Good news

We got good news today! We went to the pulmonologist (is that even a word?), and she said that Charlie has not had a single real episode on his heart/lung monitor since July 11th, so he doesn't need to wear it anymore! I'm excited - it wasn't painful for Charlie, but it was a pain for us to have to lug his "boom box" around wherever we went, not to mention when we accidentally stepped on the cables and set off the alarm. I won't miss waking up at 3 a.m. to the thing screaming because we forgot to plug it in and the battery is going dead. And I truly believe our little guy is stronger than ever and doesn't need it anymore.

Charlie was weighed at the doctor, and is now 9 pounds, 10 ounces. You can tell how much stronger he's gotten by watching him hold his head up and look around. Tonight I've had him on his cool Neptune play mat that good friends Christi and Jeff sent him (see below), and he has rolled from his tummy to his back three times! I guess our days of tummy time are limited...

I know I say it all the time, but we're so proud of him. It's amazing to realize that just over two months ago, he was still in the NICU - if his nurses could only see him now! We'll have to go for a visit soon.

Charlie isn't smiling much yet (other than the typical baby gas smiles), but we've developed a new game that involves moving his arms up and down while cheering for the American athletes in the Olympics (he's patriotic, what can I say) that gets the closest thing to a smile out of him that we have been able to elicit. Below you can see the almost-smile.
Charlie slept from 11:30 last night until 6:30 this morning! What a blessing it is that he's sleeping more at night; I feel like a new person. Clearly all the eating he's doing is working in our favor, not to mention fattening him up. Check out these cheeks!
Here's our monkey clowning around for the camera:

A thoughtful pose:

More chubby cheeks: Showing off dad's favorite onesie:
And cashed out with dad on the couch. The light coming in through the blinds is a little goofy in this photo, but George and Charlie looked so comfortable that I couldn't resist taking some pictures.
Here's another of Charlie sleeping soundly, this time in my lap:

I guess we're lucky he sleeps in his bed at all considering how much we hold him!

And lastly, here's the sweet look he's going to woo the ladies with someday:

Have a good night!!

Oh, and for those that knew our good friend Leroy and haven't read George's post mourning his passing, please keep scrolling - it's a really nice tribute to a wonderful man.