Stand up, Sit down...Fight, Fight Fight!

I remember my dad telling me the story of when I figured out how to stand up in my crib and how it was a complete debacle because I wouldn't go to sleep. Every time my parents laid me down and left the room, I popped right back up and talked and yelled until they came back in.
At no point during this story did it ever occur that Sophia would do that....rookie mistake. Sophia figured out to pull up on things last week. We made it about 4 days before she realized this also applied to her crib.
At first we reverted back to the tried and true method of holding her and rocking/swaying her to sleep. I must say its very sweet and special to have your child fall asleep on you. However, after 4 days of doing this for 2 naps per day and bedtime...the novelty again wears thin. If you would like to know why that is so do the following:
Get 20 pound sack of potatoes. Begin swinging a 20 pound sack of potatoes (which also has arms to grab at your face and neck and a mouth full of little teeth just wanting to chomp down on something) side to side slowly for about 20 minutes. Then slowly as not to wake the very sensitive potatoes, lower the bag into an awaiting crib. Finally release the potatoes into said crib without jostling them or upsetting or startling them. If you cannot do this successfully, repeat!
Needless to say that last night Bill and I were over this new Sophia development. She was not. So, we decided no more rocking.....sounds SO easy. Yeah right. It took about 45 minutes of the following: Kiss Sophia good night, put her on her back in the crib, leave the room. Watch on the video monitor as she promptly flips over, crawls to the crib rail, pulls her self up and celebrates by talking, squealing etc. Eventually she begins to tire so she starts whining. Go back in, kiss, put down, leave. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. You get the idea. Finally, she thankfully gave up on us and sat down on her butt, rolled onto her belly and went to sleep! Sneaking little thing has been able to do that all along :P

It's A Nap Time Miracle

Location: My house

Time: 3:02 p.m. January 13th, 2011

Sophia's Motto

A miracle has occurred. Ok maybe not to most people but to me, hell yes! I will say that although Sophia is a great baby and very easy going...she seems to detest afternoon naps. Morning naps , no problem...9:00 right on schedule she goes down and goes to sleep. Afternoon naps are a whole different story! I feel like I need to put on my battle gear for afternoon nap time. Nap time battle gear would include....earplugs, advil, waterproof vest, a harness to help with rocking/swaying, and a victory shot if successful. 

Anyway today, nothing worked. Rocking, swaying, sound machine, mobile, no mobile, snuggling, you name it. I had lost nap time battle #52 ( this number could be higher, its just an estimate because if I kept track I might loose my mind). I gave up and decided we would have a bottle (no I didn't have one but I shot out of a bottle may have been nice) and then I would put her in the car and drive. Driving ensures passing out. However, I had nowhere to go, I am sick and I am tired. But driving was inevitable and much preferred to the grumpy baby that would have emerged around 4:30. So, I went with that plan and gave Sophia her bottle which she now feeds to herself. 

And suddenly the miracle began to happen...she started falling asleep while she drank her bottle....in a brightly lit room...without any rocking....nothing. I leapt into action!!! Snatched her up, went upstairs, finished the bottle in the rocker and she was ASLEEP! YES!!! After 1 and a half hours from starting nap time, Sophia was asleep! Thank you nap time angels..this blog has been made possible by you. 

List of Things I Have Caught Sophia Playing With...

Hmmm....what can I get into today? 

So I am a good mom, I swear. I am vigilant. I am ever present. I am on top of it. But damn it if babies can't get into stuff quicker than you can say "oh no".
Here is the list. It will be updated as I am sure there will be more. Please don't call CPS....
- a wooden frame
- my running shoes
- her shoes
- the remote control (somehow she got into the DVRed shows!)
- the dog's water bowl
- a floor mat
- the dishwasher ( I was right there and she was ADAMANT that the door to the dishwasher must be a toy for her while I was trying to unload it)
- her highchair (she was trying to pull herself out of her walker by pulling up on it)
- the gate designed to keep her in was very fun to open and close (I was there)
Upate:
- the foam corner protectors that she pulled off the stone fireplace
- her nail clippers (they are safety clippers so she couldn't hurt herself but still)
- the curtains (picture a little baby tarzan)
- socks
- sneakers (new no shoe rule in effect for baby zones)
- books pulled off of bookshelf
- DVDS pulled out of cabinet

teething...what a son of a bitch

Let me preface this post by saying as far as teething goes, we have it easy. Sophia is pretty low key about it and rarely if ever fusses or cries and there is a minimal amount of drool as well.
However, teething is just not fun for anyone involved. Think about it...teeth pushing up through the gums and breaking the surface...no thanks. If this happened to adults we would most likely be immobilized for days. Teething by the way does not last for days or even weeks...its MONTHS long. Right now Sophia has 4 teeth fully through the gums and 2 more partially through for a total of 6. We have how many teeth? 20. That means 14 more to go. Poor thing and Sophia too. Just kidding!!
So last night Sophia went to bed a little early due to the nap boycott (whole other blog there!) in the afternoon. We settle in for a nice peaceful night of TV, reading and bed. And then the crying starts. She is crying in her sleep which of course wakes her up :( Her little teeth are making her uncomfortable and she is squirming and whining and moaning and chewing on her little hands. This goes on for about an hour....we take turns quieting her down and getting her back to sleep. And even after she is finally asleep there are a few tense minutes where we watch the monitor...whispering "go to sleep, go to sleep, go to sleep".
And she did. And so did we. Hopefully we will not have a repeat tonight.

Nap Time and Lunch Dates with a 9 Month Old

So the old adage about "once you get used to something, it changes" should be what they teach you about babies in the infant care classes! Diapering is a cinch, bathing no problem, infants are easy (minus the 2 hours of sleep at a time thing)...9 month olds...where is that class?

Nap Time.....

This is a picture of my adorable daughter during NAP TIME. Yes, this is what happens when they learn to pull themselves up on things. And this was the THIRD time I had gone in to put her back down in about 5 minutes. Note the "I am SO proud of myself" grin on her little face. So there I was holding and rocking my 20 lb baby back to sleep. We will be putting the crib all the way down to the bottom tonight! Oh and just so you know..just because they can get themselves up, doesn't mean they know how to get themselves down.

Lunch Date 

Recently I went out with a friend for lunch. Sounds nice. If you don't have a baby you are thinking...meet up whenever, where ever, hang out, shoot the breeze, maybe have a cocktail, take your time, the norm.
If you have a baby or kids...you know differently. So in order to "do lunch" here is what it's like for me and Sophia. Pick a place that is easy to get in and out (just in case), must be baby friendly so no place too fancy. Then get "the stuff" which includes the diaper bag stuffed with diapers, wipes, toys, wipes for the toys that will definitely end up on the ground repeatedly, bottles, bibs, baby food, spoon, finger foods, hand wipes for you and the baby. Then your stuff which is now a wallet, cell phone (for calls and baby amusement...there are apps for that!) and your keys (also a great baby entertainer). Shove that stuff where ever because you don't want to have to lug around your purse and the diaper bag.
Ok, now find a good parking spot. This used to be right up front...not any more. I mean its a plus if that happens but mostly you need a spot where you can open your back door up as wide as possible so that you can get the baby and the stuff in and out without be wedged in or dinging someones door. Ok, now get the stuff and the baby who is currently bundled up like "The Christmas Story" and get into the restaurant.
Once you're in.... pray there is no wait. Waiting with wiggly baby that wants to grab everything and also crawl on the gross floor is not fun. If there is no wait, you go the table and situate the baby which now involves a high chair. Get the baby in, wipe down all accessible surfaces with a disinfecting wipe... because effectively whatever baby touches goes in their mouth (gag). Next get out a variety of baby toys and watch them all go onto the floor within a minute. Pick up, wipe them down and repeat about 50 times (no I'm not kidding). In this time figure out what you're going to eat and order. The menu btw is a great baby entertainer, just make sure that they don't clear the table with it.
Now get some food in you and food in the baby in the quickest, quietest and neatest way humanly possible. Be sure not to leave your soda/drink too close (Val;) or it will end up all over the table!
All in all, if you get out full and not covered in food, soda or anything else, your baby didn't cry and no one around you shot you more than 3 "Can't you keep that baby under control" looks, it was a good meal!

sleeping in

Sleeping in has taken on a completely new meaning. FIrst of all I am very lucky that Bill likes to have "daddy-daughter" time on the weekend mornings and lets me sleep while he gets up with Sophia. He is the best. But sleeping in is just not as easy as it used to be. I have to close the bedroom door and turn on the bathroom fan to block out any noise because if I hear Sophia up, I can't sleep. Either I miss her or I feel guilty that I am sleeping. But seeing her little face light up because I walked into the room is worth another hour of sleep :)

back on track....

Sophia on her Birth day

Sophia - 9 months later

So here I am back on blogging track. I hope to do this everyday so that I can look back and see what transpired while I was a 'new' mom getting her bearings. In the past week Sophia has gone from lackadaisical scooting around on her belly like an inchworm to full out crawling. She has also learned how to pull herself up on things...like the couch. She can clap and wave "bye-bye" but not when you want her to do so. Her new thing is to make noises with the spit in her mouth and turn her mobile on at will. Oh and the "stevie wonder" head thing is pretty entertaining as well. She still happy all the time and doesn't really cry unless she is hurt, scared or really tired.   Happy 9 Month Birthday to my Sophia Jane!

next chapter indeed

Well tomorrow my "baby" will be 9 months old. She has been an outside baby as long as she was an inside baby. She is crawling, "talking', pulling up on things, clapping, laughing and really becoming her own little person. Its amazing.
Obviously I haven't blogged since April and its January...the months in between would be pages of thoughts, tears and craziness. I will sum it up as this:
Breastfeeding was not a success.
Postpartum depression is real and powerful.
Meds are good.
I have my own business.
I never want to go back to teaching.
Being a mom and a wife are natural. Finding yourself again can be tough.
Me time is a must and a must do more.