Sisterhood

My sister was here for the summer. She arrived in May and she just left on Wednesday. She is my only sister. Growing up there were times when she was my only friend. She has been by my side since before I was 3 years old. We are similar and yet so different. We find most of the same things funny. We both like to have the same sort of deep conversations. We both have big dreams. We like to do a lot of the same stuff for fun. There are also lots of difference between us. Where my sister is incredibly creative and always thinking of her next project I did not inherit that creative gene. Where my sister would be perfectly content roaming the globe for the rest of her life what I love is a place to come home to, where I can feel comfortable and secure.

 

There are other differences, more than I could list. But that is the beauty of family. Would we have ever become friends if we weren't family? I can't say for sure if we would. I'm fact there is a good chance we would not have. But we are family. There is an intensely fierce love we have for each other. It is unexplainable. It doesn't make sense. I can be absolutely fuming mad at her thinking she is the worst person in the world and the next minute I see her sad and defeated and my heart is breaking for her. I would do absolutely anything to tell her that she is wonderful and perfect.

 

Seeing my sister love my baby girl is a feeling I am unable to describe. It is such a special thing to see anyone love your baby, but when it is someone that I love so much in return it is just perfect. Charlotte had such a great summer with her aunt, who we call tante (the Norweigan word for aunt, pronaunced tanta). The first couple days she was a it hesitant. Once she warmed up though, she was in love. She would smile and giggle every morning when tante would come out of her room. She would crawl to find her tante wherever she may be hiding. Tante came with us to the park, to the beach, to the store, on walks, to church, on weekend trips and to the doctor. There were a few rough times. Babysitting wasn't always easy. But, I was never nervous leaving my daughter with her tante. Even if she cried a little longer than normal I knew Emma loves her and so she would be alright.

 

There is a hole in our family now that my sister is gone. I know there is a good chance we will never live around each other. My sister will probably end up living in Europe or Hawaii. I will probably always wish that she lived closer, but that doesn't mean that we can't be close. She will always be one of Charlotte's favorites. I can't wait to see their relationship grow. I know Charlotte will enjoy fun coffee dates, musical concerts, deep conversations, international travel, roller coaster rides, shopping trips, new experiences and many special times with her tante. I am more than happy to share.

 

We will be cheering for tante from a distance as she journeys on trying to find her place and her purpose in this world. But mostly we will look forward to her next visit.

We all love you Tante!

 

First time meeting Charlotte

 

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My Breastfeeding Story

 

Five years ago if you had asked me to make a list of places I didn't think I would end up I would have said at a breastfeeding awareness walk. It would have been listed between a Japanese anime conference and a Scottish hurling competition. I was never against breastfeeding. I thought it was a lovely and practical part of having a baby. It seemed simple enough. Free baby food. What's the big deal? Why on Earth do we need rallys and walks and clubs? I pictured a happy well rested mother cradling her sweet round baby. They would gaze into each other's eyes. The baby would eat for five minutes every two or three hours. The rest of the day would be spent snuggling and playing.

Oh, pre baby Hattie was such an idiot.

I knew I was going to try and breastfeed my baby when I was pregnant. I knew that formula is a great alternative and perfectly healthy. (I refuse to be a formula shaming mom.) But, I liked the plus side to breastmilk. It is free, it has benefits like helping to avoid allergies and it would help me burn some extra calories also the thought of cleaning 6 or 7 bottles a day made me want to throw up.

The day Charlotte was born I brought my boppy, nursing bras and shirts, nipple cream and breast pads to the hospital. I was blissfully unaware of what lay ahead. When Charlotte was born I got to hold her for about 30 seconds before she was rushed off to the NICU for chest x-rays, oxygen monitoring, etc. I did not get to nurse her moments after birth like I was hoping to. It was another hour before I could see her again, but not hold her and it was another hour after that when I could finally hold her in my arms. I was overhwelmed and confused. I didn't understand what was happening. I was intimidated by the absolutely horrible NICU nurse. I didn't get to nurse Charlotte for probably about 4 hours after she was born. I pumped a lot. She was in the NICU for about 24 hours. I fed her a few times and pumped lots. I hated that pump. My nipples were completely raw and felt like they were on fire. The awful NICU nurse gave my baby formula. She gave her formula without asking me. And then told me giving her formula would get her out of the NICU faster. For the record, that is a horrible thing to tell a mom. Of course I wanted her out if there as fast as possible. I would do anything. Eventually they replaced the formula with the milk I had pumped. I think the fact that I wasn't able to nurse is part of what made the next two months horrific. My nipples hurt so bad from the pump that we were giving her about half milk and half formula for the next couple days. I just couldn't do it. I would just sit there and cry it hurt so bad.

Some awful times were spent in this chair with that breast pump.

Matt taking his turn

 

Eventually the pain was tolerable. It still hurt, really bad, but I wasn't weeping in pain. After that I felt claustrophobic and chained to my chair. This baby wanted to eat all the time. It was not magical. It was annoying. I did not feel some special bond. I felt antsy. In that moment I felt like it would stretch into eternity. I would be sitting on my couch with a nursing baby for the rest of my life and beyond. The timing was unpredictable. I was uncomfortable feeding her in public. And the sound of here cry in the night would inevitably make me cry as well. We were still supplementing with formula once or twice a day, usually once during the day and once at night. Matt would take one shift at night, and give her a bottle so that I could get a solid 4 or 5 hours a night, it is the only thing that kept me sane.

Charlotte was a sleepy eater the first couple weeks. Daddy needed to help keep her awake.

My milk supply was touch and go for the first couple months as well so I would usually end up giving her one bottle during the day as well so I knew she was getting enough. Around 2 months old her pediatrician, who is a lactation specialist suggested trying fenugreek supplements. They are nasty capsules that made my whole body reek of maple syrup, but they worked wonders for my supply. I wasn't afraid of her not getting enough anymore. Also, around the 2 month mark the constant breastfeeding faded, as well as the awful pain every time she would nurse. I had made it through the worst. My goal of making it to a year seemed possible.

 

This is not to say the next 8 months were easy. There have definitely been times I have wanted to give up. It is tiresome at times. But, now that I am so close to my goal I don't plan on stopping now. I'm not sure when I will wean Charlotte. There are times I want to cut her off the day after her first birthday. There are other times when the thought of stopping all our snuggle fests make me want to cry and I think I will nurse her until kindergarten. I guess we will just take it one day at a time.

I have so much loved the snuggles these last 10 months. Charlotte is not by nature a very snuggly baby. The only times she will lay with me and snuggle is when I am feeding her. Because of that I am so grateful for nursing. Because of the joy that nursing has brought me I want others to have the chance to experience this same thing. I want to let others know that it might be really, really hard at first. I want to tell them to not give up if it is hard. I want to tell them it might be worth it to try a little longer. I want to tell them that even if they are pressured by others to just give up, or to not even try, they still can. I want it to be normal and accepted. I want others to see how beautiful it can be, even if it is not beautiful all the time.

Without further delay. Some of my most treasured pictured. Pictures of me feeding my love.

 

 

 

So, this brings us to the breastfeeding walk. This week is national breastfeeding week. The Milwaukee breastfeeding coalition has a walk every year as well as a latch on. Basically a bunch of people... moms, dads, babies, kids, aunts, grandmas, friends met up at a beautiful community garden. We mingled, snacked and adored babies for awhile. Then, all the breastfeeding moms took a seat under the pavilion. At exactly 10:30 we all fed our babies at the same time, until 10:31. This is done in an attempt to break a record. After we finished up with that we all walked a few blocks to the local farmers market where we snacked some more and watched a performance about healthy eating for the kids.

Why did I go? If you are a mom you might understand. Being a mom is just about the most thankless thing someone can do. No one sees what I do all day. No one says thanks all day long. I clean the dishes, change diapers, soothe owies, pick up guinea pig poop, buy the groceries, take trips to the doctor's office and a million other things every single day. No one says "good job, you really did an awesome job vacuuming the floor today! I know you didn't want to, but you did it anyway. You didn't want your baby to find something and eat it so you vacuumed so diligently." I heard about this walk and decided to go. I wanted a pat on the back. I wanted to be around people who understood how difficult breastfeeding can be, or just how difficult being a mom can be. So, I went and I felt proud of myself. They said good job. They said thanks for giving your baby your absolute best. Young women and old women and even men were there to say thanks for all those hours of sitting on your couch crying in pain. They were there'd to say good job making a decision and sticking to it even when it was really hard.

I am proud of myself. In this last year I have done so many hard things. I have learned a valuable lesson about self sacrifice and commitment. Lessons like that are hard, but so worth it in the end.

So, now that this is the longest blog post in the history of blogs I will conclude. Here are pictures from the breastfeeding walk. It was awesome!

 

 

 

 

Oh, and possibly the biggest perk of the event... everyone got free t-shirts. Charlotte even got a onsie!

 

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Party Time!

There are perks to having children. I think perhaps the biggest perk is that now it is socially acceptable to relive my favorite parts of my own childhood. Building sand castles, trips to the zoo and the circus, making up silly games, going sledding and swinging in the park and of course birthday parties.

Didn't you love birthday parties? I did. My mom was a master at birthday parties. Fun themes, games, crafts, snacks and amazing cake. Along the way birthday parties sort of become uncool. Pretty soon it is all replaced by simply "hanging out". If I could only go back to the good old days when my mom would plan a magical day of surprises and laughing.

Of course, it is too late for me. But ah, the magic of parenthood,

My child shall have marvelous parties, as I'm sure my mother said before me and her mother said before her and generations of mothers have been saying for decades. So, maybe birthday parties are as much fun for the parents as they are for the kids. Almost. And one day Charlotte will have a baby and she will remember all the fun she had at her birthday parties and the cycle will continue as it should and probably always will.

Charlotte will be one year old in September and I have started planning her birthday party. It will really only be family and a few close friends. But, come Hell or high water it will be beautiful. She won't understand what is happening, but I will. And really, isn't it all about Matt and I anyway? Isn't it really just a party to celebrate the fact that we have kept a separate human alive for an entire year? We were the ones doing all the work anyway. When Charlotte is older she can have a princess or a fireman or a zoo birthday party and that will also be beautiful. But, this year mama gets to choose and I choose coral and gold.

A few sneak peaks for your viewing pleasure.

 

 

I have high hopes for this party. Perhaps my true test as a mom?

We'll see if I'm a fit mother.

 

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New toy

For my birthday Matt bought an iPad. So, not only did I get an iPad for my birthday, but he gave me the gift of not having to get a gift for his birthday. It is our birthday present to each other. And it is soooooo amazing. It is perfect when I am at home with Charlotte. Our super nice Mac Book Pro has gotten a little trashed over the last year with a baby crawling around and so many trips to see the grandparents, etc. It needs to last a while longer, especially for Matt's school programs. So, for day to day stuff I use the iPad. It is much cheaper to replace if anything should happen to it and there is an Otter Box to protect it. He got it off of Craigslist, but it runs and looks like new. So, I bought a blog app that I am hoping will help me out a little when it comes to my blog. I would love to post a little more often and with the iPad it is actually pretty easy. So, this is me playing around with my blog app. And if you are willing I would love for you to read my future blog posts that I will hopefully get up a little more often. My goal is once a week. Hold me to it, and stayed tuned for some more blog posts.

I'm not really even sure if anyone reads this but I hope at least a few of you do. But even if you don't I enjoy having a place where I can share my thoughts if I so desire. Let me know if there is anything specific you think I should write about. I would love some ideas.

I will leave you with a picture of me one year ago. I am so glad I am not pregnant! So very, very glad!

 

And in case you missed it, we went to the beach today. Look at that sweet face!

 

 

 

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Daddies

I know, my baby is 9 months old. I skipped the 9 month update. Our summer is busy, like crazy busy. We are enjoying every minute of it, well almost every minute. So, writing hasn't been my top priority. Next week Charlotte turns 10 months old and I will write the update for the last two months. For now, have patience. 

I want to take a brief moment and talk about daddies. As a mom, sometimes it is easy to think dads have it so easy. As a first time mom little bits of bitterness can creep in pretty easily. My guess is that I am not the only person to experience this. 

I did not enjoy being pregnant. It was not "my thing". I was sick to my stomach for 3 weeks straight, 24 hours a day. I was hot, my feet were swollen, my baby only liked to live on the right side of my uterus and that hurt all the time. My back was sore, I got Braxton hicks every day for the last couple months and that last couple weeks I would need Matt to help me get into and out of bed because I was in so much pain. Basically, your average pregnant lady. The whole miracle of life thing is overrated in my opinion. (There were small perks, but that is not the point right now.) Matt, on the other hand did not have swollen feet, a sore back or a squished bladder. He was happily living his life like normal with a perfectly healthy digestive track and an average sized torso. So, little by little a tiny bit of bitterness crept in. 

So, by the time I gave birth I was just so freaking excited to not have to be pregnant any longer. Luckily for me I am pretty good at having babies. And honestly, giving birth was easier than the last 8 months. Hooray, the baby is out! All my problems are solved right? Wrong. Breastfeeding was not enjoyable for the first couple months. I pretty much hated every minute of it. It was extremely painful and I almost gave up more times than I can remember. Not to mention waking up 5 times a night for days on end to an annoying crying baby who was only waiting to inflict pain and torture on me. It messes with your mind. I would see Matt laying there asleep and I would contemplate (imagine) picking up the lamp and crushing in his skull while the other part of me wondered what would happen if I just threw the baby across the room. And then he got to go to work in the morning and spend the whole day with adults doing productive things. He was able to complete projects, drive alone in the car, go to the bathroom without a second thought. I loved him, but also hated him. I became claustrophobic sitting at home, alone with a baby that was seemingly going to be attached to me forever. 

And then when Matt did get home at the end of the day he wanted to occasionally talk about things other than the human I just made. Can you believe it? He clearly didn't care about us at all and loved everything more than us. 

Thank goodness things improved rapidly. Looking back I don't really think they were that hard. I think it was mostly the feeling of not knowing when things were going to get better. In that moment it feels like the rest of your life is going to be sitting in a chair trying to convince your newborn that normal babies like to take naps. There will never be a time when you are not doing that.... Never. It is an overwhelming and lonely feeling. It fades though and now I love having a 9 month old. (I wouldn't go back to having a newborn for anything in the world.)

Once you find yourself pulling out of the pregnant/new baby haze things look different. I realize that Matt waited on me hand and foot when I was pregnant. He made me food, ran out to get anything I needed, or wanted and told me 8 million times a day, no you are not fat. He did 80% of the chores without complaining. He moved the majority of our belongings across town without complaining. Honestly, the guy did not complain. He might have started to complain a little after 5 hours of browsing baby clothes with me. I think that is pretty reasonable though. I, on the other hand, complained every minute on the minute. Everything was horrible. I hated everything and no one in the world was having a worse day than I was. Granted, I still stand by the fact that I had it much worse. But, it isn't the guy's fault that he doesn't have a uterus. 

During my labor I could not have asked for a better partner. He did everything I wanted, mostly without me even asking. He was right there in it with me. I think one of the reasons I never felt afraid was because he was there making sure everything was going to be ok. He loved our baby the minute she was born. He stood over her while the nurses worked on her. That is an image I will never forget. It was a scary situation. Our baby needed help. She wasn't perfect. But as he stood watching over her I knew she was safe. I could see how much he loved her. I knew I could trust him with my daughter's life. 

When we brought our baby home Matt was in the middle of his last semester of undergrad. He was also working part time. He also got up close to five times a night with me. He would get me some water, my nipple shield, change Charlotte's diaper or help rock her to sleep. He would do at least one feeding totally on his own. I needed a break, so we supplemented with formula the first couple months.  As the first few weeks finished up he woke up less often with me and Charlotte woke up less often. 

Around 6 months after she was born the fog started to clear. I got a handle on my new role and started to accept the way things were. I then was able to fully realize how awesome daddies are. I stopped being angry that he will never understand what it was like to be a mom and started to realize that I will never know what it is like to be a daddy. Perhaps it is harder to be a mom sometimes. It is hard to be a mom when you are pregnant and sore or your nipples hurt or when you are so deliriously tired you can't even figure out what time it is. It is probably harder to be a mom when there is a baby, especially if you are the one that stays at home. But, I am willing to bet there are times where it is really hard to be a dad. I bet it is super hard going to school full time as well as working part time. I bet it is hard knowing you have to leave your baby every day and go to work. I bet that gets really old. I bet it is scary to think about all the pressures and responsibilities you have to take care of your family better than the next guy. 

Now, I'm not saying it is easy to be a mom. What I am saying is that it probably isn't easy being a dad either. Thank goodness we have a good one here. 

Hands on daddy!

8 Months

I have had several people in the last couple days ask me how old my baby is. I couldn't believe it when the words "eight months" came out of my mouth. During the last month my life was made immeasurably harder by my mobile baby. It was made insanely more difficult by a baby who has turned intensely clingy. It is also definitely more awesome than another other month because I have a little girl who thinks I am by far the funniest, snuggliest, most fun, awesomest person ever. She wants to  sleep next to me, play with me, snuggle on me, watch me and talk to me all day, every day. I am her favorite person. So, I will try not to complain too much. 

April 24-May 24

Highlights of the Month:

It would be a lie if I told you this was an easy month. It was definitely rough, but there was also some very fun days for all of us. 

We started the month with some family time. Dinner with Tori and Kaitlin on Charlotte's 7 month birthday and then Sarah came to visit for the weekend. Mama had a fun time that weekend at a baby wearing class. It was fun to meet other mamas and Charlotte loved playing with the other babies. There were lots of babies her age. I got to practice some carried with some pretty wraps too. 

Matt finished the 1st semester of graduate school. Hooray daddy! It was a rough couple of weeks at the end, and a final day with 12 hours of homework help from me. He did great this semester. I don't know how he does that while at the same he is being a super hands on daddy to Charlotte and a great husband to me. 

The best day of the whole month was Mother's Day. I always enjoyed having family time on this special day growing up. As a mother I really love mother's day. It was a great day. We went to church and then had the rest of the day to ourselves. This was the first weekend Matt wasn't working on homework in months so it was perfect. We went to Matt's studio at school so he could pack up his stuff from the semester. Then we went to the park, overlooking Lake Michigan and had some snacks, did a crossword puzzle and watched Charlotte roll around on the grass. We went to Starbucks for a treat and then read children's books at my favorite book store. After that I got to pick out the movie we watched at home. I certainly picked a good one. It was a fantastic day. I can't wait to see what next year has in store.

As soon as Matt finished the semester he went back to working full time. This left me without a car for a week. My mind went to a sad place that week. Matt usually carpools with his brother and friend to work, but they switched to the second shift until July. So, Matt had to drive himself. I was stuck at home without a way of seeing any friends or getting to know new friends. I couldn't do errands or just drive to the bookstore. After several breakdowns and real talks Matt told me that he would work the 2nd shift so that he could carpool and I could have the car. He didn't want to see me so depressed. I am loved by a great man. Also, he got a $1 pay raise to work the night shift. So, now he works from 4pm-2am (overtime). It is rough for us and I miss spending time alone with him, but it is only temporary. We get a few hours together in the late morning/afternoon. He gets to see Charlotte more, because she isn't asleep when he is there. We will be VERY happy when this is over.

The happy news for this summer is that my sister moved in with us on May 19th, for the summer. It is a joy to have her around. It is beyond wonderful to have someone to talk to and someone to do stuff with. It is also a huge relief to have some help with Charlotte, especially now that Matt is gone at night. I believe the saying about a village being needed to raise a child. I finally feel like it isn't just Matt and I, but now I have a little bit of the village help as well. Charlotte was a little untrusting at first but she is warming up to her Tante. (Norwegian for aunt) I am even planning a little evening out with Matt for this weekend.

We visited the Children's museum with a friend. I LOVE children's museums and can't wait until Charlotte can really enjoy them in a couple years.

We ended this month with 2 trips to Madison in one week. Charlotte and I went to see our visiting friends Rynn and Caleb. They were visiting from Seattle. I miss them so much and they hadn't seen Charlotte since she was a newborn. We got to see the lovely O'Brien family as well. Charlotte had a blast playing with little Oliver and all his toys. Then a couple days later we went to New Glarus/Madison for Memorial Day weekend. Matt worked on his sister's new floors while Emma and I (and Charlotte) got to visit Kristin in Madison. We had so much fun!

Other things: Charlotte is super clingy to me and I am clearly her favorite, I am watching all of Parks and Rec and I am a little bit more than obsessed and we are clocking in tons of miles every week walking. I shoot for 10 miles a week and with a 20lb baby on my back this gives me a great workout. I have 8 pounds left of baby weight to lose and by the end of the summer it will be gone.

And, with that... Charlotte turned 8 months old.


So, the moral of this story is that some weeks or months are rough. It doesn't mean that my whole life sucks, it doesn't mean that it will always be this way and it doesn't mean that there are not a whole ton of people who love me. It just means that some times certain things suck. Never fail, the optimism in me will live on.

Important Stats:

Eating: Charlotte finally likes food. She is starting to really like it a lot. Here is a list of some of the food she has tried and loved:
-plain toast
-rice crackers
-yogurt... her absolute favorite!
-sweet peas
-apple slices
-frozen blueberries
-sausage
-grilled chicken
-scrambled eggs and hard boiled eggs
-pureed pears with oatmeal
-cuties
-green beans
-bell peppers
-bananas
-quesadilla
Things she doesn't love:
-broccoli
-applesauce
-plain oatmeal
-carrots
There are other things, but these are the ones I remember the best. The things we eat the most are toast, yogurt, eggs and apple slices. Then we just eat whatever veggies or other fruits that are on hand. Usually I give her something for breakfast around 10am and something for dinner around 5pm. Sometimes I skip the dinner meal if I am lazy. But, she chows down at breakfast. Charlotte nurses every 2-3 hours. As much as it was a pain for quite awhile I am starting to think I will miss our nursing snuggles. I was very adamant about being done at 12 months, but now I guess we will just see how it goes.

Sleeping: Hooray! So much better! After the hell that last month was this is heaven. It got so, so bad that it needed to change (at any cost). Doing a cry it out method was hard for me for awhile. We had several failed attempts that led to the month of waking up every 1-2 hours for 10 hours every night. At the start of this month we were all fried. Charlotte was cranky all day, she wouldn't take any naps and Matt and I were just done. So, we did another round of crying it out. It only took a couple nights and Charlotte was sleeping from 8:30-5:30, only waking once for about 5 minutes. This is the schedule she has kept. Her bedtime has moved up a little bit and it is now closer to 8:00, and she wakes up a tiny bit sooner, about 5:00. So, I get her and bring her into bed with me. I nurse her and we both fall back asleep until around 7:00. Naps are still iffy, but she definitely takes them if I am laying next to her. For the most part I am ok with that. I can usually go for an afternoon nap.

Pooping: Grown up poops! Ever since she has starting eat more normal food her poop is awesome. (odd sentence) I'm not sure why people complain about this. No more super watery breast milk poop!

Growing: Now that she is on the go, Charlotte is not gaining weight like she used to. She pretty much didn't gain any this month. I guess I am gonna have to try hard to keep her fat. She did grow an inch, so I think we might have a tall skinny girl on our hands before too long. She is too long for her 9 month clothes now, and it is also getting a little warm out so she is wearing her 12 month summer clothes as well as her footless 9 month clothes. The 12 month onsies are so huge on her though. The pants and shirts fit pretty good, but not the onsies.

nicknames: Char-char (since she likes saying ma-ma I call her char-char)

Charlotte's favorite things during her 8th month:
1. yogurt
2. getting into the movies/books/records
3. pulling herself to her knees
4. going for walks
5. crawling

Mama's favorite things during Charlotte's 8th month:
1. going for walks
2. the moment when Charlotte first crawled across the room to her
3. sleeping through the night
4. Mother's Day

Charlotte's least favorite things during her 8th month:
1. When Mama walks away
2. When Mama takes away the remote
3. Not getting to see grammy and grandpa

Mama's least favorite things during Charlotte's 8th month:
1. super slingy baby
2. baby getting into everything
3. being lonely
4. 2nd shift

Charlotte's new skills

-On May 19th Charlotte did her first official crawl. She crawled across her entire bedroom into my arms. It was easily one of the top 10 best moments of my life.
-She pulls herself up to her knees all the time and almost gets up to her feet
-sleeping through the night

7 Months

I just can't even believe that my baby is 7 months old. She is definitely acting less like a baby and much more like a little person. She has started to very much assert herself. She makes known her likes and dislikes quite loudly. Little tiny babies are so mysterious. Sometimes they cry and sometimes they seem sort of content, usually when they are sleeping. It is hard to know why they are sad or happy or how to fix it, other than with a boob. It is pretty obvious now what Charlotte likes and what makes her angry and the best part is that it is much more obvious how to fix the problem when she is sad. Of course teething throws things for a loop sometimes. It is fun getting to know my daughter as a little person. She obviously can't talk to me yet, but our relationship has grown so much over the last couple months. She likes me and she likes being around me. There are places and toys that make her happy. When she is happy she looks up at me to see if I am happy too. When she is sad she nestles her head into my chest and then everything gets fixed. I am really having fun with her new emotional changes as well as her physical advances. 

We had a fun month too. I love hanging out with my little girl. I am going to make the most of my time with her. 

March 24-April 24

Highlights of the month:

What a fun and busy month we had. I almost feel like it had the start of the summer feeling.  Now that the weather is nicer and Charlotte enjoys seeing the sights so much more we are getting out and enjoying life. 

Charlotte's 6th month birthday was spent in Madison. She also sat up for the first extended length of time by herself. (longer than 30 seconds or so) We had a quick visit from grandpa and grammy at the start of the month. Those are always welcome breaks from reality. 

Charlotte had her 6 month appointment a couple days later. It was not very exciting. She got her last couple of shots until she is 1. She is doing well otherwise. Right on track for everything and growing like a weed. Still in the 75ish percentile for weight and 85ish percentile for height. She got a prescription for some eczema lotion, since her skin was kind of bad and something to put in her eye to hopefully help a little with the tear duct goop issue. Charlotte seemed to have perhaps gotten a a bit of a bug from her daddy. This resulted in diarrhea 5 or 6 times a day for a couple of days. The doctor wasn't really concerned since she was eating a lot and acting alright. It got better a couple of days later.

The next day we went on our very first family trip to the zoo. It was such a great day. It was the last free day of the cold season, so it was very crowded. There were moments that it was too crowded, but overall very much worth it. I think Charlotte had a fun time and then she passed out on mama. We will be going back again at some point this summer. Things like that are so much more fun with a little girl. I can't wait until she can really see all the animal and I can really tell her about them. 

Then a few days later Charlotte and I took another little trip to New Glarus. Sometimes we just like to not be home. Also we can't get enough of grandma and grandpa's house, and of course they can't get enough of her. It was a relaxing couple of days. We went to the Madison zoo with Aunt Sarah before heading to New Glarus. Then we just hung out for the next 48 hours. I highly recommend it. We were definitely glad to get home and see daddy though. 

The next week Charlotte got her first tooth. The two bottom teeth had been obvious under her gum for about a week and a half before the first one popped through. It officially came through on April 17th. I noticed it that morning when she chomped down on my finger. The second tooth on the bottom came through a few days later on April 21st. The are still not very visible, but definitely getting there. I can't wait till you can see them well. I love when babies have those two little bottom teeth. Also, I am hoping they help with the eating thing.

We wrapped up the month with Easter. We went to New Glarus for Easter. It was a glorious weekend with amazing weather. The day before Easter we spent the day in Madison doing my favorite things. We went to the first farmer's market of the year, we explored the capitol building, we strolled State St., we ate breakfast food for lunch and we hung out with friends. Easter was a casual day with family. We went to church, had a great lunch, played outside, took a nap and watched some TV. 

Oh, and this week daddy had his first softball game of the year. He joined our church's team. It was so much fun to watch. Charlotte however was NOT a fan of the cheering people. Perhaps because it was almost her bed time or the fact that there were so many strangers. But, every time someone would even be remotely she would start sobbing. So, I could cheer at all. We have them every week for the next few months, so hopefully she will get used to it soon. 

Important Stats:

Eating: The food situation is starting to improve. Charlotte's opinion of real food is slowly starting to get better. I bought some of those super gross mesh bag things and tried frozen bananas in one. The seemed to be the first thing she actually enjoyed eating. We have also done oranges and frozen blueberries in there that that is her favorite. She eats a lot of normal food just cut up now as well. I give her apple slices and she likes those. She has tried some bread and broccoli potato spears and a few other things. She has had some store bought baby food, because it was convenient while traveling this month. There are a couple of those she really likes. One with yogurt was delicious and she LOVED her rice pudding one. She also snacks on baby rice crackers sometimes too. Nursing is still going well. She is nursing as much as ever and I don't mind. She can get pretty distracted, but then we usually try again a little later and she can focus better. 

Sleeping: Hell, pure hell. As I said last month the week of spring break we got very little sleep. Charlotte went from sleeping 5 or 6 hours and then another 3 or 4 to waking up every 2 hours, or less. When we got back home we tried some cry it out sleep training. After a couple nights of crying she was fine, went right to sleep and slept for quite awhile. We would do a dream feed in the early morning. Then that dream feed kept moving earlier and earlier and then she was back to waking up every 2 hours. She eats more often at night than during the day. We have made attempts to do the sleep training over again. It has been easier to just get up every couple hours for a few minutes rather than deal with our screamer. I am definitely reaching the end of my rope, so there will be changes soon. On the plus side she has started to actually take naps during the day. She will take a nap a little before noon for about an hour and then usually one in the late afternoon, although that one isn't as predictable.

Pooping: Ever since she got that stomach bug at the beginning of April she went from being a one poop a day girl to a 2 or 3 poop a day girl. It has helped a little with the poop explosions. 

Growing: She has grown out of all her 6 month clothes and is in all 9 month clothes now. The only summer clothes she has are in 12 months so if the weather improves in the next couple weeks she will probably be wearing baggy 12 month clothes. She is up another pound. I can't believe she is almost 20 pounds. 

nicknames: crazy one, rollie pollie

Charlotte's favorite things during her 7th month:
1. yelling and grunting like a crazy person
2. rolling and scooting across the house
3. blueberries
4. mama

Mama's favorite things during Charlotte's 6th month:
1. fitting into her pre baby jeans
2. watching Charlotte really start to enjoy her toys
3. listening to Charlotte say "ma-ma-ma-ma"

Charlotte's least favorite things during her 7th month:
1. sleeping at night
2. teething
3. when mama leaves the room

Mama's least favorite things during Charlotte's 7th month:
1. not getting consecutive sleep at night
2. teething
3. baby proofing 

Charlotte's new skills
saying "ba-ba-ba", "da-da-da" and "ma-ma-ma"
sort of a pre crawling scoot
majorly improved fine motor skills and the ability to pick up really little things
can stand briefly, holding onto something, if I put her in that position