Life:
The time is starting to really slow down. It used to be that it flew by, but these days I find myself saying "That happened yesterday? I thought it was a few days ago!" Harmony is falling into a more predictable pattern, but I'm not sure I like it. Her nighttime sleeping is improving- she went from 11pm- 6:45 last Friday (the 5th) and has slept through the night (11-6) the past few nights, but during the day she only takes 1-2 hours of naps, not counting the time she spends dozing at the breast. The time spent awake is unfortunately not all playtime. She spends a good deal of it eating, and quite a bit of it fussing. I've tried dropping milk from my diet, which I think has helped. One day I decided to start on milk again because I didn't think it was helping and that day was hell, so I think she is intolerant to the milk I'm drinking. I think another reason she's cranky and can't sleep very well during the day is due to the fact that I can no longer give her her soother, which she has become used to to put her herself to sleep. I noticed on Tuesday that she had some blisters on her gums, and the doctor said that they were probably caused by the soother and not to give it to her, at least until the blisters have healed. It's been really rough on both of us, especially during her nighttime fussies, but somehow we've both survived. Now instead of using the swing to put her to sleep at night (she now hates her swing, when it is not paired with a soother), I nurse her in bed with me until she falls asleep, and then I wait a little while before moving her. So far that's worked surprisingly well- she goes to sleep around 11, I move her at midnight or 1, and then she'll sleep soundly in her crib until 6 or so.
Unfortunately, for some reason I've been staying awake after I wake up to move her to her crib!!! It's the weirdest thing and it's really starting to take it's toll. One night I was up from 12 until 5 am and the next day I was soooo tired. It's 2 am right now so excuse me if I'm not as coherent as usual (which isn't saying much cause what with pregnancy, and now newborn brain, I'm just not the smart cookie I used to be before I was pregnant). I think part of the reason I'm doing this is because I don't have any "me time" at all and the middle of the night is the only time I can putter around on the computer, or read, or do other stuff I used to enjoy before baby. Harmony naps so seldom during the day, and I usually use that time to do chores around the apartment. My aunt Norma is having a lot of health troubles so now there is no one who can take Harmony off my hands. Surprisingly, my sanity is still intact. Sometimes I'll lose my temper and yell at her, but I always apologize to her after and on the whole we have a healthy relationship because I'm usually only at my wit's end at night- during the daytime she gets to enjoy a loving, caring mommy that talks to her, plays with her, and spends a lot of time helping her learn about the world around her. I think nighttimes will get a lot better now that she's sleeping through the night (and once I start sleeping through the night again!). It's surprising how much you change when you're not getting sleep. I feel like a totally different person- my memory sucks, I can't focus very well, I'm irritable at night, and my moods swing a little more. Some of it may be due to post partum hormones kicking around, but I think a lot of it is just plain stress!!! Fortunately, yoga class on Mondays is going well, so hopefully that will help me relax.
Harmony's Growth:
I weighed her at "Buns" on Tuesday and she's up to 12 lbs 6 oz! She's getting so much better at sitting with support, and even standing with support! I love standing her up on my lap to have our little "chats" cause she'll do this thing where she "jumps"- she'll let herself drop down to a squat cause her little chubby legs will get tired but then she'll make another effort to stand and quickly bounce up!
A few new milestones (it seems she picks up new things every day!!!)...
Besides
the aforementioned sleeping through the night, she can also now hold
things! On Wednesday, I held a pen touching her palm and she opened and closed
her hand and managed to catch it in her fingers! She can also now hold her
red rattle, which has a thin part that's easily grasp-able and she wasn't
able to last week.
Another new skill she's working on is rolling. She sometimes will pull her knees
up to her chest and start heading off to one side, but she only goes down
about halfway. She's also started blowing little bubbles- it's annoying
to have to constantly wipe away the drool, but it's so cute I don't mind.
She's becoming even more aware of her hands and it's so hysterical when
she pours all her concentration into looking at them. It's funny when she's
watching her hand and then brings it close to her eyes- they start to lose
focus and the expression on her face is just like "HEY! What the...?" I
don't think she has much control over them yet, so every movement surprises
her. She's also discovering her toes (when she can see them) and I think
somehow she knows that after mommy changes her diaper, her toes get a little
attention- she'll start sticking them out towards me for me to blow on them- what a cutie! :)