Dear Daniel, (three months!)

Today you are three months old! This means you are officially out of the "fourth trimester" and you're continuing to grow and change so fast, I can hardly stand it! Your Papa and I are so delighted to experience these early parts of your life with you.

This month you've done lots of new things. You and I participated in the Big Latch On PDX, trying to break a world record for number of people breastfeeding at the same time. We didn't break the record, but I hope that next year you'll be willing to participate and we'll try again. You met your final set of grandparents this month, my dad and stepmother. We went with them a couple of times to Powell's Books and you cuddled with me while I did some writing. A few weeks ago, we hiked with Papa, Jennifer, Oscar, and Tomás at Upper Macleay Park. It was fairly grueling for the adults, but you and Tomás pretty much slept through the whole thing. I'm certainly having lots of fun taking you with me wherever I go—you're a great traveler! You had your first little sunburn (a tiny bit of pinkness on your cheeks and nose) after I took you to the park with Rachel and Bennett to get a little vitamin D. I'll be better about the sunscreen next time.

You're learning lots of new things lately. You smile all the time, which is particularly delightful to wake up to every morning. As soon as you see me looking at you, you light up with your big, toothless grin. You're beginning to chew on things more often. In fact, you can chomp down pretty hard with your gums, and can hurt adult fingers and knuckles (and anything else that goes in your mouth). I'm working with you a bit on nursing manners.

Speaking of chewing, you chew and suck on your hands and fingers a lot. It's really fun to watch! You are also figuring out how to bring other things to your mouth (besides your hands) to taste and chew. You seem to prefer soft things like blankets and cloth wipes to harder things like toys or your pacifier. You also like just tasting things, and you'll often stick your tongue out and lick anything that's close to your mouth (a shoulder or hand of whoever is carrying you, for example).

You still enjoy playing very much, and you're becoming more intentional each day with your hand movements. You've begun to pet and touch Papa and me gently when we're holding you or when we're nursing, which is so sweet. Sometimes when I'm talking to you, you'll reach up and touch my cheek or mouth to feel my face moving while I talk. Some of my favorite times still are when we are nursing, and you certainly seem to enjoy it, too. I love that I can make you feel better, ease your hunger, and help you sleep deeply with such a simple and beautiful act.

You're also making lots of cute sounds lately. You and Papa have cooing conversations fairly regularly. With me, you coo and gurgle some, but mostly you like to smile and make other faces at me:


This month we had our first successes with Elimination Communication (EC). I wasn't trying to do it before this month, and I'm not doing it all the time, but it's nice to be able to respond to your cues in that way. It's been fun to realize how much I know about your needs. So far, I've only been able to catch pees, but it was funny when I accidentally figured out how to cue you to burp. You're a silly boy!

One thing that hasn't changed is that you're still sleeping with your eyes open. I recently posted a video of you having a dream in my lap with your eyes open. You had been having some trouble getting enough sleep—taking only a handful of 20-minute naps throughout the day—but in the past week you seem to have turned a corner with napping. We've begun swaddling you again, and you start your nights on your Papa's side of the bed in the cradle that your Uncle Kevin made for you. Midway through the night, you come into bed to nurse and then you sleep with us there for the rest of the night. Sometimes during the day I have to cover your eyes for naps so you can get some much-needed rest. (You don't seem to mind too much.) You can get so distracted by all the exciting things you have to discover in your world!

The last time we had you weighed (at your two-month doctor visit) you were 11lbs, 1oz, and you've definitely grown since then. We've cycled through all of the newborn clothes and most of the 0-3 month clothes, and you're solidly into the 3-6 or 6 month sizes because you're just so darn long! I realized a few days ago that you officially weigh more than both of our cats. Way to go, kiddo! Pretty soon, you'll be terrorizing Eddie instead of the other way around; he totally has it coming.

I expected you to grow and change, and I knew it would go fast (but not this fast). The thing I didn't know would happen is that you're getting more and more fun to be around and interact with as time goes on—what a great surprise! You're wonderful.

Love,
Momma