What a fun month! Not only was it my first Mother's day with Frankie, but Aunt Laurel, Uncle David, and Uncle Joel came back for a visit. This is such an amazing age, Frankie is full of belly laughs for anyone who will make a funny face at her. As hard as it is to get ANYTHING done with a very wiggly, very chatty little lady, I just really love spending time with her. Our laundry pile is insane and I'm mortified at the state of our bedroom, but I'll never get these moments with her back. There will always be a bed to make, a bathroom to clean, and laundry to fold. There will never be another Frankie in this moment. I'm thankful for my mom, mother in law, and sister, who have come over a few times this month to sit with the baby so that Daniel and I can get things done around the house on the weekend. I'm also so thankful for Daniel. I don't know how single parents do it, even with an easy baby like Frank!
Likes:
Fox Wubanub (and Monkey and Lamb.... basically, we've hit the stage where she likes soft toys)
Funny faces from friends (especially small kids)
Pterodactyl screeching and laughing
Sitting up to look around
Eating her hands and blankets
Playmat
Funny faces from friends (especially small kids)
Pterodactyl screeching and laughing
Sitting up to look around
Eating her hands and blankets
Playmat
Dislikes:
Unfortunately and inevitably, the car seat. She absolutely hates it, especially sitting in the back seat alone.
Waiting to eat (still!)
Laying on her back for too long
Waiting to eat (still!)
Laying on her back for too long
Schedule:
I thought MAYBE we'd have this figured out by now, but no. No such luck. We're still so all over the place! Between the few days a week at Grandma SuSu's house and then our busy schedules at night and on the weekends, she's just gotten used to falling asleep wherever we are. We're still up at least once at night to have a snack, sometimes more.
Features:
Little miss is starting to fill out and it makes me SO happy. Her little thigh rolls and wrist rolls are so adorable, I can barely take it. At her four month check up, she was 13 lbs and 23 3/4 inches long, about 23rd percentile for her age. Her brown hair is still thin on the top of her head, but it is still nice and thick around the sides of her head, solidifying her balding 58 year old man of the 90s look. Her eyes are still transitioning in color, but are somewhere between brown/green and gray right now. She has big, bright eyes and a wide smile that she loves to show off in the mornings especially. She's still squeezing into those size 1 diapers (size 2 at night) and has moved to 3-6 month clothes (except her big old feet, which could totally fit in larger footie pajamas. Hahaha).
Milestones:
ROLLING. I am not ready! About two weeks ago, she just started rolling from her back onto her side and then completely over. She is also grabbing and chewing on toys and blankets all by herself. She can hold a bottle for a few seconds, but we're still working on that one. She also makes all kinds of sounds now, her favorite being "ahh goo" which she uses pretty constantly. She sits supported just fine now, and tries her best to pull herself into a seated position when laying down.
Firsts:
Visit with Uncle Joel
Mother's day
Swim in the pool
Hiking adventure with Dad
Mother's day
Swim in the pool
Hiking adventure with Dad
Challenges:
I feel like MAYBE the lack of sleep this month was the biggest challenge we faced. I had two very large projects due at work that required a lot of overtime. She went through a few days in a row in which 2:30 was the best time to wake up and STAY up, but we powered through and survived. I feel like we are jinxing ourselves every time I say this, but she really is an excellent kid. With the exception of waiting for a bottle or riding in the car without someone in the back seat to entertain her, she really is so laid back and adaptable. She eats whatever formula, breast milk from me, or from a bottle. She sleeps wherever (preferably on someone, but a pack n play will do). I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop...
Thoughts:
Finally at the end of this month, I decided to stop stressing about breast milk. It sounds insane (and I know it is... hormones, man), but I had this big mental issue with the fact that FIRST I couldn't even get pregnant. Then, I couldn't even carry this baby to term (thanks, preeclampsia). Then I couldn't deliver the baby on my own. And finally, now, I can't even feed her. But that is so STUPID. Of course she's being fed. Even if it isn't from my breast, its from my hard work at the office and busting my butt to make sure she's always got everything she needs. If I can pump a few times a day at work, great. If I would rather give her a bottle than breastfeed on the weekends, great. No more stress. As of this post, I'm still breastfeeding her about three times a day. If I wean her, I wean her and that is OKAY. Getting back some bodily autonomy and self-confidence is number one on my personal list this month. At the end of this month, I started running and working out again. I've got my first hair appointment in seven months scheduled. I bought two bathing suits that actually fit my new shape. I made it a goal to do something for myself once a month that does not involve work or the baby. Time to get more comfortable and sure of myself in this new body and stop worrying so much about things that truly do not matter. Frankie doesn't NEED breast milk the same way she NEEDS a sane, happy, healthy momma.
On to that sweet little girl!
On to that sweet little girl!
