Palmer Family Chronicles: Abigail is Four Months Old

This little Butterball has completely stolen my

💓 as well as the heart of many others! She is sleeping 11-12 hours at night consistently and is a great napper during the day. She likes to be home to sleep, but is so easy going when we are out and about! She is happiest right after she wakes up and when she is in the bathtub. She has the sweetest smile and laugh! She loves attention; this baby cannot get enough of people talking and singing to her. Lucky for her she has a big brother and sister who love that job! Not mention she has her mama and daddy wrapped around her tiny little finger already! Here are a few things you have been up to this past month!

Abigail went to Fletcher and Branch's house to play for the very first time! Branch is so in love with her!!! I love the way he says her name (video below).
Abigail had her baby dedication at church.
On May 30th Abigail laughed for the very first time. It totally caught me off guard. I was in the bathroom getting ready and she was in the nap nanny beside me on the floor. I looked at her and made a silly face and she just chuckled and chuckled. As soon as I got my video camera out she stopped laughing as hard (video below).
Abigail's hair is getting so long (and curly). I have had to cut out more "dreadlocks" because she still sleeps on her back and her hair gets tangled together so bad. I put her hair in a little "pony tail" for the first time this month. She doesn't like wearing the headband hair bows, so I pulled the pieces in the front up and put a small ponytail holder around it and clipped a bow on top!
Abigail went to the movies for the first time! We went to the Moultrie theater for the summer specials. We saw Ferdinand. Our friends Avery and Hadleigh came, too. I didn't take Sumner and AR to the movies for the first time until they were 4 & 3.Sweet girl did so good. The screen amused her for part of the time and she napped the rest of the time.
Abigail got to celebrate her first Father's Day with her awesome daddy and wonderful grandfathers. We all went to church at Midway with Papa and ate lunch together afterwards. Y'all gave daddy a coffee mug, a t-shirt, and a Lowes gift card. Y'all gave Papa and Georgia Bulldogs hat. Y'all gave Top a grilling set.
Abigail went on her first vacation. Every year we go to Orlando for the Florida Cattlemen's Convention. It was special this year because it was at the same convention last year that I took a pregnancy test and found out we were having Abigail (see picture below). We had a great time. Abigail was the BEST little traveler. She slept most of the car ride there and back. She didn't fuss at the pool (which is where we spent the majority of our time because the resort had several AWESOME pools, a little water park, and a lazy river. She even got in some and floated around. She napped good and slept good at night, too. The only time she really got fussy was when we went to the T-Rex Restaurant. It was very loud and the colors in the room changed a lot. I think it was just too overstimulating. Some other things we did besides attend the convention and swim were eating at Joe's Crab Shack, Eating at the T-Rex Cafe, Riding the monorail, and eating at Chef Mickey's and meeting the characters (Abigail slept most of the time).
She loves to sit up.... straight up. No leaning back for her. I recently saw a baby who was born a few days before Abigail. That baby acted like a 3 month baby should act. She laid in her mother's arms and liked being held and carried like a baby. I was a little jealous because I wish Abigail would let me hold her like a baby. She stopped liking that weeks and weeks ago. Even when she takes a bottle she wants to be sitting up. If I have her laid back to much in my lap she will strain and rock back and forth until she thrushes herself up to a fully seated position.
We are not back in our house yet (we are adding on). I am really not in any hurry either. I am excited to move back home once it is done, but I really have enjoyed living here. I am thankful for Uncle David's generosity and for the memories we have made. To be honest I will be sad to leave because this is where we brought Abigail home. This is all she knows and all of my memories of her as a little baby are here. We were only supposed to be living here for six weeks. Well, we moved in a week before she was born and it appears like we will be here long enough to have to baby proof the cabinets here if that tells you anything.... I am fine with that though.
Abigail is still only eating 4 oz every 3 hours or so. She usually goes to sleep by 8 pm and wakes up around 6:30 or 7 am. She takes several naps a day, if we are at home. If we stay at home all day she will usually nap after being awake for 1.5 hours and sleep until its time for her next feeding. If we are not at home she doesn't sleep very good. She will sleep riding in the car but wakes up after we stop. In order to get good, quality sleep she needs to be in a dark room, with a sound machine turned on, and swaddled (partially).
Abigail is wearing size 6-9 month clothes. A lot of them are Anna Ruth's hammy-downs, so they are not true to size.
Her eczema is still flaring up. It's worse around her hair lines, the back of her head, and belly. We have an appointment with a dermatologist next week.
We just recently stopped swaddling her completely. Now we use the Zipadee Swaddle that is a transition swaddle because it allows her arms to move some. If we don't use it, we use a regular velcro swaddle blanket, but we leave her arms out. She still sleeps in the rock and play in our room. I recently started laying her in her pack and play for naps so she will get use to laying flat instead of elevated.
She recently found her feet! She grabs them and plays with them all the time. Every time I look back at her mirror when we are in the car she is holding her right foot and playing with it.
She has also found her little hands and gnaws on them constantly. She is also drooling a lot. I checked and do not see or feel any teeth. Sumner started the "teething symptoms" early, too, but still didn't get his first tooth until he was over a year old.
Her big brother and sister are still very much in love with her. I thought by now they may have gotten use to the idea of having a baby around, and get a little "bored" with her, but that is not the case whatsoever. They still talk to her, think about about her, and give her just as much attention as they did the day we brought her home. I took her to the doctor for what should have been a wellness visit (but instead was a sick visit because she has had a bad upset stomach for nearly a week) and I couldn't hardly talk to the doctor and nurse because Sumner and Anna Ruth were so loud talking and playing with her. Speaking of the doctor's visit, they ordered a stool study and hopefully everything will come back just fine. She weighed 16 lbs and was 23 inches long. I looked to see what Sumner was at his four month wellness visit (because he was a chunky baby, too) and he weighed 16.5 lbs and was 25 inches long. I also looked at Anna Ruth's and she was 14 lbs and 24 inches long at her 4 month wellness visit. I was surprised Anna Ruth was only two pounds lighter than Abigail at four months, because Anna Ruth really struggled to eat until she was around 6 months old.
Abigail loves to make noises! She is constantly babbling, gurgling, and blowing bubbles. She loves for you to smile at her and talk to her. Sometimes I catch her just staring at me when I talk on the phone like she is so amazed at how my mouth works. When she gets upset she cries out "maaa maaa mamamamama." I know she isn't really saying "mama" as in calling me, but I still like to hear her say it.
Abigail is still a dream baby in every way. I cannot believe how easy going, sweet, and calm she is!

Dear Abigail,

You are loved more than you could ever possibly know. I feel so attached to you and want to be with you all the time. I catch myself wanting to wake you up while you are napping just because I miss you. I have got to do a better job about video recording our day to day activities just so you can see how much attention and love Sumner and Anna Ruth give you. One of my biggest prayers for you (and them) other than your salvation, is that you three will always be close and have a special bond. I pray that even when you are all grown up and have families of your own, that y'all will still be "family" and spend a lot of time together..... Just be there for each other! I love you, Abigail. I thank God for you every single day. I cannot imagine life without you! I love you as high as the sky and the ocean is deep and more and more and more!
Love,

Mama