(I wrote this awhile ago and didn't quite get to posting it. So, now a week and a half late, I am putting it up.)
Yeah, I skipped 4 months. I am going to be honest with you. It was a really, really boring month. My little girl got bigger and stronger and we sat at home and survived a very cold winter month. Her 4th month of life started on Christmas eve and ended during the coldest January Milwaukee has seen in a very long time. So, I will just give you a couple highlights to catch up.
1. She got her very first sickness on Christmas morning. She woke up with a runny nose and a fever. We drove across the state Christmas morning to New Glarus. She slept during the entire 4 hour drive to Madison. Poor thing did not enjoy Christmas evening with the Stuessys. She nursed and slept and slept really good that night. By the next morning, she was still groggy and sniffly, but vastly better. And the day after that she was pretty much back to her normal self.
2. We celebrated New Years at home, with seafood. Charlotte enjoyed the day snuggling and playing.
3. Grammy visited for a few days. I said, "Praise the Lord for someone to talk to."
4. Aunt Sarah babysat while we went to Matt's work Christmas party.
5. On January 16th Charlotte rolled over for the first time, from her back to tummy. We were waiting and watching her all day/night. Finally, while watching The Taste, I was in the kitchen and Matt said she did it. Of course I missed it. Luckily she did it again less than an hour later. It took another couple weeks for her to roll over the other way. She still hasn't figured out how to go from tummy to back.
6. Around the same time as when she rolled over she started to find her feet. She couldn't really get a good hold of them, but they definitely intrigued her.
So, that pretty much sums up her very cold 4th month.
So, on to her 5th month.
(January 24-February 24)
Highlights of the month:
We started out the month with a week long trip up north to visit grammy and grandpa. We spent the days snuggling, watching movies, doing some scrapbooking, going out for coffee and lots of playing with the baby. Charlotte and I also had a nice long visit at great grandma and grandpa's house in Green Bay on the way up and way down.
We then had Charlotte's 4 month Dr appointment on Feb. 4th. This meant more shots. I hate those bloody shots. I had to go alone this time as well. I was super nervous about it, but it was ok. She had to get 3 shots. The first two she didn't even really seem to feel. The last one made her cry, but by the time the lady put the band aids on she was done. We gave her some Tylenol and she was just fine. I talked to the Dr about the next couple months. The important things are:
1. Dr. is a proponent of eating solids at 6 months. Any time after 5 months is fine though. She even brought up baby led weaning as a good option. But, go with your gut. She said skipping cereal is fine and pretty much give her whatever food we want to.
2. The fact that she doesn't take naps is not going to hurt her. She sleeps about 10 hours at night so if she is awake pretty much all day she is fine.
3. She has a tiny bit of eczema. We should just use some vaseline.
4. We can give her some water in a cup after 5 months, if we want, especially once she starts eating.
4. She is growing and developing great!
The Olympics started and we basically sat in front of our TV watching that for the next 17 days.
We discovered how nice baby wearing can be. Charlotte learned to not hate it and I learned how to do it better and we have a mei tai and a couple wraps to use.
My mom and dad came down a couple days after Valentines Day and we were able to go out for our annual Red Lobster feast, while they babysat. That was super fun and always one of my favorite nights of the year.
The morning Charlotte turned 5 months old I got a call that my Nana had died. It was a rough way to finish the month. Also, it was my Nana's half birthday. I just thought that was interesting.
Now onto the important stats:
Eating: Charlotte likes to eat. The only new thing this month is the fact that she is always SO distracted while she is eating. She is eating more consistently every 3 hours. But, it takes so much longer because she is too busy looking around at everything. I really don't mind though, because when she looks up at me and smiles it is just too much. Another big positive this month is how much more confident I have gotten about nursing in public. I think just because we are both so much better at nursing, it makes it easier. It makes things so much easier, because as long as I can find a chair I can feed her anywhere. I still can't do it standing, or with a carrier. But, sitting is always nice anyway. No solid foods yet, but in another couple weeks we will be starting. I am thinking sweet potatoes.
Sleeping: Sleeping is going so great! She is doing great at night. She typically goes to sleep around 9:00 and then wakes up sometime between 2:00-4:00. She barely wakes up, nurses for 20 minutes and then goes right back down and sleeps until 7:00 or sometimes as late at 8:00. Obviously, every once and awhile we have an off night. But, nothing really horrible. She still only wakes up a couple times max. We are making progress with naps too. Matt is so much better at getting her to take a nap. It really isn't fair. But, I can usually get her to lay down for a couple 45 minute naps. I wish they were spaced out a little better. She usually ends up taking one a few hours after she wakes up, so around 10:00. And then she fights sleep, until she eventually gives in around 5:00. Sometimes she doesn't give in though and is just awake until her bedtime at 9:00. But, most days we get at least one 45 minute nap, which is much better than absolutely ZERO a month ago. We are still working on it, and maybe in another month she will be taking two 2 hour naps every day. *fingers crossed*
Pooping: She poops out of every single diaper every single time she poops. Why? It doesn't matter the brand or the size. She just can't keep it contained. So, every outfit needs to be washed every time she wears one. I am about to just tie a plastic bag around the bottom half of her body. ugh!
Growing: At the last weigh in, at 5 months she weighed a couple ounces shy of 17 pounds. This puts her around the 80-85% for weight and she is about 26 inches, which also puts her around the 80% mark. So, she is a big girl. I think she might be slowing down just a tad though. She didn't quite gain 2 pounds during this last month, which is a little less than the last few months. It is normal to slow down a little once babies get to be about this age. I am not going to be upset if she slowed down a little. She is growing way too fast. She just started fitting into some 9 months clothes, mostly just the sleepers. She got too long for the 6 month ones. So, now we are wearing some more 9 months clothes, but she can still fit into most of her 6 month clothes as well. She is just about to move into size 3 diapers. We are using up the last 2 small packs of size 2 diapers we received before she was born and then we will officially move into size 3.
Nicknames: Little love, Baby girl, poop butt (see explosive poop section)
Charlotte's favorite things during her 5th month:
1. Her bouncy (jumper on the ground)
2. Her jumpy jumpy (jumper hanging in doorway)
3. Little Bear (her stuffed bear)
4. Rolling over
5. Anything I am holding in my hand, or that she sees at any time. She needs all the things!
6. Smiling
Mama's favorite things during Charlotte's 5th month:
1. Learning how to use wraps to wear Charlotte
2. Giving Charlotte big belly laughs
3. A week long trip up north
4. Finally losing a couple pounds (I still hate you Jillian)
Charlotte's least favorite things during her 5th month:
1. Not being able to roll from tummy to back
2. Mama fumbling while trying to wrap her
3. Not much else
Mama's least favorite things during Charlotte's 5th month:
1. Still struggling with naps
2. Weather too cold to do anything
3. Not enough Olympics on TV
Charlotte's new skills
rolling over
eating her feet
sitting up pretty much alone, slumped over
making crazy new sounds
