Fourth month

Mid April - Mid May, 2008

Normally, Aarush is taken to the doctor for a monthly check-up; other than that, no outing for him. As he is considered too small for all these by my parents. So, they neither allow him nor me to go anywhere. After birth, it was the third time when Aarush was taken out of the house to meet people other than his doc’s clinic. Moreover, because of the weather, it was difficult for us to go anywhere. The worst thing about his nanu’s place was the sultry sun (temperature reaching 49 º C), because of which most of the time he used to be in front of the air cooler.

On the other hand, it’s truly becoming irresistible for his dad, I suppose. As he came again to meet his son at the end of April - his heart was at Durg and his mind at Mumbai.

By now, our little one was able to keep himself engaged by holding a rattle in his hand for quite some time. His maternal aunt along with two sisters came to meet him. They were with us for a month. This month was full of entertainment for him with so many people to take care. His sisters were too excited to have him as their brother. They used to play a lot with him, even tell him stories while he used to listen very carefully without any noise – as if he understands everything.

Quite often, he used to cry in an irregular pattern. At first, it made us difficult to understand what the actual problem is. Was it out of hunger or feeling hot or some uneasiness? Every few hours, he would cry as he is hungry. Me and my parents were worried that he may be suffering from colic, but then again, he slept well when it was time for him to sleep and played and laughed happily in excitement when he was being teased. However, when it was time for milk, he just refused to take in much, often taking only a few ounces. Certain nights were really miserable, as I had to feed him every 2 hours. Since I was with my parents, it was of great help at these times. They used to take care of him while I used to catch some sleep during the day.

It seems this problem is common among babies at this stage, and whenever they get hungry, they would drink. With Aarush, the slightest noise or movement distraction would make him turn away in curiosity, no matter how much I try putting back in his mouth. Now he drinks his milk whenever he is hungry, not on any schedule.