Why didn't anyone tell me?

-          That there would be SO MUCH laundry! 

-          That I would be so happy/relieved to see poop and then have a 5 minute discussion about it.

-          That going to the gym would be a luxury and grocery shopping would be considered “me time.” 

-          That I would still get a workout by running up and down the stairs, lifting a baby, getting a carseat in and out of the middle of the car, scrubbing surfaces, etc.

-          That leaving Delaney, even for a few hours, would be so difficult. 

-          That sleeping until 7:15am would be considered “sleeping in.”

-          That I could remain completely and endlessly fascinated and captivated by being in Delaney’s presence. 

-          That at least 1 hour of the day would be spent washing bottles and pump parts. 

-          That our house has more sharp corners, electrical outlets and glass than a hardware store. 

-          That watching a video monitor would replace watching TV. 
-          That even simple outings would require major coordination and effort.  The days of hopping in the car and jetting off somewhere are over and are equally complicated, with or without the baby. 

-          That I would be completely immune to the smell and existence of poop, pee and spit up. 

-          That a smile would warm my heart and a cry would break it so intensely. 

-          That finding and coordinating child care would be a full time job. 

-          That no amount of preparation can really prepare you for a baby, but that no book, class or advice is better than a mother’s intuition. 

-          That there’s no such thing as too many diapers, too much help or too much love. 

Delaney Laughing

Dad is usually the comedian around here, but Delaney was greatly amused by me today! 
I can't imagine many things in life being better than hearing your child laugh. 

Eventful week

It has been a very eventful week at the London house. 

On Sunday 8/14, Delaney caught her first cold. 

On Wednesday, 8/17, Delaney started the first stage of crawling- the army crawl (pulling her body forward with her arms).  See video below.  She can now move the length of a room using this new technique which literally developed overnight. 

On Thursday, 8/18, we moved Delaney up to the fast flow nipple on her bottle.  Wow, what a difference!  She is polishing off nearly 6 oz with ease and almost 7 oz.  She is still at feeds every 3 hours (5x day feeds), but I hope that we can get to 4 hour cycles (4x day feeds) by 6 months. 

On Thursday, 8/18, Delaney sat unassisted for more than 10 seconds!  She leans forward and uses her arms to help balance.  I wish we had caught a better picture. 

Scooting!

Delaney started really scooting today!  She's pulling herself forward with her arms.  I feel like she's going to be crawling in no time!  Eeekk!!!!

Baby's First Cold

Along with the First Smile, First Laugh, First Roll, First Sleep Through the Night, inevitably comes the dreaded First Cold.  We saw the first symptoms on Sunday (runny nose, sneezing, coughing, low grade fever, glassy eyes, sleepy) but she seems to be doing a whole lot better today.   

 With every sneeze, cough and cry, our hearts broke a little more as we’ve spent three sleepless nights (so far) watching/listening to the monitor so that we could be by Delaney’s side before she even finished inhaling to cry.   At such a young age, there is no medicine that we could give her, so with aspirator in hand, burp cloth on shoulder, and as many hugs and kisses as she would tolerate, we rode it out.  Thanks to my mom-friends that have weathered this storm, and worse, many times before, we did try a few things that seemed to help:

-          We tried to get Delaney to sleep on the wedge portion of her crib so that her head would stay elevated.  I think this lowers the risk of further head congestion and possible ear infection.

-          We used a cool mist humidifier. 

-          We used Vicks BabyRub (w/ eucaplytus, aloe vera, rosemary and lavendar) and rubbed on her chest and her feet. 

-          We used saline nasal mist before using the aspirator a few times to break up the congestion.   As much as this pissed her off, it worked really well, so we limited it to when she was really congested or right before bed. 

-          We eased up on the strict enforcement of her schedule so that she could get as much rest as possible.

I find it ironic that despite ALL the effort we go to reduce germs (breastmilk exclusively, no day care, limited contact with other kids/people, disinfecting toys, bottles, pump parts, steam cleaning floors, etc., etc., etc.), she still managed to get sick.  However, you would have thought by now I would have learned and accepted the fact that I have absolutely no control over the situation and that she will smile, laugh, roll, sleep through the night and get sick in her own time and we can only do our best to create a safe, loving and supportive environment for her to do so.     

Rolling, rolling, rolling

Delaney LOVES to roll!  Back to front, front to back, on her playmat, in her crib, on her own, with an audience, etc.   Fortunately she has figured out how to sleep on her stomach and prefers it that way, forcing us to watch the monitor vigilantly... all night. 

Mommy & Me

In my 4 month update post I wrote about how much we are enjoying Mommy and Me/Jackie’s class/Babies First Class.  The class is taught by "celebrity baby whisperer" Jackie Rosenburg and we go every Thursday.  I finally  brought a camera to class this week.   Delaney enjoys all of the new toys that are there to play with, but she most enjoys looking at the other babies (and moms) and of course, the song and dance portion.   The babies are too young to interact, but they do like to look at each other.   The first 45 minutes of class is a lecture by Jackie.  This week we talked about teething, and she gives all of her advice and tips.  Next week we will talk about introducing solids (although we don't plan to do so until 5-6 months).  Delaney spends this time playing with the toys, looking at the other babies, etc.  We then have several songs/exercises that we do together on the floor to move and stretch their arms and legs including "Motor Boat," "Grand Old Duke of York," "Itsy Bitsy Spider," "Row Row Row Your Boat," and "Wheels on the Bus."   She loves this!  We all then get in a circle holding our babies and Jackie blows bubbles which completely fascinate the babies.  We walk/dance in a circle with music on and the babies watch each other.  If Delaney hasn't started a meltdown, we hang out with the other moms for a few minutes, but usually we are in a rush to put her down since she is exhausted by the end of class. 

Baby stare down:

"The doors on the bus go open and shut..."

Bubble Time!

"Dad, stop embarrassing me in front of my friends!" 

We sing and dance in a circle at the end:

And then Delaney passes out in her carseat on the way home:

4 months

At her 4 month appointment, Delaney is 24 inches tall and weighed in at 14lbs 3 oz (before she pooped all over the doctor, so maybe now she's just 14lbs...):

Delaney is...

- "Talking" all the time at all different tones (from a humming to a squeal) and volumes.   At 5:45 am a few days ago we woke up to her talking to herself while looking directly into the video monitor camera.  She talked for about 10 minutes and then fortunately went back to sleep.  She talks while feeding, on the changing table, during tummy time, on walks... She is our daughter after all! 

- Reaching and grabbing.  It seems like she developed and then mastered this skill overnight.  During tummy time we place a toy in front of her and she immediately reaches for it, holds onto it, and then pulls it under her chest or puts it on her mouth. 

- Sucking her thumb.  This has also developed over the last few weeks and she now vigorously and loudly sucks her thumb to self soothe.  This is interesting since she never showed any interest in a pacifier. 

- No longer fully swaddled.  After a few rough days at the beginning of the weaning process, Delaney adjusted well to not being fully swaddled.  We kept her swaddled chest down for several weeks, and today we started having her nap with no swaddle at all and then sleeping with the Sleep Sack at night. 

- ROLLING.  Delaney has mastered rolling all directions and enjoys practicing all the time, including during nap time (which is why we decided to stop swaddling completely).   She likes to MOVE! 

- Continuing to sleep through the night, and we are grateful for every night that she does since we know it won't last forever.  She was sleeping really well during daytime naps until a few days ago when the rolling increased and we removed the swaddle.   I've learned not to get too happy or upset about anything since everything changes so quickly.   

- Playing with toys.  We have started to bring out more of her age appropriate toys and she is using them.   We are also doing more "exercises" with her in addition to tummy time, like stretching her legs (motor boat/bicycling), opening and closing her arms, touching her hand to the opposite leg, etc. 

- Enjoying Babies First Class/Mommy and Me/Jackie's class.  We are getting more and more out of this class which is comprised of all March babies (Delaney is one of the youngest).  The first 45 minutes or so is a lecture on a relevant topic (SIDS, Activities, Schedules, etc.) and then the last 15 minutes are exercises, dances and songs which is what we've been "practicing" at home.  It's a really nice group of moms and babies- everyone is very supportive, encouraging and non-judgmental.  Brice is one of two dads in the class, and it is so special that we all get to go together.  It is always a highlight of the week.  Although we have friends with babies, it's been really interesting and helpful to be around other babies the same age as Delaney.  The most important thing that we have learned from class is that no baby is perfect.  The babies that practically feed themselves the bottle are sometimes the ones that are waking up two or three times a night! 

-  Still struggling with the bottle at times.  I think we just have to accept that Delaney will never love the bottle.  Some weeks go very smoothly and she gulps down 7oz.  Her low point was a few weeks ago when we had to go to a wedding and she went on a hunger strike and refused her 4pm and 7pm bottle.  She still managed to go to sleep and actually slept until 4:30am!  Since she is healthy and thriving, we've decided to stop stressing about it and realize that the worst thing that happens is that she cries (which she will do regardless) and wakes up in the middle of the night.

- Cuddling!  Although we don't give her much choice, Delaney is a cuddler.  She loves to be held and holds on tight.  It is the best and we hope this is a phase that lasts forever!