It's true when they say time really flies with a baby! Somehow this chick is already three months old! This month was a big one for her with all different milestones she reached. She definetley got more personality along with spunk! After each monthly update I tell myself , "this was my favorite month!" Only to discover the next is even better! She just gets cuter and more fun each month, if that's even possible!
Weight & Height - Baby girl is getting solid. She's got the cutest chunky little arms & legs and neck rolls that require cleaning daily after her messy feedings! We didn't have a check up this month but our scale at home claims she is 13lbs and I'm guessing she is about 23 inches tall. She's outgrown most of her newborn clothes, fits nicely in 0-3 months and is slowly growing into some 3-6 months. Still in size 2 diapers with the occasional blowout unfortunately,
Sleep - I would like to claim that she has been sleeping 6-7 hour stretches at night but that only happened about half of this month. Sadly, she got her second round of the cold this past month which caused her to struggle sleeping long lengths at night with her runny nose. I'm crossing my fingers that she'll get back to those longer hours now that she's on the mend! She does sleep in her dockatot consistently each night and only on my chest in the am after dad leaves for work but that is mostly for my sake. We enjoy a good morning nap together! She is still getting about 5-6 naps in a day just depending on where we are and what we're doing that day. Grace mostly prefers mom to get her to sleep but Dad has been getting better and occasionally she has gone to sleep with other people.
Eat - I'm happy to report that supplementing with formula has gone pretty well! No bad reactions and she seems to like it. We are up to 4oz of formula mixed with 4oz of breastmilk. She'll usually eat 4oz per feeding IF she can stop talking and smiling at me long enough to finish! After a nap or first thing in the morning she is ready to eat immediately! In fact if a bottle isn't close by she will freak. She is little Miss impatient when it comes to feeding time!
Recent Milestones - The absolute best was her laugh!! It just came out of nowhere one day when I was talking to her and almost made me cry! I was lucky enough to get it on camera the same day for Ethan to hear! She's done it a couple times this month after a lot of coaxing but I'm excited to see it more in the future because it's pretty darn adorable! This month she also seemed to have found her fists and figured out how to get them to her mouth. I guess that stage of "everything goes in the mouth" is starting already. Grace has gotten better at diaper/clothe changes and doesn't cry like she used to which is so nice! She has started to rub her eyes when she's tired so it's easier to see when she's ready for naps. One thing I didn't expect this early on is "stranger danger". She's really a mommas girl but still enjoys other people about half of the time! Grace is starting to learn to grab at things, like my fingers or her toys! She doesn't always get it or hold on very long but it's fun to watch her try! My least favorite milestone she's almost picked up is being able to roll over from her belly to her back. Only because I set her on the couch when I'm doing things and if she slides herself down and onto her stomach then she can roll off trying to get to her back. Luckily I caught her after her first attempt so we will just have to take more precautions!
Special Moments – Grace had a couple of firsts this month. First time swimming - in a hot tub heated to an acceptable temperature. She didn't mind it but didn't last long due to it being her nap time. She's really starting to enjoy her baths so I have high hopes for her next time swimming. She also had her first outing to church! We had to go out to the hall a couple of times and stand at the back so she would sleep. I'm still a little nervous to have a lot of people ask to hold her, especially in relief society. I'm hoping that because we are still new to the ward that won't happen. Over all church will be a whole different experience with a baby but we are happy to be back!
Dislikes -I'm not sure she'll ever agree with her car seat but I'm happy to report she has gotten better! I credit it to the fact that she's older and is able to get distracted by other things now like white noise, her binky, pictures/videos on my phone or holding my hand reaching back. Her favorite is a picture of the three of us that really seems to keep her attention.
Mommy Update: I am officially working for the dental office again running their social media. I've really missed being at the office for the social aspect, but by being able to stop in now and then to go over ideas or giveaways, it has been great! As much as I miss it, I would miss my baby girl too much to go back fulltime. I'm also working on trying to get a workout in each day as well as a walk. I'm just barely above my pre-baby weight so I'm trying to step up my game and get there and then not stop! That high you get from working out is something I need and crave staying at home. I find I'm more productive around the house and more motivated the days I work out. I also need that motivation to get out and be social. It's tough to find the energy to meet up with friends honestly but most of that is just due to Grace hating her car seat. It's just easier to stay home with her but I don't want to base my level of activity and interaction for the day based on a 10-15 min car ride with a "sometimes" unhappy baby! My goals for myself each day are to get in at least one household chore, eat three healthy meals, be active by going on a walk or workout sometimes both, watch/listen to a conference talk and try to do something for someone else. My biggest goal that Ethan looks forward to and encourages is to have dinner ready or started when he comes home! Especially now that Grace will let me set her down for periods of time. I've been doing meal plans by the week with my sister Whitney and we have been going to Costco and splitting groceries so they don't go bad too fast! I really do hope to be able to refer to myself as a good cook someday!
Things I look forward to in month four are hearing her laugh more and getting more vocal! She seems like once she really knows how to use her voice she'll be hard to stop because even now she's already making all these shapes with her mouth like she is trying so hard! She has started to use her arms and hands more so it will be fun to see her reach for us! And most of all... her blessing day, which has been put off due to a busy couple of months and flu season! Hopefully she will sleep through it even though she'll be practically a toddler compared to the age most babies are blessed at!
** Goals for next month **
1. Get her fully transitioned over to formula.
2. Learn and experiment with more ways to help her enjoy her car seat. (Looks like I'll have to keep this goal up every month sadly)
3 . Help her practice her hand-eye coordination so she can hold toys and be able to entertain herself with them for a while.
Monthly Photo Dump
(click to enlarge)
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