Elaina update - seven weeks

Just want to jot down a few things to record Elaina's last few weeks. 

The last few days have been a big improvement. Last week, I had a few really rough days. I was so stressed about Elaina's sleep. She was having troubles sleeping for more than 10-20 minutes. I felt like I was spending all day trying to get her to sleep, which was extra challenging with Ben needing attention and love. On Wednesday and Thursday, my mom came over and helped. On Wednesday, she watched Elaina while I picked Ben up. She was only with Elaina for about 30 minutes, but in that time, my mom carefully studied her and came up with a few suggestions.  She also thought that maybe I was too focused on Elaina's sleep. I've tried to take her advice in the last few days and it seems to be helping. We're keeping Elaina awake a little more and it immediately seems to have made night times easier. Before, it was taking 2-3 hours to get her to sleep at bedtime. But, as soon as we started keeping her awake more, she goes to bed quickly. What a relief!! This weekend, I tried to relax about her sleep and go with the flow more. I took Elaina to the grocery store for the first time on Saturday. On Sunday, we went to church in the morning and in the evening, we went to wiggle works and Chipotle for dinner. Elaina was a champ! For all the outings, Elaina snoozed a little in my ring sling. I love that thing!

She hates her carseat and screams everytime we're in the car. Other than our outings this weekend, I don't get out of the house much. Being away from work and being house-bound makes me feel a little disconnected from people. I find myself talking to people more on social media and text messages. I have almost zero in-person interaction with other people! Just a few minutes at preschool drop off! 

During Elaina's awake times, I've been trying to give her some different experiences. I got some books at the library that have cool, high-contrast patterns for her to look at. I've also been reading nursery rhymes to her, doing tummy time and letting her lay by herself. Before we hadn't been doing much of that because she was sleeping so much, or we were trying to get her to sleep. For all her naps and bedtimes, Joel or I carry her until she dozes off. Sometimes she wakes up when we put her down and sometimes she's able to put herself to sleep. The first nap of the day is the easiest and has the best chances of her putting herself to sleep. Other than a rough week last week, she has some luck putting herself back to sleep after the 30-45 minute mark. Again, the first nap is the easiest for this and gets harder as the day goes on. I've found that putting a rice pack on her chest/tummy in the afternoon naps helps her stay asleep. She takes all her naps and night sleeps in a little rocker by our bed...hope I don't regret that...at some point we'll have to transition her to sleeping flat on her back. 

She's been smiling more and more. Gosh, I love that smile. It just lights up her whole face. She is cooing and chatting, but not a whole lot. I watched videos of Ben when he was a baby, and Ben was WAY more chatty at a much younger age. She sleeps well at night. Except for one night in the last few weeks, she sleeps a minimum of three hour stretches, but she usually does one 5-7 hour stretch and one 3 hour stretch. I really can't complain that I'm not getting enough sleep. Although, this job sure is tiring. 

One of my favorite things about Elaina is her profile. Her jawline is so beautiful! I wish I could get a picture of it, but I usually have the best view of it when she's nursing in the dark room, so it's hard to get a pic. Her skin is incredibly soft. The other day I was rubbing her cheeks and was trying to think of the words to describe how soft they were. It was softer than the softest silk. It was almost like I wasn't touching anything. They are perfectly smooth, warm and smushy! Her hair hasn't fallen out like Ben's did. Wonder if that's still coming? She is very long. Her finger are long, her toes are long...her arms and legs are really long...her neck is long. I love it when I lay her down to change her diaper and she waves her arms around, grabbing at the air. She looks like a little gorilla (although, she doesn't do that really anymore).