Eli is 3 MONTHS OLD!!!! :)

It has been about 2 weeks since my last post. These past two weeks have been full of "firsts" for Eli--both good and bad. The past few months of staying home with sweet Eli just flew by. It is hard to believe he is already 3 months old! Sadly, my Maternity Leave is over and I had to return to work on January 4th. Dropping Eli off at daycare was hands down the hardest thing I have ever had to do in life. I held myself together pretty well, but definitely shed a few tears.

Eli really enjoys daycare! He has two teachers, Miss Veronica and Miss Katina. They tell me he loves to watch everything going on around him. They fill out a sheet each day telling how he ate, when he was changed and when he slept. He barely slept during the day his first week! I am sure it is because of all the excitement around him. Thankfully, daycare is a good "first" for Eli.

I received my first phone call from the daycare while I was at work this past week. They had tried to get a hold of me and since I didn't answer my phone, Charlie was next on the list to call. Charlie had called the school and I was in a blurred state of panic not knowing what was going on. Turns out sweet Eli had his first eye infection. Poor baby. :( I have a feeling he got the infection because he loves to rub his eyes and cover his eyes with his hands when he sleeps. The doctor prescribed some eye drops. I will tell you eye drops + a 3 month old = NO FUN. Eli is a pretty smart little baby. He figured out after the first eye drop that he did not want anymore and would squeeze his little eyes shut. It did get better as the week went on though.

His eyes are back to normal... (love those baby blues!)



While at the doctor, I asked her about feeding Eli cereal. Eli enjoys his feedings and I had noticed he was not satisfied after finishing a bottle. He would fuss a little after being fed as opposed to falling asleep after eating. The doctor suggested adding some rice cereal to his bottles. Turns out Eli LOVES the cereal! He actually makes, "mmmmmmmmmmm" noises while he is eating and kicks his feet. It is so cute!

Eli was not scheduled for a 3 month checkup. He now goes every 2 months. Since he had to go to the doctor for his eye, he ended up having a 3 month checkup. He is now 14 lbs. and 13 ounces! The doctor loves that he is growing and happy.

Our 3 month old boy...



I LOVE his funny expression in this one...




Eli is quite the happy boy! He just loves to check out everything going on around him. His new favorite thing is his playmat my friend Courtney gave him. He loves to lay on his back and try to reach for and kick the dangling rattles and animals. He will play on his mat for as long as you let him.

Our happy boy on his play mat...







Along with taking notice in his toys, Eli has taken notice in Lulu. He likes to stretch his legs out and push against her. He also has started reaching for her when she walks by. I am glad Lulu is such a sweet dog and let's Eli do whatever.

Here is Eli watching Lulu (and the super cute t-shirt he is wearing is from his girlfriend, Sara)...





So our monthly comparison photos are getting more difficult. Eli started turning his head to look right, then left, then right, then left...and he will keep doing it because he thinks it is hilarious (I have to admit, it is pretty funny!)! Before I show you the comparison pictures, here is Eli turning his head.





It always amazes me to see how much Eli has grown when I look at these comparison photos every month.

Here is Eli in his chair:

One month old...



Two months old...



Three months old...



Here is Eli with "Mr. Bear":

One month old...



Two months old...



Three months old...



Here are some of the things Eli is doing at 3 months old:

*He likes to pinch my arm with one hand and hold the bottle with the other when I am feeding him.
*His new favorite thing to do is turn his head repeatedly from left to right back and forth. He thinks it is soooo funny!
*He eats 9 ounces of cereal in the morning before daycare (at 5:00 am) and 9 ounces of cereal at night before bed (at 9:00 pm). He eats 5 ounces every 4 hours during the day. He is like clockwork with his feedings. Eli will let you know when it is time to be fed!
*He is now awake majority of the day. He will normally take at least one solid 2-3 hour nap. He sleeps straight through the night. I put him down after his 9:00 feeding and he will sleep until 5:00 am.
*He now LOVES to lay on his back on his playmat. He will just lay there and kick his feet and laugh for as long as you let him.
*He loves to “talk.” He sits in my lap and I ask him about his day and he just talks and talks. He must get that from his Mommy. :)
*He now does Mommy a favor when I go to change his diaper. He will lift his legs up for me to make changing easier. (I can’t help but laugh when he does this):)
*He has perfected the “pout lip” to use when he is upset about something.
*He is very alert and will reach for anything hanging (bears on his swing, rattles on his playmat, animals on his bounce chair). He has figured out how to grab a hold of things but does not have a sturdy grip just yet. He also hits his toys with his hand and laughs and laughs.
*He knows Mommy. I love that he smiles at me when I go to pick him up from daycare. It doesn’t matter what kind of day I’ve had, it is the perfect end to my day.

Charlie and I found out something pretty neat last week. Charlie has been working on his Family Tree as a side project. After doing some research, Charlie found out that his great-great-great grandfather's name was Eli Webb! How cool is that? We had no idea!!

The Webb household has turned into football central this past season. Charlie's team, the Cincinatti Bengals, had an awesome season! We were hoping they would make it into the Superbowl, but sadly were out after their first playoff game.

Our "Baby Bengal" showed his support...





Charlie had been looking forward to this past weekend because the annual "Boat and RV Show" was at Reliant Stadium. One of the things we look forward to in the future is camping as a family, so it is fun to go and check out the travel trailers.

Since we were going to the show and taking Eli, Charlie thought we may want to invest in a lighter stroller for occasions such as this. We have this amazing Graco carseat/stroller combo that is made really well. However, it is very large and is heavy. We decided on this lightweight stroller the other day and it is awesome! It is so easy to push! Eli loves that he can see what is going on (in the other stroller, he is in his carseat, inside the stroller--so he only gets to look at Mommy). Eli was all smiles watching all the people walking by.

Eli in his new stroller...





After a fun filled weekend, Eli and I are going to enjoy our Monday off in observance of Martin Luther King Day. He and I are going to catch up on some "Grey's Anatomy" and grade some papers. I now don't get to spend as much time with my little cuddlebug since I am back at work, so I truly cherish each and every moment I am with him. I sure do love this little guy. :)