocalizing department, Ryan took it upon himself to start growling like a wild animal when he wanted some attention. Matt thought it sounded like a mix of an angry badger and a Tazmanian devil. Funny, funny!

And in the milestone department, he found his toes in month 4. Now at every chance he has, he grabs his feet and holds onto them or sticks them in his mouth. When he wears his pajamas with monkeys on the feet, he likes to play with them too.