4 Months Old!

Ava is 4 months old!

We had her 4-month check-up on Wednesday. She now weighs 15lbs, 3oz and is 26 1/2 inches long! Everything looks great. She is holding her head up so well and is getting better and better at sitting up with support. She has also been doing so well with the reflux that her doctor said we can stop the zantac and rice cereal in her bottles. So far we've cut out one dose a day of the zantac without any issues. We'll give this about a week, and then next week we'll try cutting out the other dose to see how she does.

Her doctor also said that we can start solids whenever we think she is ready. I think she is showing some signs of readiness, but I don't think she's quite there yet. I want her to get a little better at sitting up first, and I'd like to see her double her birth weight before we start (16lbs, 2 oz). I've also been reading lots of research that suggests waiting until 6 months because of the risk of future allergies, digestive problems, and obesity later in life. I don't think we will wait until six months (especially since she was not premature and neither Dave nor I have any food allergies), but we will probably wait a few more weeks. I am planning to make her baby food, and I am SO excited about this. If you know me, you know I love to cook and bake, and I am so excited that I will be able to control what goes into Ava's food. No preservatives or added sugars for my little girl!

Ava learns something new every day! She is so interactive with us, her toys, books, Lucy, and everything else in her environment. She just loves music, and she cracks up when we dance with her. She especially loves to see us make fools out of ourselves. She is also sleeping like a dream, from about 6:30/7 PM to about 4:30/5 AM, and then back down until 7 AM. We really couldn't ask for anything more.

She is outgrowing EVERYTHING. She is in 6 month pants now and size 6-9 month sleepers. The outfit she has on in the pictures below is size 6 months, and it is obviously too short -- she looks like she is wearing little baby capris!