The Light in the Morning.

Four months!

Well, Miss Josephine had her four month check up on Tuesday. That seems so amazing to me. It's as if she's been here forever, and four months actually just seems kind of arbitrary. But, to think her next check up will br six months, putting her "big baby" territory is crazy!

The appointment, itself, went about as I'd expected. She was a hair under 16 lbs - which put her in the 90th percentile! I did, of course, know that she is a big girl. It is made extra fun by the fact that she is in the 50th percentile for height, at a hair over two feet tall! (That means that she looks even chubbier than she is!) And, her head is the 75th percentile. (I didn't catch the measurement.)

She definitely flashed the doctor her winning smile! (Which I know I need to post more of on here!)

The pediatrician (unlike the doctor we saw at Eleanor's four month) suggested we hold off on solids. She said that the AAP is now firmly recommending exclusive breastmilk for the first six months (although she wasn't adamant about waiting that long). So, we'll take it one day at a time and see how (much more) "into" table food she becomes.

Pictures later!

Beauty and the Beast.

Well, this is not a commentary on the dichotomy of behavior in my house (although Josephine has had a rough few days, as a compliment to Eleanor's excellent behavior). Actually, over the last few days, we've watched the Disney classic Beauty and the Beast in installments. (YouTube, a toddler, and breastfeeding/pumping are a dynamic combination.) And, while watching that movie, I feel like I noticed some exciting developmental connections made by Miss Eleanor. At one point, I was tending to Josephine and, hence, not watching the screen. It was a scene in the Tavern, and all the doltish men were singing about the worth of "not nice, mean" (as Eleanor calls Gaston). He must have done something noteworthy, because all at once the men on screen and Eleanor cheered simultaneously. It is neat to think that she could be watching and anticipating and noticing an achievement.

Also, while watching the "show" (as she calls anything on TV or the computer), she saw the talking household implements. She told me. "Light no talk." "Clock no talk." "Coff coff no talk."

Finally, she began to notice when the characters were falling in love. She was reading their emotional cues and reacting to them. Each time the characters looked at each other lovingly, she would take my hand, stroke my leg, or look at me saying what I am 99% sure was "I love you."

Finally (AGAIN), she has just been making all sorts of connections. She's always been verbal, and starting saying many words well before a year. But, her sentences have developed in a way I didn't expect. I thought she'd repeat phrases she'd heard. And, she does do that, but mostly she puts long strings of words together. For example, there is a house on our street with dog that is often in the front yard, although he wasn't today. Eleanor looked at the house and said, "House. Dog. Pet. Walk. Daddy. Hi. Bye. Home." So, it is clear what she means. It seems like an unusual way of doing things, but I am glad she's found a way to put her words to use. If all of us are patient enough to hear her out, things go much better around our house (as in WAY fewer fits). And, it's absolutely amazing to see her going from toddler to bright kid right before our eyes. Lucky us. :o)

Musings on Josephine: Four things I thought would never happen.

One. Josephine slept straight through the night. Two nights in a row. 8:30 pm to around 6 am. I guess this is right on time, but I was getting pretty sleep deprived, so it felt like a long time coming. When I first had her, and she was about two weeks old and I was up most of the night, I remembered that Eleanor slept through the night at four months. I thought, only 3.5 more months of sleeplessness. And, then I thought, I simply cannot do this. But, aha, Josephine is just over 3.5 months old, and we have made it to the other side. The night before last, I didn't get much sleep at all, because I was constantly fretting over her and checking on her, and waiting for the other shoe to drop (aka, for her to wake up starving). But, that didn't happen until 5:30 am! And, last night, I timed my pumping so that I would have some six hours of uninterrupted sleep! (Of course, that didn't happen, because I checked on the girls about five times each. But, I now know it is a possibility.) In fact, I plucked her up, happy and bubbling, at 6 am today! I fed her and she is now lying beside me, smiling. Oh, the joy of sleep for us both.



Two. I am letting Josephine's baby feet hang out. You may or may not know about me that exposed baby feet are a pet peeve. Don't get me wrong - I think baby feet are delightful. I am not (completely) crazy. But, when I see raw, red little newborn feet, they just look cold and naked. I like my baby feet tucked away into socks. And even shoes (I know that's silly). Maybe it's partly that I've realized the world won't stop spinning if Josephine's feet are exposed, or even if they get a little cold. Maybe I have recognized that I am too busy to be constantly vigilant of the state of her socks. You see, when Eleanor was a newborn, it was summer. But, despite the heat, I didn't want her red toes out in the elements. And, by the time she was four months old (out of the true newborn stage), it was getting cold. Sock time again. And, by the time it was warm, she was toddler, so her real "baby feet" never got much air time. Josephine, on the other hand, will be four months old just in time for Spring. And, this weekend, with the warm weather, her baby feet made their grand debut. (Half covered by pink BabyLegs, I will admit, but her toes were out and about in Sykesville.) I am loving her chubby-but-still-tiny-little feet! Come on warm weather -keep it up!



Three and Four. Finally, Josephine is fussing WAY less and I have adapted to waiting on coffee until after morning milk time! Josephine is so much happier now that I am not pumping her full of caffeine. She sleeps better, so she is better rested through the day, and able to regenerate. Also, her indigestion has all but subsided. And, you'd think it would be hard. But, it's so much easier to wait an hour for coffee than to have a sad, uncomfortable baby all day!

I Love You Mommy.

Eleanor hates when I talk on the phone. Or read the newspaper. Or use the computer. Anything that she can't participate in and that takes my attention away from her. She really likes that attention that she's used to. Although she generally dislikes affection, she's been a bit more "into" me lately. (I was the same as a kid - attention, please - affection, no thanks.)

This morning, I was chatting on the phone and she was hanging on my pants screaming for attention. Then, I looked down and she was holding up a book, begging me to "Read. Book. Please. Heart. Momma." I picked up the book, and as I continued to gab, showed her the pictures. I didn't register the book we were looking at and I admit at the time I didn't much care. I was "busy."

Many hours later, while the chickies were napping, I was cleaning up the morning's wreckage. On the floor, where we'd been at that time, was the little golden book, "I Love You Mommy." My heart just broke. Sometimes I need these little reminders of how lucky I am. Now, those very same tofu nuggets are waking up. So we're going to have a special afternoon making soup and cookies.

Our Easter Peep.

Seriously Silly

Hop on Pop Pop Pop.

A good one with spacy girls. And one with a "rock out" face.

Little Baylys. (And Bourkes.)

Enor and AB Hunt for Eggs.

All I wanted was a nice Easter picture...

...but my big girl thought that idea was horrid and my little girl is an evil (and derisive) baby genius.

Random pictures from my mom's.

Eleanor is in an anti-picture phase. So, we get what we can.