Nicholas seems to be managing with his boots quite well. He can roll over in the boots and he lifts both feet up and tries to undo the laces if they aren’t tucked into his socks. He only cries if he tries to take the boot off and his foot gets stuck halfway. Then its Mummy to the rescue!!

His new game is to try to kick me while im putting the shoes onto his feet - fun for him but painful for me (if he gets me!) because there are bolts on the soles where the bar gets attached!!

He will wear the DBB’s full time (23hrs a day - gets a break for bath and a play) for the first 3 months then hopefully the hours will be reduced to night time only. He’ll be wearing the boots for over a year.

…continue reading the story called Dennis Brown Boots

Bathtime is always fun with Nicholas and now that he’s free of his plaster casts he kicks his legs like mad in the bath and proceeds to soak me, the bathroom walls, the floor and whoever is standing nearby. So we’ve started showering with him, and he loves it!!

He tries to drink as much water as he can and still kicks his legs about.

…continue reading the story called Splish Splash

Lots of new things happened this month.

Chatty Fellow!

Nicholas’ happy little personality is really shining now. He wakes up from naps and coos and chats to himself until I go to pick him up. Hanging out with all the relatives around Xmas has really made him a more vocal baby.

Clubfoot Update

He’s now wearing his Dennis Brown Boots (and Bar) for his Clubfoot treatment. They are a pair of shoes attached to a bar that hold his feet out at a 60 degree angle to train the muscles in his leg against turning inwards. He’s dealing with the shoes quite well. We had a few nightmare nights where he’d cry in discomfort and slip his foot out of the shoe - but this was because I wasn’t doing the shoe up tight enough. Now that that problem is solved he just carries on with his day as per normal.

He loves to raise his feet, stare at his shoes, and try to undo the laces, eat the soles and crash the bar down making a big noise on every surface!

Big Cot

Nicholas has also graduated to sleeping nights in his own cot, in his room. No more bassinette next to Mummy. He was keeping me awake by banging his legs on the bars so into the big cot he went. He adjusted fine but I have to wake up a few times to put the dummy back into his mouth!

Starting Solids

We have also introduced him to solids. He eats about 3teaspoons of Farex (rice cereal) mixed with his milk and I added 2 teaspoons of pureed Apple today, he wolfed down the lot! This doesn’t replace any bottle feeds; it’s just in addition to his meals and keeps his tummy full.

Roll Over, Beethoven!

He is also trying to roll over from his back onto his tummy. He manages to get his tummy over but can’t get his torso to co-operate. The underneath arm gets in the way (you’ll see what I mean in the pictures!) He’s very persistent though and calls for my help when he gets stuck. I place him on his tummy for ‘Tummy Time’ every day to help build up his back, neck and tummy muscles.

TV Addict

He has also discovered the Television and when he’s lying on his playmat facing away from it, can arch his back and watch the box upside down. Sometimes during feed time he wants to watch TV so badly so I have to position him correctly or else I get told off!! The best is when Chris feeds him and they are both so engrossed in the TV that the bottle has moved to the side of his mouth, dripping milk everywhere, and Father and Son are oblivious to the mess!!

Anyway here are some pictures:

In the Rocking Chair

…continue reading the story called Nicholas’ 4 month Update