Little girl, how are you FOUR months old already?? It seems like just yesterday we brought you home from the hospital and you would cuddle up to us and sleep all day! It's amazing what a difference four months makes! You are awake so much more now, and you are so alert, happy and talk all the time! You have changed a lot this month!
You went to the doctor today and you weigh 15.5 lbs! You are in the 82% for weight. You are 26 in. long, which is the 95%! Wow! You are tall, girlie! No wonder why your pants are all too short and your feet are pushing our of those sleepers! You are wearing 6-9 month clothes already! You can still fit into 3-6 month things, but most of the pants are too short. Your doctor says you can start trying cereal and some baby foods now! I can't wait to try them with you! I have a feeling you are going to like eating!
You are talking so much now! You look up at me with this huge grin and you'll just start making adorable noises while looking right at me. I know you are talking to me! You love it when I talk back to you and smile at you. We have nice long conversations, you and me! You also love it when Andrew looks at you and you will talk to him and smile so big! He loves it!
You are just a little diva. Everyone teases mommy because they say you are never without a bow in your hair! Ha! I suppose that's true. But I just dreamed for so long of dressing up a little girl, I just can't help it!
I mean seriously? Look how stinkin cute you are! You have the most adorable clothes (most of them given to you by your "big sister" Lilly) and the bows just complete the outfits! They just don't look the same without one! Ha! People can't believe that you don't pull them off, and you don't... yet! I am starting you early so you'll always wear a bow in your hair! (I can dream, right?)
You are practicing sitting up already! You can do it pretty well sitting in the boppy and your bumbo chair. I love the picture on the right, you are just chillin'!
Little girl, you rolled over on October 21 (I took this right after you did it for the first time)! You are so funny because for almost the whole month you would stay on your tummy for a while, but then you'd get mad because you couldn't get back over! But you surprised us the other day and just rolled back over from your tummy to your back (November 11)! You wanted it to be included in this update I think, since it was one day before you were 4 months old! You also scoot all over the place. I'll put you in one spot and I'll come back and you'll be clear across the floor!
So, you can see that you are winning this paci vs. fingers war! Ha! You much prefer to suck on your fingers, which I have to admit I do think is pretty cute! That is, until someday when I'm sure you will touch something gross and then do it! You will still take a paci to fall asleep though. When you are tired I just give you the paci and rub your little bunny blankie by your face. It works every time. You don't stay asleep in your crib for very long naps though. Usually after a half hour you are done but you will go right back to sleep if I hold you. Stinker! Before mommy went back to work, sometimes when brother was at school I would pull you in bed with me and we both took a nap! I love nothing more little girl! Snuggling with you is my favorite pasttime! You used to sleep so great in your swing, but those days are over because you already try to arch your back and get out of it! You want to be a big girl!
You are sleeping so much better at night! Your schedule during the day is still crazy (but getting better with day care) but you usually drink your last bottle about the same time every night, between 9pm and 10pm. Then you are usually awake for a while wanting to "play" and talk to daddy and me while we are trying to watch our shows! Ha! Gone are the days where you would cuddle up to us and sleep for hours while we watched shows! Anyway, you will usually fall asleep by 10 or 10:30 and we hold you for a little while and then put you in your crib. You almost always sleep until 6:00. Once in a while I hear you stirring on the monitor around 3 or 4 so I go in and put your paci in, then you drift back to sleep.
You love your new excersaucer. You will just look at everything and try to grab at things. You like to sit up in the Bumbo chair, or just be on your activity gym. I always put you on your back, but you always end up on your tummy! You can reach your head up much higher now and stay on your tummy for longer. You are starting to figure out how to push up on your arms. You can sit up for short periods of time in the boppy. You sit forward any time we lay you back on something (car seat, bouncy, swing). Your little head comes forward like you just want to be independent and sit up by yourself!
Sweet girl, it has been a hard transition with mommy going back to work and leaving you at day care. Even though you are doing great and all the girls love you, my heart breaks every time I leave you and we are apart all day. I am terrified that you will think I deserted you. Thank goodness big brother is there so you have a familiar face when he comes to see you in your room. Your day care teachers tell me every day how smiley and adorable you are. They also tell me you are way ahead of lots of the babies in there because you do tummy time so well and roll over! I am so proud of you!
But I do long for those days we used to sleep in and snuggle during your nap times. I miss our special days of shopping together, or just sitting with you on the floor and looking into your eyes and watching you smile. I miss you baby girl! Of course we are still together in the evenings and weekends. But it's just not the same.
Sometimes I feel so guilty, because your brother got to stay home with me when he was a baby like you. But then I have to stop and thank God, because you are healthy. You are able to go to day care. You are hitting your milestones and don't need all the therapies that Andrew did. You don't have appointments with cardiologists and audiologists and geneticists... you don't need synagis shots every month to protect you from RSV. You don't have a home health nurse and I never have to worry about you turning blue. I am so grateful for all of these things. But I am also sad to leave you because you are my last baby. My precious daughter that I have dreamed about my whole life. I feel cheated out of time with you. I just want to soak in this time because I know that someday soon, you will be begging me to paint your nails and have tea parties and play dress up and wanting to play with your friends and you will not be my sweet baby anymore.
But ya know what girlie? You will always be my baby. Forever. And I will always love you... to the moon and back!
