I'm officially the mother of a 5 month old. (Pictures on facebook!) Which, in our case, means I'm back to feeling inept again. I had just sort of "figured her out," and now all bets are off and she's a puzzle every day. Take naptime. I'm trying to "wean" her from her requirement of either sleeping in the swing, her carseat (while driving - car stops and those eyes pop open faster than I can open the door), or my arms. But she isn't a fan of sleeping in her bed unswaddled... (we swaddle her at night still - which is a whole 'nother story for another paragraph). So it's usually a series of very short naps until waking herself with flailing arms... this repeats until she finally exhausts herself and sleeps deeply for an hour or more. I'm not sure it is working... or if it is even worth it. Maybe I should just rely on the swing.
So swaddling... yeah... we have a Miracle Blanket, which is seriously a miracle-worker, in my humble opinion. But at 5 months old, she is just now outgrowing it and strong enough to work her way out of it in the middle of the night. At which point those night monsters known as flailing arms promptly wake her up. (She's always woken up 2-3 times a night... she hasn't been a "sleep through the night" kind of baby. But usually when she wakes to eat, she is just barely stirring and goes back to sleep easily. When the arm monsters attack, she wakes all the way up.) So, I'm stuck between trying to decide if it is time to "wean" her from that as well. Or maybe enlist the help of one of my sewing friends to whip up a larger-sized one. But I'm not sure if I still want to be swaddling her at 17. Taking the easy way out now and figuring out a way to continue swaddling is awfully tempting though, especially when it concerns my sleep. Thoughts anyone?
Cora has entered the world of temporary childcare, and she is not a fan. During my Bible study and at the YMCA, she's spending a few hours a week in the nursery. I've been impressed with both places and the quality of care, but I think it is too loud for Cora, as she seems to have a nervous breakdown each and every time, which results in me getting paged to come pick her up. I'm thinking I want to keep pushing through it a little bit longer, though. For one, in my first pilates class today, I discovered that childbirth left me with no abdominal muscles at all, and I think that needs to be addressed. I'm honestly too lazy to do it on my own, so a class is good motivation - and it gets me out of the house 3 mornings a week! Also, I don't want Cora to never be able to stay with a babysitter, so I'm thinking it's probably good for her to get used to childcare a bit.
For those who have heard me say that she "never cries," you may be wondering about this "nervous breakdown." Well, my baby who never cries has found her voice. Just the other night she was yelling while Jacob was holding her. (Seriously - yelling. Not crying. Just yelling.) If I'd look her way, she'd stop. But if I turned back to what I was doing, it was back with the yelling. I'd find it sweet that she wants me so much, but honestly sometimes I want a break.
So that's the mothering roundup. It sounds kinda negative... more so than I mean for it to. We're actually doing really well and I am enjoying her more every day simply because she's becoming so incredibly fascinated with everything. It is fun to watch her explore her world. I just wish she'd let me figure her out.
Next week I am off to Portland, OR!!! Some of you live up there, and I'd love to meet up, if you have a chance! Just drop me an email if you are one of those folks, and we'll see if we can arrange something. Cora and I are going to go see my grandparents for the week. Yay!
And the fundraiser for surgeries... so, we're not doing so swell. It hasn't really changed much in the last few days. I've kind of dropped the ball and haven't been out there talking it up, but I still believe we can do this ladies and gents! When I "worked" at the foster home, it always amazed me how easy it was to raise money for things like field trips to the zoo. We'd put up the challenge, and in less than a few hours, usually every single cent was raised. Which was AMAZING! But funds for formula, medical care, and surgeries were a bit harder to come by. But you want to know what a NDFH field trip to the zoo looks like without funds for surgeries?
Like this:
Don't get me wrong, Pandas are adorable... but the picture is a whole lot sweeter when you also capture a wide-eyed little one soaking it all in. And without medical/surgical funds, NDFH would cease to be able to fulfill its mission. I know it is more fun to send kiddos on a field trip, but right now I want to make sure that a few more kiddos get the chance to go on a field trip someday, and that's what this is all about.
One thing I love and respect about NDFH is that the leadership feels strongly that we shouldn't always be asking for money. (But this is my blog, so I can be a bit more direct.) We want people to give out of a sense of excitement and love, not out of guilt/obligation. So you probably don't see very many direct pleas from NDFH. And God is always faithful to provide what is needed, but the reality is... this is a big need. It always has been and always will be. Sometimes kiddos pass away on a waiting list, and sometimes the reason they are still on a waiting list is because funds are running low... Without money, there are no surgeries. I think you get the point. I shall shut up now.
But I will show you some pictures of bows I recently made...
Remember, a $50 or more donation gets you a fun little bow made with love by me, if you want one! More details on the fundraiser can be found here.
9 comments:
Cute bows! Haven loves hers. I would agree that you should give the nursery a little longer. Or maybe you should be louder at home that way she gets used to noise? I'm just kidding. You know babies are funny...as soon as you think you've got something down they love to switch it around on you. Teething is always fun and napping. You could cut the bottom of the swaddling thing you have...I used to do that when H. outgrew hers. I will say this knowing full well that when you aren't sleeping everything is stressful, but here it is: don't stress about what you should be doing, just do what works. If she sleeps in a swing best then put her in it. H. never slept well in the car either. If you need to swaddle her, then do what it takes. She'll eventually grow to where she doesn't like it. Just don't get anxious about it because these little phases don't last long (unless you aren't sleeping and then they feel like they last forever).
Enjoy your baby girl...we'll settle for the "roundup" posts. :) I wouldn't worry too much about Cora's stages at this point. Babies are so constantly changing, and as long as you're doing a fairly decent job at keeping up then you're okay! My profound advice after four kids is to just do what works! LOL!
totally feeling your pain with the sleeping etc!! Our little one is nearly 4mths but we have some of the same issues(and I've raised 5 already-and she's still got me confounded!) Phoebe is not a good sleeper-and her hands are a big issue with waking her up. i had tried wrapping without her hands in as she hates being confined, but her night sleeping was getting so bad last night i swaddled her completely and she slept through without a peep till nearly 4am(unfortunately my 8yr old woke with a fever so still not a good sleep for me!) I just use a cot sheet and wrap her in that-although she still does wriggle out sometimes. i did see these the other day http://www.sleepywings.com.au/ they are in Australia-not sure if they would work for Cora too? i do manage to get Phoebe to sleep swaddled for a short morning nap-other than that she will not sleep anywhere except in the sling-which she's in for many hours a day. She also doesn't like being put down at all-only for maybe 10mins at a time if that before she screams! And she has an issue with anyone else holding her a lot of the time, even my husband and teenage daughter when she's grumpy! The other day we met with the birth parents for a goodbye visit and she screamed so much for them they had to call me back in to settle her:-( My motto with kids has always been-'this too shall pass'! It is so hard when you're not getting a good sleep yourself-I hope she improves for you:-)
I'm with Tara...Roundup posts are good! AND...I'm with Tara again: DO WHAT WORKS! :) My 2nd child never slept in his crib until he was 5 months old. He would sleep in his bouncy seat IN his crib. Crazy. But it worked.
Regarding the surgery funds--I love how you posted about the difference between field trips and surgeries and how you pointed out that without children there would BE no field trips...eye opening. May I piggy back post on my blog to get the word out a little bit? I would love to do whatever I can to help...
Totally wish I had ab muscles again. And I'm crushed to learn that they are apparently not going to magically appear on their own??!
I am glad that you mentioned the fundraiser because when you posted I was out of town and for some reason I didn't see it?! And of course the 3 photo-ed are three that are pinging my heart so much. Oh my!! I just love what this mom is doing--it is huge! And I'm in awe of it. I will jump on the bandwagon and post too--I hope things pick up because if we can send kids to a zoo we can help to heal their hearts and spines and other things too. I'm certain that word must get out!!!
Oh I am hoping you post pictures of Portland Oregon! I just found out that we are moving there and I've never been anywhere near there. My husband went out there once. We've been looking for a house in the Portland area on line. I've heard it's beautiful there
Ok--the best and hardest advice I have is sleeping but it is important and it works. You have to let your little one cry themselves to sleep. For as long as it takes, and for as many days as it takes (sometimes this can take 2 weeks). It is the hardest thing I've ever done. But if you don't do it earlier, you end up doing it later and it takes longer. I waited til 2 years on my twins and that was a disaster (2 hrs. of crying for 2 weeks!). So, plan it for 6-7 months, 9 months at the latest. I'd do this for naps too. virginia
Thanks everyone for your advice and encouragement. I think you've all reminded me I need to go with my gut. And I'm still really enjoying a cuddly/snuggly baby... I don't want to force her to grow out of that too fast. Unfortunately, our living situation (1 br apt) doesn't leave me any options for the middle of the night. If I wanted to do the "cry it out" strategy (given my work in orphanages, it'd be super hard for me to do it), none of us would get a bit of sleep - doesn't work when Jacob has to go to work the next morning... so, we'll just keep plugging along. So far it is manageable... and I still think her waking up at night has more to do with hunger than anything. (Or at least eating seems to solve it and she goes right back to sleep!)
Heather - I'm jealous that you are moving to Portland! We almost went there, but last minute things changed and we ended up in Midland. So far it is a great place, but it certainly can't compete in terms of temperature and outdoors. This is a hot, dry desert! (I guess some Portlanders would envy our sunshine, though!)
Precious little girl!! She has grown so much!! I love your bows and the hope they bring to little ones in need of love.
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