December has been such a great month for us!
There have been a lot of changes around our household this month! For starters, Bruce is now taking all of his naps in crib and is going to bed between 7 and 8 every night. This new found freedom has allowed me to resume somewhat of a normal life again! I can keep the house picked up fairly well and have started cooking dinners every night again. Charlie and I can actually eat dinner together at the same time now, and as much as we love that baby - it's great to have a few non-baby hours to spend together in the evenings.
I also started two part-time jobs this month. I like to think of myself as a Legal Marketing Analyst, but really I'm just a glorified envelope stuffer for an attorney friend of mine. It's the perfect job for me because it's just a couple of hours a day and I can work from home. I also started to work for the church we go to, helping put the children's curriculum together. Again, just a few hours a week, and I can do it from home. Now that Bruce is a little more independent, it's nice to have something to keep me a little busy during the day so I don't go stir crazy. Charlie has finished all of the "after work" projects he was working on, so he has been able to spend a lot of time with Bruce when he gets home in the evenings. Bruce's face always lights up when he sees him, and I love watching them interact with each other!
When Bruce is awake, he has been so much fun! He now is very interested in toys, reaching and grasping for them, and of course putting everything in his mouth. He's a pro and getting his fingers and thumbs in his mouth to suck them, and just recently discovered his feet. It's fun watching him realize that those things are attached to him, and he can control them! We get lots of smiles and squeals, and Bruce has even started to let out a few gut chuckles! They don't come very often, but make my heart so happy when I hear them! Usually a really good jiggle, or smothering him with kisses on the back of his neck or belly do the trick. I'm looking forward to the days when laughing is a regular thing for him! He spends time on his tummy everyday, but we're not seeing any signs of crawling yet. Baby likes to stand though! We joke that he might skip crawling all together and just start with walking. He's trying really hard to roll over, but no success yet. Maybe by next month!
Bruce had his four month appointment a few days before Christmas. We found out that he's now in the 93rd percentile for length, but at 13 pounds, only the 9th percentile for weight. The doctor wasn't worried, and I guess when you look at the genes he inherited, I shouldn't be too concerned or surprised either. He still looks healthy and doesn't seem to act hungry all of the time, so she didn't tell us we have to do anything different. She wants us to come back next month for a weight check though, just to be on the safe side. We also got the go-ahead to start him on solid foods. Starting with cereals, and then we can move on to fruits and vegetables after he gets the hang of using a spoon.
After all of our traveling last month, and with the trips planned for this month, we decided to join the minivan club when we found a really great deal on a used 2007 Honda Odyssey with less than 30,000 miles. Even though we weren't looking to buy a car for another year or so, we had a touch of van-fever and couldn't pass up the opportunity!
We went to Texas on the 23rd to spend Christmas with my family. It was the first time I was home for Christmas in eight years and we had a great time. All of the "family" was able to be there with the exception of my nephew Josh and niece Clarissa. Bruce especially loved all the extra attention he received from the grandparents, aunts and uncles, and cousins! We also found out the exciting news that my brother Paul and his wife Leah are expecting a baby this summer!
For a gift this year, we got Bruce a box of rice cereal - so he had his own Christmas feast. He did really well too! He opened his mouth for the spoon, and didn't spit too much of it back out! No funny faces really either, but maybe those will come with the more flavorful fruits and veggies next month!
We left a couple days after Christmas and drove to Louisiana to spend a late Christmas with Charlie's family. We had the traditional "Duck Dinner" with the Kolarik family first. It was the first time that the whole family was together since Charlie and I got married - and we've grown since then! Great food and lots of fun!
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| Bill and Daniel making Kolaches |
The next day Charlie took us on a tour of the horse farm he's been working on for the past three and a half years. It's almost finished now, and a spectacular sight to see. I am so proud of him!
Today was the Gutekunst Family Christmas. Almost all of Charlie's mom's family lives here in St. Martinville, or closeby, so it was quite the house full of people! It was really fun to catch up with family members we haven't seen in awhile, and we always love showing Bruce off. There wasn't a lack of arms to hold him, that's for sure! We head back to Oklahoma tomorrow. It will be a long drive, but Bruce still cooperates fairly well in the car, so hopefully it won't be too bad.
We're looking forward to the beginning of a new year, and can't wait for the adventures that await us in 2012!
