Nap wars

Our nighttime sleeping issues are (thankfully!) mostly resolved. I think those crazy teeth have done all their deep moving around, which is supposed to be the most painful part of teething, and now we're just waiting for them to break through. Napping, though, remains a bit elusive. For the last week or so she wakes up after a mere 30 minutes and getting her back to sleep in the crib is near impossible. Enter my new best friend.... Ergo.

I took my Ergo (a fancy-schmanzy baby carrier that a fabulous friend bought for me) to Ethiopia and it proved invaluable during all the airport time on our trip home. Since then it has come in handy for those times when I need my hands free while also carrying her but since she has to face inward, Isa B doesn't really like to be in it unless we're out and about. My girl doesn't want to be tethered in if we're just hanging around. But, she LOVES to sleep in the thing. Heck, if I could get strapped onto someone's chest for a nap, I'd probably love it too. All cozy and warm with the comforting sound of a heartbeat....

So, I try to keep the Ergo handy at all times. I put her down for her nap in the crib and then whenever she happens to wake up I speedily throw the Ergo on, in goes Isa, and the nap continues. The other plus is that, unlike having her in my arms (also a favorite sleeping place) I can go about my day to a certain extent. This is also a savior when I have to go into the office to work. I try to time it around a nap so that I know I'll have at least 1 1/2 hours of uninterrupted, nap-in-the-Ergo time. The clicking of the keyboard and even the loud printer don't wake her up! I realize that the experts would consider this poor sleep training but unless the experts want to come hang out with my baby on less than an hour of napping, this is our new solution!

On the theme of sleep, sometimes morning in general is just too exhausting for her. Earlier this week she fell asleep in my arms a mere 2 hours after waking up. It was a brief nap but she looked so darn adorable.....

A typical morning in Casa B

I thought it would be a good idea to chronicle the little ho-hum details of life with Isa B. Since my sleep-deprived brain can barely remember one day from the other, I need to document things or I may have no recollection at all..... So, here is our morning routine:
Isa B wakes up no later than 6:05 a.m. For the last couple days, I've gone in and put her Discovery Elephant in the crib to buy me a little extra time. (Note to other moms- keep a toy in reserve for this purpose; do not let this toy come out at any other time for fear that it will stop holding her interest in the wee hours of the morning) I can't just *poof* wake up and be ready to go like Isa. The Elephant gets me an extra 15 minutes, tops. Eventually, I am forced out of my bed again, for good...
We shuffle to the couch where Isa B chats up a storm with the kitty and I attempt to keep her from rolling off while leaving my eyes closed as long as possible.
Like clockwork, Isa B demands a bottle at 6:30. Unfortunately, she has now reached a weight and squirm level that I cannot hold her and fix a bottle at the same time. She does not appreciate being left in the living room and cries the entire time I am in the kitchen (perhaps 3 minutes). Sadly, the kitty assumes that as soon as I enter the kitchen, I will also feed him. Poor guy- that really did used to be the case. Since his meows are nothing in comparison to Isa B's wails he must go hungry for a bit longer.
Placated by a few ounces, Isa B will allow herself to be put down and play on the floor. I make coffee and feed the cat. Tomorrow I will have coffee from a brand new coffee maker. When I pulled the carafe out this morning, the filter cup came flying off as well. I was splattered by scalding water and coffee grounds; a lovely start to the morning. Happily, my first cup of caffeine isn't usually accompanied by skin burns and swearing. I start to feel human.
Playtime lasts a mere 20 minutes and about 7 a.m. Isa is strapped into her highchair for a feast of Cheerios and baby yogurt. This week she has decided that she would eat fruit (finally!) and we also have Kix to keep the breakfast menu interesting. I get to drink my coffee and eat my breakfast after she is done by attaching a few toys to the highchair. Must be quick because her attention span is pretty short.
Next we clean up. Happily, Isa B is willing to sit in her little rockingchair and play with toys while I shower. Because of that short attention span, in order to actually get dressed, I usually have to sing several rounds of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star or The Wheels on the Bus. I have also discovered that Old MacDonald is handy as it can have any many verses as I need. Every other day Isa B gets a bath as well, which she really enjoys. She typically melts down when it's time to get dressed, though. I still haven't figured out why putting on a onesie is such a traumatic experience, but apparently it is.
And that's how we start our day. Not exactly exciting, but it means everyone gets fed and dressed!

2 months in

Tomorrow will mark 2 months since we arrived home from Ethiopia. 2 months. It feels like Isa's been here forever- how can it only be 2 months? And at the same time is there a way to get the time to pass slower???? I can't believe how much she's grown both physically and in personality. She's not the little, bitty baby content to just hang out in your arms anymore (although she is still fairly snuggly). Does every parent have the same terrified feeling that it's all flying by too quickly? Anyone figured out how to keep them small for longer?

Things I've learned about Isa B:

- she loves texture: satin, fleece, anything interesting for her fingers
- her favorite song is Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star (followed closely by The Wheels on the Bus)
- she adores animals and squeals in delight whenever she sees one
- she loves to bounce: in the exersaucer, on my lap, she even bounces her legs in bed
- she has an amazing belly laugh when she really gets going
- she loves shiny and sparkly things (a girl after my own heart)
- one of her favorite places to nap is lying on my chest (learned that one in Ethiopia!)
- she doesn't like the sound of either the hair dryer or the Dust Buster
- her favorite food is sweet potatoes

And the list could go on and on. Her little personality just gets bigger each day!

Happy Birthday Baby...

Yesterday was Isa B's 8 month birthday. And how did we celebrate, you might ask???? I locked the keys and Isa in the car when we got home from our Mommy and Me group. Yep.

Extreme panic and hyperventilation ensued (on my part- Isa was still asleep at that point). I didn't even have a phone since that was in the diaper bag, in the car. The other key to my car is with my parents, who are visiting my brother in Kansas City right now. Luckily, a few houses down is another mom who had just gotten home with her little one from grocery shopping. She was levelheaded enough to call a locksmith and attempt to keep me as calm as possible. The locksmith was out to pop open the door PDQ. Of course, by this time Isa is crying because she doesn't understand why I'm staring at her through the car window and not getting her out. I'm crying because I feel so completely inept as a mom.

Apparently this is not all that uncommon. The locksmith told me so and another mom I spoke with last night said she'd done it. Isa B is completely over it and had no issues getting strapped into the carseat this morning when we went swimming. I, however, am still fairly traumatized...

So, if you want to feel like an incompetent mom, then by all means lock your baby and the keys in the car. Otherwise, I really don't recommend it!

I scream, you scream

And, no, I wasn't actually feeding her ice cream!

Although if I thought it would help with the teething, I might be tempted to try it.... I can tell that at times is just HURTS. It breaks my heart to hear her crying and see her grimacing in pain. At least with hunger, I can fix it. I can only do so much about the teething. It seems to be worse at night, so I give her a dose of ibuprofen before bedtime. You can almost see the moment when it kicks in. Her gums are very, very bumpy at this point and I'm hoping those little teeth make an appearance soon. (In my fondest dreams, I'm hoping all 4 of the fronts come in at once so we can be done with this ickiness for a while.)

While we wait on the teeth, she tried Cheerios for the first time today. It was really adorable watching her figure out how to gum them up. I wish I'd taken pictures of the face she made when I put the first one in her mouth. After a few, though, she was a pro! Still not so great at picking them up and getting them into her mouth, but she made a great effort. Only half a dozen or so ended up on the floor. :)

Mommy moments

Ever-so-often, usually out of the blue, I have "Mommy moment." The kind where it suddenly washes over you just how amazing it is to be entrusted with this fabulous little being.

I have a Mommy moment almost every time she lays her head down on my chest when she's tired. Does anything feel better than a baby melting into you? I get them on the mornings when she starts crying to get up, then just lights up when my face finally appears over the crib. I still can't sing her "You Are My Sunshine" without bursting into tears because of just how full my heart swells.

I have been trying to get back into the swing of my contract jobs for the last couple weeks with little success. After putting Isa to bed it's very tough to make myself sit down at the computer and work for 3 hours. All I want to do is go curl up in bed or read a book or simply veg in front of the TV. On Monday I was especially exhausted from the complete sleep meltdown of the previous night. Then, at our Mommy & Me group, she rolled over to her tummy for the first time. And I had yet another Mommy moment.

And I realized THAT is how I will find the energy to get the work done- so I can be there to see all those amazing firsts. I never thought as a single mom that I'd be able to essentially be a stay at home mom. I need to take advantage of that opportunity. Because everything else just kind of pales in comparison with the joy of a Mommy moment.

To sleep or not to sleep

Currently the answer is "not" in our house.....

The night before her baptism Isa slept from 7-12 and then from 12 all the way to 5 a.m.!!! Never before had 5 a.m. seemed so wonderful. I was hopeful that starting solids would mean that she finally started sleeping in blocks longer than 3 hours. I was thrilled.

Alas, it wasn't to be. For the last several nights, she's been waking up every few hours and isn't able to soothe herself back to sleep. She'll wake up and cry. I'll go in and put her pacifier back in. That used to work but ooh, boy, last night....... From around 1 to 3 a.m., I think she woke up every 1/2 hour if not more often. Nothing could keep her asleep. She slept peacefully when I was holding her in my arms but that wasn't really a viable position for the entire night. Suddenly those 3 uninterrupted hours are starting to look pretty good!

I'm hoping the sleeping problems are the result of either (or both) of these things: teething and new developmental milestones. Her crying definitely sounds like "I'm in pain" more than just "Mom, I'm lonely" or "I'm hungry" the way it used to. She doesn't have a fever or any other symptoms, so I don't think she's sick- teething seems the logical explanation. I'm trying a variety of things for the teething and just praying that they hurry up and get through her gums!

As for the milestones, today Isa figured out how to roll from her back to her front! She was SOOOO proud of herself. Later in the afternoon, I had her on a blanket in the kitchen while I unpacked the groceries and when I looked back she'd rolled all the way down the length of the blanket. I guess I can't put her down on the floor and expect her to stay put anymore while I do little errands around the house! Darn... An immobile baby is much, much easier to deal with. And now I suppose I have to start Swiffering my floors on a more regular basis. :)

Isa showing off her new skill:

Further proof of her talent: here's my girl already practicing to be a prima ballerina. Mommy's so proud!