Ambling Rileys: What's New With Andrew?

Hi again blog readers (all 6 of you!). Sorry again about the lack of blogging - something about having a 3 month old that wants to be held all the time keeps me from updating as regularly as I would like! Andrew is doing great - he is growing and becoming more and more fun every day. He has become very talkative, and we have long conversations together. He often looks so serious and I wonder what he is thinking when we talk! While I don't think he has quite "discovered" his hands, he certainly has figured out how to get them into his mouth. He used to do this when he was hungry, but now he does it all the time. For awhile he would get his fist close but not quite into his mouth, and now he is able to get it almost all the way in there, and sometimes he tries to put both of his fists in at one time! He still can't quite figure out how to get the thumb in there, but I'm sure that is coming in the future!

For those of you that don't know about the situation with Andrew's head - here's an update! At his 2 week appointment, Andrew's doctor noticed a flat spot on the right side of his head. She pointed it out and we mentioned that he often turned his head to the right when sleeping or laying down. She thought he might have torticollis (a tightness in the neck muscles which causes an infant to turn/tilt their head to one side) and sent us home with some information on repositioning exercises we could do. Since infants' skull bones are still soft, any extended period of time laying in one position can cause flat spots to appear. We had to go back a week later for a follow-up appointment for something else, and she said that his head looked even flatter and referred us to a physical therapist. Since then, we have gone to physical therapy every other week. It has been such a big help for Andrew! The therapist is great with him, and he seems to have really improved his range of motion and tolerance for stretching his neck. Unfortunately, his head hasn't really rounded out and the pediatrician referred us to a company here in town that makes bands (helmets) to round out flat heads. We ended up finding another company since the first was not covered by insurance (and the helmets cost about $3800), and went for a free evaluation. The therapist said that he did have moderate flatness on the back and side of his head, but that at this age it could round out on it's own. She recommended doing tons of "tummy time" and carrying him places rather than leaving him in a stroller or carseat after we arrive. We have been working hard! Andrew really does seem to be improving on tummy time, although he still is not a huge fan of it! On a positive note, it seems to tire him out quite a bit, and he was napping better for awhile because of all the hard work!

He he is tuckered out from all the hard work of being on his tummy...