{4 & 5 months}

graham and easton had their four month check-up (a few weeks late).  they are growing like crazy! easton weighed 16 lbs and graham weighed 15.5 lbs.  their head circumference was 16.5.  i can't remember exactly what their length was, but i do remember graham was a little shorter than easton.  they are "average" according to the charts! we've never experienced that before!

they are always chewing or sucking on each other

they are interacting so much more.  they will smile and laugh at you.  they love to follow people with their eyes.  easton is able to roll over both ways and graham is able to roll over from his back to his tummy.  i will put them down on their mat and they will be in a completely different position or area when i come back.  they love to kick and grab and eat/suck one another.  they are starting to babble a lot more too.



easton

the boys are allergic (or intolerant) to diary so i've cut all dairy from my diet which is quite the challenge, but doable.  if i cheat it is very obvious as their face breaks out (easton's is worse than graham's) and they spit up much more.   we introduced formula to them because john and i will be in NY and they will be here with aunt jenni and grandma suzie.  our dr suggested soy formula since they can't have dairy. well, soy isn't going so well.  they arch their back, spit it out, cry, etc.  i knew it wasn't the bottles because they will take breastmilk from a bottle with no issues.  i had some samples of similac sensitive on hand, so two days before we left i decided to give it to them to see if they would have a reaction.  the first bottle went great...they both drank it like it was the best stuff on earth.  i was so relieved and they didn't seem to react to it.  so i gave them a second bottle and that's when it went down hill.  easton's eyes got puffy, his face got red, and he had a rash on his back and stomach.  graham faired a little better and only had a slight rash on his back and stomach but he spit up a ton.  so, this brainy idea confirmed that they can't have dairy and it left me scrambling because i only had two day to get these boys to eat formula.  i was a little stressed.  i ended up buying alementium, the crazy expensive formula for babies who are allergic to dairy.  thankfully they drank that well and that's what they ended up having while i was gone.  i was toying with the idea of stopping nursing when i returned from nyc but the cost of the formula has encouraged me to continue! ;)

when they went to their appointment they were sleeping through the night.  now that we've messed with formula, they aren't.  thankfully they usually just get up once a night but i'm hoping they will start sleeping again soon! we also introduced rice cereal to them.  they've had it four times now and still aren't big fans.  i'm hoping this will help them sleep through the night also.

easton

graham

they are still very happy babies.  they take a short nap in the morning and then a longer one in the afternoon.  of course they still have many other catnaps throughout the day too.  i was looking at some pictures from when they were first born and i can't get over how much they have grown.  time needs to slow down...or i just might want another baby! ;)

graham