Three Months

Dear Zachary,

You are three months (13 weeks) old today. I just laid you down for a little nap. I’ve been thinking about this little letter for a couple days now and I wanted to write it down.

Laying you down for a nap has become a little bit of a routine now. I can tell when you get tired: you cry with your eyes closed. When that happens, you don’t want to be comforted. I think it’s because you want to stay awake. But, my secret weapon is to wrap you tight in your blanket and then just hold you for about a minute. Works every time. (Unless your dad is trying to calm you down. For some reason you won’t let him calm you.)

You laugh for us quite a bit. We sing songs. We dance. We practice standing (you're getting pretty good!). We play peek-a-boo. We blow raspberries at each other. Sometimes we stare deeply into each other’s eyes. Other times you won’t look at me to save your life.

You like to suck on things now—like your fists, your bib, your sleeves, and burp rags. You don’t quite hold things yet so you’re not putting anything hard in your mouth.

Your spitting up has calmed down quite a bit. I don’t worry about it like I used to. I think your body has adjusted.

You are ticklish on your chest, on your belly, under your armpits, the bottoms of your feet, and your thighs. But, they don’t always make you laugh—they make you squirm. I think you haven’t quite figured out yet that if you laugh, it will make it more fun.

You love your dad. But, you love me more. I keep telling you that you’ll love your dad more in a little while. You look at me confused when I say that. But, it’s true. You will love him so much more. He is so happy to hold you and take care of you. He even burps you and changes your diapers just to spend time with you. And he’s looking forward to the time when you want piggy back rides and other fun things from him. He’s such a good dad to you. You’re very lucky to have him.

Your hair is growing all funny. There are really short hairs in the front and really long hairs in the back. I call it your natural mullet. You also have a cowlick that makes a fun line on your hairline.

The bump at the top left side of your head is almost gone. The bump at the back of your head is gone. So, you almost have a beautiful baby head. Almost. I think most people don't even notice it. I do, just because I know how bad it used to be.

You grew out of your 0-3 month clothes a month ago, when you were 2 months old. I honestly can’t tell you how much you weigh now. The scale we bought tells us something different every time we step on it. But, when we measured your length two weeks ago you were 25.25 inches. You’ve probably grown another half inch or more since then.

You love your baths now. Love them. You splash a lot and you think it’s funny. I think it’s funny too.

Because of our morning routine, you usually are happy-go-lucky during and after your bath until I put your shirt on. Then you tell me you are starving and you need me to hurry.

Lately you stop whatever you’re doing (laughing, smiling, crying) to look at the camera when we pull it out. In fact, the other night, you were crying so much and it was so dang cute, I had your dad try to get some pictures of you with your pouty lip. But, every time he held the camera up, you stopped and stared. It was your “Blue Steel” pose. (That’s a reference to a show called Zoolander.) I tried to get some cute pictures of you today too to document your three-month birthday, but you wouldn’t hold your smile for anything when you saw me hold the camera. You’re such a little stinker.

You have slept through the night for the last nine nights in a row now. That’s from 8 to 10 hours of sleep each night. It’s been great. And I love that you wake up happy. Both your dad and I love going in your room and peeking in your crib to see you there just talking to yourself. Usually you give us a big old grin.

If you had your way, someone would be walking around carrying you all the time. But, my back is no good. And your dad gets tired too. So, sometimes we have to put you down even though you cry about it. Sorry.

I’m so happy you came to us. My decision to quit working to be your full-time mom hasn’t made me worried or feel bad or anything. I waited a long time to be your mom. I’m not about to let someone else have that opportunity.

Happy Three Month Birthday!

Love, Your Mom

P.S. Here is the song that your dad and I made up about two of the monkeys in your room.

Chimbo the Monkey
Chimbo the Monkey
He is your friend.
Chimbo the Monkey
Chimbo the Monkey
Has a tail on his end.

Chimbo the Monkey
Chimbo the Monkey
His fur is brown.
Chimbo the Monkey
Chimbo the Monkey
He thinks you’re a clown!

Chimbo the Monkey
Chimbo the Monkey
His friend is Lyle.
Chimbo the Monkey
Chimbo the Monkey
He loves your smile!

P.P.S. Here is a poem (with the actions) your dad made up. It usually makes you smile.

Flap, flap, flap your arms!
And shake, shake, shake your legs!
And scratch, scratch, scratch your bum—
And tickle…your tummy-tum-tum!

P.P.P.S. All these pictures were taken today.