Two Monkeys: Nicholas & Joshua Read

If I had one wish, it would be for a cure for eczema. It's wreaked havoc in my life for 35 years and now it's affecting little Nicholas. This past week, my eczema erupted again on my face and chest. Not only is it painfully itchy, but it exhausts me and leads to many sleepless nights. The nights are now even worse as I often have one feeding to do at about 3 am. Nicholas' eczema is primarily on his neck, legs and we think his scalp. Cam was shocked to see him itch intentionally the other day. He's been scratching his head for the past week, so we're quite sure that he's got some itchiness there. His stools have also been extremely acidic smelling - almost vinegar like and full of mucous. If anyone has any other suggestions, let me know. For now, I'm avoiding dairy and eggs and praying to the skin gods.

This week, I've discovered our little guy rolling from back to front a few times. Of course it's during times when I'm doing something other than watching him but it's quite an accomplishment to finally see him more mobile. When he does get onto his front, he ends up letting out a yelp that says - how the hell did I get myself here! He hasn't made it from front to back yet, so that may be the next step.

Nicholas playing with one of his toys - he can now hold and grab things. Nicholas loves staring at this lamp. He's also a pro now at tummy time. Hanging out with his buddy Liam.

My friends Erin & Jay from Kansas sent us a Jolly Jumper when Nicholas was born. I finally brought it out for the first time and he loooves it. It keeps him occupied up to 30 min. I love it too! Thanks Erin & Jay for the fabulous gift!

Nicholas has finally graduated to his own crib at 4 months. I've discovered that his electric worm movements during his sleep made him thrash his legs against the bassinet. When you watch it, it almost seems like he'd be able to hop out of the bassinet, so we thought it was time. Since moving him there this week, it's been a lot easier to drop him in to sleep once he dozed off. With the bassinet, the minute we did the transfer from the arms down, he'd know immediately what we were up to. With the crib, he just lies there and passes out without a fight. This morning, we found him with his legs though the end of  the crib and face down. He's quite the mover in bed as we put him down in the middle of the crib and on his back. We're happy that we can now reclaim our room and bed again!

Nicholas is now 15 weeks and weighs in at 13 lb., 14 ounces - close to 14 pounds. His latest thing is grabbing things that are within his reach, which includes my hair and the necklaces that I wear. He hasn't ripped any off my neck yet, but I'm sure that's to come. My ears have been safe so far. It was cool to watch him play with a toy the other day for the first time - going from batting it to actually grabbing it. Of course, what he wants to do it put it in his mouth to suck. He's probably getting sick of sticking his fingers in his mouth, which are constantly wet. I've also had to stock up on more bibs. At first, I wasn't sure if all the bibs were going to get any use, but now that he goes through 3-4 a day, I may need even more.

I think that I've gone from pregnancy brain to suffering from post pregnancy brain. For the third time this month, I've gone out with a new shirt with the tag still on. I don't find out until someone pulls on it to point out that I've totally forgotten to cut them off. Ooops! Since spring is in the air, I've been able to find a few new outfits including a new pair of jeans that in my regular size - wahoo! It felt great to finally wear jeans that don't have the elastic band on it. I loved wearing the stretchy jeans, but I am happy to shed the maternity gear for regular clothing that fits.