This month has been a challenging one, there is no way to sugar coat it! Her sleep schedules fluctuating like crazy and she doesn't like to be on her own AT ALL during the day. That makes for an exhausted momma, but on the bright side, it makes me even more excited to see Blake at the end of the day! "Take her! Take her!" are often the first words he hears when he gets home!
Of, course, it isn't always a rough time! She'll have her moments where she looks up at me with her big eyes and smiles at me and of course my heart melts every single time.
Her swing continues to be my best friend during the hard days! Actually... who am I kidding...
it's our best friend every day! Also... it just so happens that her swing is by my computer and I discovered that Youtube has full episodes of Barney and all kinds of other song and lullaby videos that help us when we get desperate! I'm learning how to prioritize things like bible study and prayer, exercise, and cooking so that I can still feel like myself amongst my new role as "Mom". The swing and Youtube help me out a little bit so that I can take care of myself. I'm learning that when I take care of myself, I have more to give to my family!
She is also getting really close to a giggle every now and then. Sometimes it practically is one, but often time it becomes a little shriek.
She is getting stronger! She still needs support to sit up, but she can hold her head up much more steadily. She's even spent some time in the big chairs at Bible Class! Class is getting a little harder for her these days, as she is usually sleepy, hungry, or both. We might try going to 2nd service to see if that helps at all.
She is still not enjoying her tummy time very much, but every now and then if you are laying down right beside her she will have fun for a few minutes! She also enjoys being on her back when you lay next to her. She stopped rolling over this month! I did get her to roll once last week, but it's almost like she forgot how. I hear it's normal to regress a little, so I'm not too concerned. We just keep encouraging her the best we can!
She LOVES books! Many times we've been able to calm her cries with a book. She likes turning the pages in her board books. The pictures are really intriguing to her, but she also likes hearing us talk or sing along with the pictures. It's quite fun!
We've stopped swaddling her this month because she kept breaking out of her little swaddle pouch, and it was waking her up. She loves to chomp on her hands and spread out her arms. So we've moved her into these wearable blankets.
She's figuring out more of her toys- specifically rings.
Her Hungry Caterpillar is by far her favorite toy.
On February the first, Kate got her first bite of food other than momma's milk! We made her some carrots and she loved them! I try to give her an "ice cube" of carrots every day... some days it doesn't happen though! I'm hoping to add peas, avocado, and squash this month.
We set up her high chair but she isn't quite ready for it...
She's gotten a bit more used to it, that was right before bed when we first set it up! She isn't quite ready for it though because she doesn't sit up well enough. It's really not supposed to be used until 6 months, so that's normal!
We've been enjoying some nice weather this month. Kate really enjoys sitting outside and looking at everything. Sometimes if she's fussy, it helps when we go outside for a bit.
We also had Kate's first Valentine's Day! Now, I'll admit, I haven't done the best job at documenting holidays because we'd been exhausted or sick. We all felt pretty good for this one, so we had a good time! Blake got Kate a pink rose, and we gave her some books, a towel, and a TY Minnie Mouse beanie ball (that she LOVED!).
MiMi and Gramps bought us a ZOO membership for Valentine's so we went with them to the ZOO in the morning. Kate didn't really know what to look at, but she enjoyed being outside. The ZOO is a nice place to walk around and I look forward to taking their often!
This motherhood journey is not an easy one, but it's so rewarding. There are hard parts and really fun parts. Every day Blake will ask her, "What are you going to learn today, Kate?" And it's true- she is learning something everyday. We never know if we'll see her grab a toy in a new way or hear a new sound out of her mouth. She's recently starting saying (quite loudly), "Ahhhhhhhhhhh" all day long! You just never know what's going to happen next!
We love this girl!
