two months

- September 16, 2026

dear George,

how did you get so big? you're already starting to grow out of your 0-3 month clothes and you've been wearing size 1 diapers for a few weeks now. I'm inordinately proud of the tiny rolls on your wrists and thighs, even though your arms and legs are still spindly. and your cheeks grow more kissable each day! you still drink four ounce bottles, but sometimes you want an extra ounce and you certainly let me know about it! you still hate pausing your feeding for a burp halfway through, and whenever I start feeding you again, you gulp down the first few sips and dart your eyes around on guard for anyone who might try to take the bottle away from you again.

you stare deep into my eyes when I'm feeding you :)

and you also hold tight to my finger to make sure I don't get any ideas about taking the bottle away

you love to grab my hair whenever it's within your reach, and cling on to fistfuls while I try to extricate myself (not so much because it hurts me, but because I live in perpetual fear of hair tourniquet syndrome!). you absolutely love your elephant toy from Grammie, talking to it and grabbing onto the hanging rings. I think it's mostly by sheer luck at this point but you do look very pleased with yourself whenever you catch them!

knock on wood -- you are a good sleeper! I'm sure the four month sleep regression will hit with a vengeance, but for now, I am enjoying the fact that you typically sleep from 7 to 10 or 11 pm, wake up for a bottle, and then go back to sleep until 7 am or so (!). I am relentless about waking you up from naps to eat at least every 3 hours during the day and more often if you're hungry of course. it never feels "right" to wake a sleeping baby but I want you to keep getting your calories in during the daytime!

you sleep so well in your zipper swaddle sacks!

this is 100% the face your father makes when sleeping

the most fun milestone this month is that you are smiling and "talking" to us! you give your biggest smiles to Elizabeth. whenever you smile at one of your sisters, immediately we hear the rallying cry: "he's smiling!! he's smiling!!" and the other girls trip over themselves to come try to get a smile of their own.

trying her best to get a smile out of you during tummy time

this month, you attended your first family reunion, and got to snuggle with your great aunt Theresa and your great uncle George! Uncle George is perhaps the most laconic man I have ever met. when I asked him to hold you for a picture, I thought he'd give you back within a few minutes, but he held you for at least fifteen minutes, rocking you when you stirred, and patting you until you fell asleep. what a special moment.

seeing your little head cradled in Uncle George's big hands just melts me!

then you took a nap with Nana!

we had great news from the pediatric urologist regarding the bilateral ureteral tract dilation they discovered when you were in utero. you've been on a low dose of amoxicillin once a day since birth, until our follow up appointment with urology. you had your own kidney ultrasound done -- the first that has been done on your own body, rather than through my pregnant belly! the urologist said the right side is completely normal now, and the left side is just mildly dilated. you no longer need antibiotics and will have a follow up ultrasound in 6 months. the urologist predicted that both will be normal at that scan. praise God!

in the waiting room at one of the Children's hospital satellite locations. you are too little to appreciate the super cool train-themed play area

some more firsts this month:

first organ recital -- your daddy's no less! this recital was originally scheduled for July 19, then rescheduled when you made your surprise appearance. you didn't make a peep the whole time. the only moment you stirred was when your daddy hit a thundering pedal chord and the whole church reverberated. you opened your eyes, blinked, and went back to sleep.