An Easter Visit with Grammy Rachel

Ok, so I know that Easter has come and gone, but I wanted to share some fun pictures from my mom's visit.

Yo-Yos are Funny!

6 months old and still growing

Dear Elana, 

 You are now 6 months old!    You have grown a lot in the past few weeks.  At your 6 month checkup you weighed 15 lbs 6 oz (36 percentile), you were 25 3/4 inches long (45 %tile) and had a head circumference of 17.51 inches (96.36 %tile). 

 The one title that would describe you best is "The Princess and the Pea".  You are our little princess and you don't let us forget it.  Everything is all about you lately.  The past few weeks have been rough because you have a cold as well as teething and all you do is fuss, whine, and cry.  Aside from the pools of drool you leave every where you go.  You have not been eating or sleeping well either.  I really hope you get some teeth soon because this is getting a little hard to handle.  Oh, the screaming!  Make the screaming stop!  You are SO LOUD and we don't know how to handle it.  We have given you a nick name of "the screamer"  because that is what you do lately.  But hey, it's not your fault that it all hurts.  It's just part of growing and apparently screaming loudly is the only way you know how to cope with it.  

But the screaming aside, you really can be a cute, fun, pleasant, smiley little girl and we love having you in our family.  You like to smile a lot but other than screaming you don't seem to talk much.  You do have a few "ya ya ya" going on, but that's mostly when you have something in your mouth that you are chewing on.   So when you are not screaming or whining or fussing, you are mostly just quiet.  And right now, there is nothing wrong with being quiet, if you get my hint ;) 

You really like to hold on to anything I will let you get your hands on.  Your new favorite thing to grab on to is the tube of the nasal sucker.  It's almost as if you are trying to pull it out of mom or dads hands so we can't suck your nose out.  You usually grab things with both hands but have started to favor your left.  We may have another lefty if the family.  The 3 lefty's will out number me. 

 

When you have your quite moments you are so very alert and like to watch everything.  When you are calm and content, usually after you have just drank your milk, you like to sit or lie down and watch everything. But only for a few minutes because then you get antsy and start to fuss.  You love to watch your hands, daddy moving around in the kitchen, Cooper, doing what ever crazy thing he is doing at the moment and mommy drink her tea in the morning.  It's funny to see you look at me as I pick up the cup, take a sip, and then put it back down.  You look at me, then the cup, then back at me, to see if I will maybe give you a taste or something.  Not quite yet.  Maybe it was ok for your dad when he was six months old, but not for you.  

Since you don't like to sleep much, you still wake up in the middle of the night, usually between 1-3.  Then again at 5-6.  I wish I knew how to change this so you would sleep longer and wake up later.  We've tried to get you to go to bed later than 7, but you are just so tired then.  Your last nap of the day usually ends by 3 and you can't handle being awake more than 4 hours.  Any longer than that you really bring on the screaming.  I'm just so tired all the time.  And several times caught myself falling asleep at work when I was working with students. 

Last month you started to roll from your tummy to your back. The first few times you did it you seemed so surprised wondering how did I end up in this position.  I still haven't figured out if you can intentionally roll over this way or if it happened because your head is so big and heavy and you just happened to be leaning too far over one direction.  You really haven't rolled over since then.  But you try, you really do try.  It's cute how you get your little back and but arched in the air and then flop back down on your back.  It's just that darn head of yours that is so big and heavy.  

And while I'm on the subject of your head I may as well mention that it is hard to get most of your 6 month clothes over your head.  But even after I do, they still don't fit all that well.  You have almost out grown your 6 month shirts.  I had to go buy a few new ones the other day because it might be time to retire the a few of the ones you have.  And to think, Grammy R just brought those for you in December.  Wow was that last month?!  It feels like ages ago!  But then, January seems to be dragging on for ever and ever!  As much as I don't want you to grow any more, I'm hoping that a new month will bring new changes for you and oh, I don't know... maybe a lot less screaming PLEASE!

And since you are growing, your spit-up has decreased a lot.  You don't need to wear a bib as a necklace all the time now.  And my clothes don't constantly smell like spit-up!  Usually if you can get in at least one good burp while eating the spit-up is reduced.

I almost forgot to mention that you started day care this month.  Wow was this a big change for you and me!   I love your teachers!  Miss Max and Miss Rochelle are wonderful.  Occasionally there will be someone else helping out like Miss Cheryl (who is also great), in the morning, or Miss Mona, who is a little strange but nice, or Miss Linda, who apparently goes to the church Grammy R goes to when she comes to visit.   I was so worried that you were going to scream all the time and only take your 1/2 hour naps like you often do.  Which was how the first few days went.  And I panicked!  Where were the "daycare fairies" that worked their magic and go you to sleep and stop crying and not spit up?  Well it only took a week and the fairies did there magic.  You were sleeping 1-2 hour naps in a crib!  You were not spitting up as much!  And you were having fun.  It is so nice to drop you off in the morning, go to work, and then when I pick you up see your smiling face as I you look at me and let out a happy squeal as I walk in the door. Every thing is going great except for the blow outs you were having, 2 and 3 times per day!  But I think we figured out that it was a diaper malfunction problem.  And once I explained and then showed your teachers the flaps should be out all the way around your let, the blow outs have stopped.  Well for one day at least.  You haven't been back since then.  But hopefully they will remember to check the flaps and all will be good. 

Likes:

• You really enjoy eating: carrots, squash, sweet potatoes, green beans, and peas.  
• Chewing on anything you can put in your mouth but your favorite is your butterfly chew toy.
• You still LOVE to look out the window.  This will help you calm down almost any time.  
• Playing with Cooper. (He mostly makes faces at you and jumps over you)
• Being tickled, especially hair tickles from daddy.
• Taking baths
• Holding on to your feet and playing with them.
• Playing with your dog Violet that we gave you for Christmas.
• Looking at books.
• Sitting in your jumperoo (but only for short amounts of time) 
• Laying in your play gym. 
• Kicking- which will involve moving if you are on the floor.
• If we force you to sleep you like to sleep in your swing (you will sleep for hours in it!)  But you are getting a little too big for it which is a little scary.

 

Dislikes:

• Sleeping
• Being wrapped up while sleeping (we still do it because you startle too much, and because we are afraid of change)
• Having your nose sucked out.
• Waiting for anything.
• Unexpected loud noises, especially ones made by dad :)

New Skills:

• Rolling over from your tummy to your back (although you don't do it very often).
• Lifting your head up high when on your tummy
• Holding things in your hands and chewing on them
• Pulling the frog toy down on your bouncy seat to turn on the music.

Now that's talent!

Chewing on ice.  Sometimes you like it and sometimes you throw it. 

Well I can't wait to see what the next few months brings.  Might I add again, hopefully a lot less screaming, more sleeping and a lot more smiles! 

4 Months Old

Dear Elana,

I've been thinking about this post for awhile now.  I'm not sure why it's taken me so long to write it, but I thought I'd better finish it before you turn 5 months old.  Well, as it turns out this post has been on hold for awhile and in you are turning 5 months old in a few days.  That's how life is a the moment.  You are such a different person now than you were the last time I wrote.  You have grown so much.  At your 4 month check-up you weighed 12 lbs 13.oz 19th percentile, were 23.5 inches long 11th percentile and had a head circumference of 42 cm  which is about 16.5 inches which puts you in the 90th percentile.  Wow big head!   Knowing what I know about brain development and autism, this had me a little worried.  Dr. Lau said it was nothing to worry about because you are still on the growth curve.  So, I sure hope it's filled will all good brain cells.  I guess we'll just wait and see how things look at your 6th month check-up.

 

Cooper used to enjoy holding you, but that has all changed.  He still likes you deep down and doesn't want to send you back (like I did with my brother), but he doesn't like it when daddy holds you and he says that your crying hurts his ears.  He doesn't pay much attention to you, but right now he's trying to adjust to you being here and having to share daddy with you.  He does however really like it when you smile at him.  But who wouldn't like a cute adorable baby smiling at them.  

You smile a lot now and have started to squeal sometimes when you smile.  It is supper cute and I love it!  But not so much at 3 a.m. 

Lately, you seem to want mommy to hold you the most.  As much as I love a "momma's girl",  you need to understand that after being with you for 8 hours a day, I need a little break from holding you.  And Daddy has not seen you most of the day so what a great time for him to hold you.  And the good thing is, you usually don't mind.

You still aren't quite sure what to think of baths.  Sometimes you smile, and coo, but most of the time you have a serious look on your face and kick your legs and squirm all over.  Usually after the bath you pout and cry because you are cold and hungry.  And girl, can you pout!  When you are not happy, that lower lip sticks out and then the fussing begins.  I hate the fussing, but the pouty lip is pretty cute.

 

For Halloween you were going to be a reindeer.  Cooper wore this costume, but it was way too big on him.  It barely fits you.  And you didn't like to wear it either.  This was the most non-fussy looking picture I could get.  

 

I wasn't sure how trick-or-treating would work out this year.  I wanted to go and take you along, but you were already fussy before we left the house. Luckily I was able to see Cooper go to a few houses before you and I headed home.

Sometimes when you lie on the ground Cooper likes to lay down next to you and try and make you smile.

This picture was taken the day you turned 4 months old.  Posed pictures don't work out so well because you have that "deer in the headlights" look.  Still cute non the less.

You are letting daddy hold you more and not fuss hardly at all.  He's getting pretty good at making you laugh.  He is also known for startling you with his burps or loud noised.  Luckily you don't usually cry, only a few times.

Daddy giving you a bottle.   Ever since Grammy Rachel left in October Daddy has been trying to give you a bottle every day to get ready for my return to work.  It was really difficulty at first.  You screamed and cried almost the entire bottle.  But after a few days you calmed down and took a morning bottle calmly.  I'm so glad because I was getting a little worried.

You have started to like looking at books.  Mostly simple ones with big pictures and few words.  It's so cute how you look at the pages as I read them to you.

A few weeks ago when we had our first snowfall I took you to the park down the street from our house to try sledding for the first time.  You really didn't have an opinion about it either way, no smiles or frowns going down the hill.  You, however didn't like being cold so we didn't stay very long.  Just long enough to get a few cute pictures. 

Since your last doctor appointment, we were told to start giving you some rice cereal every day.  It's not the best tasting, but you tolerate ok.  You usually only let me get a few spoonfuls in and then you start fussing.

I don't have a picture of you sleeping lately but your sleep schedule has started to work out ok.  During the day you are now taking a 1-2 hour nap in the morning and afternoon.  Sometimes the naps will go 3 hours.  This is nice because I can have some time to relax, do a chore or two, or play with Cooper.  You have stopped taking evening naps.  You usually wake up from your last nap at 3,4 or 5.  After this you are awake until usually 7.  Then you usually sleep until 1 or 2 and then wake up again at 5 or 6.  The week before I had to go back to work you started to wake up at 11 or 12.  That was not fun because I had just gone to bed at 10.  Luckily now you have decided to sleep longer and wake up at 1,2 or 3 and then at 4 or 5.  I don't mind 5 so much because then I'm up for the day and have a little more time to get ready before work.   When I get home from work you are almost always awake and if I'm lucky I get to feed you.  In the evenings is when you are most fussiest because you are awake for 3 hours or longer.  It makes me a little sad that I come home to a fussy girl.  I can get a few smiles here and there but that only lasts a few minutes.  But fussing or not I love coming home to you every day!

Well, as I sit and finish up this blog post I think about how I've already had to go back to work.  The first week went well.  I didn't cry once when I left the house.  This next week will be my second week back at work and over the weekend I have been a blubbery mess!  Every time I held you, which was most of the day, I started to cry, thinking about how much I am going to miss you.  You, your smile, your squeals, your laughter, and even your cries and fusses have become such an important part of my daily activity that I am truly going to miss it all.  Sometimes I think it would be great to be a stay at home mom, but then I remember I really do like my job, despite all the paperwork, and poor salary.  I do my job because I like it and as much as I love being with you I would miss my job very much.  I just wish I could stay home a little longer.  Hopefully I can hold myself together as I go to work tomorrow and enjoy my day without becoming too upset or sad.  

Thank you Elana for being part of our fun loving, crazy family!

Something To Smile About