Thursday, March 8, 2012

Four Months Old!


Today my little miss had her 4 month check up.  She's actually 4 months and a few days but who's counting?  If you are a friend of mind you know that we have struggled so much with breastfeeding.  It literally took us 3 1/2 months to get it down pat.  The past 2-3 weeks have been awesome!  With each month I can also pat myself on the back for making it another month.  So, if you are struggling with it yourself, know that you can do it!  I've made it through the ringer and can say that it is totally worth it

Ready for the stats?  My big girl has gone from the 8th percentile to the 25th percentile since her 2 month appointment.  She weighs 13lbs and 3.5 oz and is 24 inches long.  So big! 

She is actively exploring her surroundings at all times.  She loves to look around and smile at others.  She had a small stage during her third month in which she did not want anyone to hold her but me.  She seems to be growing out of that.  Mommy isn't sure how she feels about it though.  ;)

She often plays independently, as long as she can still see me.  She loves her playmat still [a great investment] and is learning to play in her entertainer.  She also has a new best friend.
Bailey likes to lay next to Kathryn.  Kathryn likes to pull Bailey's hair and watch her every move.  It's kind of fun to watch.  Although Bailey doesn't have a mean bone in her body, she's still an animal so I have to keep a close watch on the situation.

In the past month Kathryn has really been working hard on her communication skills.  She went from blowing raspberries to grunting, and then out of nowhere started shrieking and hasn't looked back.  She gets all worked up with her arms and legs and then lets out a loud, high-pitched squeal.  Of course, we react with great joy so she continues to do it.  It's so fun!

She is really good at grabbing and holding onto things.  She can hold her toys and enjoys throwing them.  It's fun to watch her reach out for Bailey or for my nose.  She loves to get hold of my face with both her hands and give me a wet sloppy kiss.

She still absolutely hates riding in the car.  Every once in a while when we are just in town she does ok, but she will cry all the way to Louisville/Lexington if she has to.  Which makes going anywhere undesirable.  My nerves can't handle it. 

She sleeps pretty well at night.  At 3 months we moved her out of her bassinet and into her pack and play, and she started waking up several times a night when we did that.  She had previously slept all night but after the growth spurt she's had, now I know why!  Sometimes she just wants to be patted back to sleep because she isn't quite able to put herself back to sleep when she wakes up.  Napping is hit or miss.  She sleeps great if she's being held but not so much when you put her down.  That's ok with me because I just take a nap with her.  A great time for her to nap is when I pack her up in her stroller and go for a long walk around the university. 

Her favorite toy is her daddy.  When he comes home she starts kicking those legs and waving her arms with excitement.  Sometimes it's just one arm, and Justin calls it her "chicken wing".  She looks at him with such expectation..."What's he going to do next?"  She gets upset with him when he tries to sit still with her.  We had our first instance of her getting upset when he left for work.  It was short-lived but his absence was definitely the source of her distress. 


What I want to remember most about this stage is how expressive she is.  She is so aware of everything and I know that will keep us on our toes as she grows.  She wakes up with such joy every morning.  The only time she is ever upset is in the car.  As I've been writing this post, she is just laying on her playmat kicking her legs and babbling/shrieking.  So much fun!
Can't wait to see what the next month brings!

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

You're Gonna Miss This

I'm sitting in a chair, currently unattached to my child.  I think to myself, "I don't know how long this will last, so I should do something....." which leads me to another thought. I really don't know how long this will last, but it's going by so fast.

She is currently shrieking.  That's her new mode of communication.  She's in her "rocking entertainer" which is a thing that holds her up in a little seat that turns all the way around, and there are things to her to bang on.  I take comfort in the fact that her feet don't reach the bottom of it [yet]. She is playing without having to have me right there. Miss Independent, she is.

She doesn't need me to hold her head up.  I don't have to nurse her every hour, she sleeps most of the night [although a nice nap would be nice, too], and she is increasingly aware of her environment.  Pretty soon she'll be rolling over, sitting up, and eating sweet potatoes.

I'm going to miss her clinging to me.  I won't miss or even remember having dirty dishes and dusty corners, but I will miss all of the times I've had to stop doing household chores because she needed to be held. 

I'm going to miss her lack of mobility when she crawls and then runs away from me.  I'm going to miss the grunts, raspberries, and loud shrieks when she starts sounding our syllables and asking for a drink of water.

I'm going to miss spraying and washing her diapers on the day that we go pick out her first big girl panties.  In the midst of the potty training struggles that will come, I hope I remember how much I really do love cloth diapering.

I'm going to miss her waking me up sometimes every two or three hours at night because she needs a little snack or just to feel my skin against hers.  The tired eyes I see every morning in the mirror will always be there, but for different reasons.

Cleaning and scrubbing can wait til tomorrow
for babies grow up, we've learned to our sorrow.
So settle down cobwebs, dust go to sleep.
I'm rocking my baby, and babies don't keep.