A 4 Month Update

People told me the first 3 months of a baby's life are rough on the parents. Harvey Karp, author of "Happiest Baby on the Block" calls the time period "the 4th trimester" - where babies still desire the comforting life inside the womb.  While I haven't had a "colicky" baby, or a baby that has required an overwhelming amount of attention at night, I am glad to be out of the first trimester.

Over the past month, Rose has really grown both physically and developmentally. She has learned how to hold herself up and now puts everything in her mouth. She is still a mostly smiley girl, a mostly good sleeper, and quite the talker.

Because of her ability to flip from her back to her front, we have stopped swaddling her arms, but we still put her in a sleep sack. There have been several nights since she turned 4 months that she has slept through the night (11pm-6 or 7am), but she still wakes up for a middle-of-the-night feed most nights.  Her eyes are still blue, though they sometimes look like they have glints of hazel or brown, depending on the lighting. Her hair is starting to come in and appears to be very light brown.

At 16 weeks (just shy of 4 months), I had to go back into the office full-time. We are fortunate to have my mom watch Rose for the summer so we can delay day care and Rose has transitioned very well. They have spent quite a few afternoons at the pool and Rose now loves splashing in the water!

Just before going back to work, we took a rather quick trip to visit friends and family in the northeast. It was a whirl-wind tour, and Rose did great, proving herself to be an easy traveler.

At her 4 month doctor's visit, we were updated on her stats - At 13lbs, 11oz and 24.5", she is close to the 50th percentile for weight and 70th percentile for height. Compared to her 2 month stats, she is consistent with her weight and fluctuates with her height. I think the fluctuation is a result of inaccurate measuring. At 2 months, I think they didn't stretch her out and at this visit I think they didn't put the measuring tape against her head properly.  I think she is closer to the 50th percentile for height.  Thankfully, she continues to be very healthy and quickly fought her first bout with a head cold/nasal congestion at 3.5 months.

Rose in mommy's outfit at 3 months

Rose in her own clothes at 3 months

The Clemente-Miller clan on Mother's Day

Rose smiling with her Aunts

Rose meets Everett and after holding his hand for a minute

she reminds him that she is two weeks older

On a cool day, Rose is bundled up in the Ergo carrier with her Avó

Rose meets not-so-little baby Rhys and big girl Reilly over dinner

Uncle Mark makes a quick visit with Rose before her walk with Avô

Uncle Mark gets to spend more time with his precious little niece

Colin has joined his law school buddies in the wonderful world of parenting 

Rose gets to meet her new friends McKenzie and Keith Jr.

All eyes are on Rose for Avô's early birthday dinner

Rose at 4 months

 13lbs, 11oz and 24.5"

We love our little moon face!

Some of my Favorite Rose Things

I will get Rose's 3-month pictures up soon, but I wanted to post about some of my favorite things related to this amazing little girl before I forget.

I love that she knows who mommy is and gives me a great big smile when I talk to her

I love that she is now trying to talk to us and her sounds are the cutest

I love when she stares at me and takes in what I am telling her

I love that she can entertain herself on her activity mat, pulling whatever she can get her hands on

I love how generous she is with her smiles

I love that she cries a lot less than she used to

I love that she goes right back to sleep after eating in the middle of the night and in the morning and usually sleeps for stretches longer than 3 hours.

I love that she is a solid baby - doing a great job holding her head up and standing on her legs

I love that she spends a few minutes stretching herself out after I remove her swaddle every morning

I love how she coos when I massage her face

I love that she is a social butterfly and loves social situations

I love that she is easy to travel with

I love her perfect little face and perfect shaped head

I leave you with some adorable pictures...

The first day in the Bumbo (first 3 photos)

Our first trip to the neighborhood pool

A regular occurrence - falling asleep on the activity mat

She's tired, but she won't let go of the keys

Happy Mother's Day

Got to celebrate my first Mother's Day surrounded by family on a beautiful day. What more could a girl ask for?

The Clemente's

A nice family shot

Avo, Mom, and Rose

Another nice family shot

The Mothers on Mother's Day

Isabella and Rose

Rose is comfy sleeping with daddy

After a power snooze, Rose is ready to 

show how great she is at holding her head up!

I hope all you mothers had a nice day surrounded by those you love.

Easter 2014

I managed to capture Rose in 3 of the 4 outfits she wore for Easter. I love my precious little doll!

Starting out in a stylish and comfortable fleece two piece outfit

Moving into the more elaborate Easter outfit

(there is a diaper cover that matches on her)

Rounding out the day in her summer dress

(the day started cool and damp and ended up warm and sunny)

Rose gets more antsy as the day progresses and I couldn't get a picture with her legs still.

Lastly, as Rose grows, I see more of myself in her...

Rose is 2 Months Old!

Time sure does fly. My little peanut was two months old this past Monday. Unfortunately for her, it meant a trip to the doctor and three shots in her little legs. She screamed like a champ for a brief moment and we were quick to offer her some comfort nursing and she was good to go.

As of Monday, Rose is now 9 lbs, 8 ounces and 22 inches tall. She has certainly filled in and has remained at the 25th percentile for weight. She was tall at birth (90th percentile), but her measurement now has her at only the 25th percentile for height.  I don't know how accurate heights are since babies squirm so much and it's difficult to get them when they stretch out.  Her head circumference has remained at the 50th percentile since birth.

We were lucky she didn't react to any of the shots, not even with a fever. We continue to be in awe at our good fortune with her health. Everything checked out great and we don't have to go again for 2 months.

Below is my attempt at a 2 month photo shoot.  She was fine with the hat on for about 30 seconds, then got really fussy until I took it off. Once she settled down, I was able to get her hat back on for a few additional shots.

Everyone who sees her comments on her beautiful eyes. I know I am biased in thinking she is adorable, but it's nice to have so much confirmation from others.

Rose's First Beach Trip

Over the past week, it seemed like the weather transitioned from winter to summer.  One night it was so warm we actually had to turn on the air conditioning. With the promise of nice weather continuing through the weekend, we decided to take Rose on her first trip (of hopefully many) to the beach.

We were up very early and decided to get on the road after getting Rose fed and changed. We were fortunate that she rested most of the 2.5 hour drive down to the beach.

We arrived to fairly strong winds and cool temperatures down by the water's edge.  Thankfully, we all had our hats and several layers of clothing. Rose was so comfortable, she managed to sleep for a solid 3 hours on the beach as the temperatures warmed into the 70s. The only downside was that it remained windy.  Neither Colin nor I realized the exposed areas of our skin would get sunburned.

 Rose's first trip to Fort Fisher State Park Beach, NC

Enjoying the ocean even though it was cool and windy

The few hours Rose was awake at the beach she seemed to enjoy it.  She gave us some of her adorable smiles when we talked to her and she was very relaxed.  I doubt she actually took in the ocean and the sand, but I'm guessing the sounds of the waves and the seagulls were soothing.

Since Darwin wasn't forced to go in the water, he had a great time at the beach. We took a long walk and a short walk and Darwin was so comfortable, he also managed to take a nap.

Colin and Darwin did their usual racing on the beach

Mommy wearing Rose on our long walk

Rose napping in the Moby Wrap

Darwin relaxing by the water's edge while Rose gets fed

For the afternoon nap, 

Rose got to sleep on Daddy's chest

The skies clouded up by early afternoon and since we had been up since 4:30am, we were ready to make our way back home.  We stopped to have some dinner on the way back through Wilmington and made sure Rose was clean and fed before starting the journey back.  Rose lasted about 30 minutes before she got fussy. It was the witching hour, after all.  To calm her and give us all a quiet ride back, I sat in the back seat with her and Darwin so I could help her keep a pacifier in her mouth.  The drive certainly felt much longer coming home.

Even though Rose slept a lot at the beach, she still managed to have a good night of sleep with 3-4 hour stretches. Both Colin and I were grateful for the rest! As soon as we were unpacked and bathed, we all crashed!

I'd say it was a fairly successful first trip to the beach - or at least the best we could ask for with an 8 week old.  We only hope that Rose loves the beach as much as we do and look forward to lots of trips in our future.

So Many Changes Between 5-7 Weeks

Over the past two weeks, we've seen lots of changes in little Rose. The most rewarding include receiving smiles when interacting with her. Around 5 weeks, we started getting a few grins and smiles and now she squeals and almost laughs when we talk to her.  She is most content after eating, though at 7 weeks, she is now fairly content being left alone in a bouncing chair or on an activity mat and observing her surroundings. She still loves her musical mobile and now watches the red and blue cars as they pass.  She also loves to stare at ceiling fans - just don't turn them on!

Here is a video of Rose's first smiles (dated 3.19.14) - sorry for the poor light quality.

Around 5 weeks, I went to the HUG your baby class because I needed some resources on helping Rose during her fussy period, known to most parents as the "witching hour."  Around 5-6pm, Rose would cry and generally be unhappy for several hours. She would be quieted only with nursing, bouncing on a ball, or going for a walk.  The class was really helpful in giving some techniques I could use to settle Rose without feeding her or moving.  Bringing her hands to her chest and offering a pacifier has worked wonders!  And, while I don't want to jinx us, I do think Rose's fussiness peaked around 5-6 weeks and now seems to be getting better. She will still occasionally go from happy to screaming in a matter of seconds, but these occurrences are much less frequent. Yesterday was the first day we were able to lay her down during the 5-8pm witching hour and have her remain content. During most of that time she entertained herself and didn't even need the pacifier.

We've also been really lucky that Rose is a good sleeper. At 6 weeks there was one night where Rose slept 6.5 hours straight! It was amazing. While we haven't had a re-occurrence of 6 hours, she consistently has at least one 4 hour stretch at night and sometimes sleeps closer to 5 hours. I don't know if it is because Colin feeds Rose from a bottle in the evening or if it is because we swaddle her with her arms across her chest at night, but I will not complain and will take every minute she gives me at night.

Rose at 6 weeks

This past week I started working part time from home. I wasn't sure how it would go since we really haven't been home alone much. My mom left at 5 weeks and then we had Colin's parents visit at 6 weeks.  Thankfully, Rose has a long stretch of sleep (3.5-4.5 hours) in the morning so I've been able to get most of my work done during that time. After our morning feeding we have some interacting time, some quiet observing time, and then Rose gets rocked to sleep in the swing. So far, it has really worked for us.

This week I also had my 6 week visit with the midwives. Everything checked out great and I was surprised to learn that I am only 5lbs above my pre-pregnancy weight! Unfortunately, I'm not back into my old pants yet and I hope the weather warms because I can wear my old skirts and dresses.  Since Rose's second week, we've been walking as much as the weather let us. I've mostly carried her in the Moby Wrap during our walks (which as an aside - I much prefer the kangaroo hold to the newborn hug hold). Around week 5, I also started doing some exercises to strengthen my posterior chain.  I've felt myself hunched over holding and feeding Rose and wanted to strengthen the muscles that keep me upright. Colin helped me develop a list of ~10 exercises and I've done them 8 out of the past 12 days. These may have helped me drop 5lbs since my two week appointment and they work the core (which might help me get back into those pants).

Now that the midwife has confirmed I am "back to normal," I am ready to increase the intensity of exercise to get back into shape. I've seen too many girls come back to soccer out of shape and get hurt, and that is the last thing I want.  I was able to get a decent BOB stroller on craigslist and went for my first run this past Thursday (6 weeks, 6 days postpartum).  It wasn't fast (10.5 min/mile) or far (2 miles), but it was a beautiful day and I felt good. My first mile felt great and I maintained a good pace, but once I reached a mile and a half, I knew I wouldn't be able to go much farther.  Darwin ran really well alongside the stroller and after taking in her surroundings for the first half of the run, Rose fell asleep.

Darwin maintains a safe distance from the stroller

A good run on a beautiful Spring day.

Check out the flowering trees!

Rose at 7 weeks

You can't really tell in the picture, 

but her hair is starting to grow!

It really is amazing how much babies change from week-to-week and even day-to-day.  I love seeing Rose's transformation and continue to enjoy her as much as possible. She really is such a good girl and I am beyond lucky to have a healthy and happy child, loving and supportive friends and family, and a job that allows me to transition slowly back to work.  I certainly have a lot to be thankful for.