Thank you for all of the kinds comments about my blogging hiatus. It's nice to be reminded that I'm doing a more important thing by mothering instead of blogging. (Not that I'd make a career out of blogging.) Still, I know I'll regret it in the future when I look back to find no record of my children's growing years and those little things that get forgotten if not written down. So here I go with a renewed effort to record what I want to remember.
I want to start with Lucy because this sweet little girl, who will be 8 months old this week, has done so much growing since last time I wrote about her! I want to say
babies change so fast, but really Lucy has stayed very much them same in so many (wonderful) ways!
In short, she is a delight.
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| June 12, 2011--3 months old |
She started sleeping through the night at 2 months old. (Don't be jealous.) With few exceptions, she has slept all night ever since. It is
awesome. I can't say how it happened other than that I implemented an
eat,play, sleep routine with her pretty much from day 1 and I think it totally made a difference compared to how things went with the boys, who both didn't sleep through the night till they were over a year old. I also got over my anxiety about letting a baby cry a bit in the crib, but she didn't do that much since I relied on the routine to know when to put her down. After she's been up for an hour or two, if she exhibits any signs of sleepiness, I put her in bed, usually with a pacifier* unless one can't be found in which case she uses her thumb. And she almost never gets nursed to sleep. (I think that's one reason the boys--and I-- had such a hard time before.)
*(Speaking of pacifiers, I don't want to forget this: When she was first born Rhett called her pacifier a "fireplace," as in, "I found Woocy's fireplace!" Or, "Woocy needs her fireplace." But is sounded like "pirepwace." I think he was just swapping syllables and "fireplace" was the closest match he could think of. I wish he hadn't figured out the right word because it was so cute.)
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| June 12, 2011 |
Although I prefer to put her in bed when she's sleepy, Paul likes to snuggle her to sleep sometimes. How can I say no to that?
Lucy is so happy. Always. I generally avoid superlatives, but this one applies. It is so easy to get a smile out of Lucy. She makes you feel like a million bucks when you see her. Your spirits can't help but be lifted.
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| June 13, 2011 |
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| July 13, 2011--4 months old |
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| July 30, 2011 @ a Mariners game |
She's a great traveler. She only recently started hating her car seat, but even then she's very forgiving and will smile once the final buckle is snapped. She's easy to nurse while out and about (something I almost never did with the boys), so I feel a lot of freedom to go places when I need to go.
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| September 16, 2011--6 months old |
Her brothers adore her. They have been surprisingly sweet with her, despite the times when she ruins a train track or something like it. They usually want her near them and will often (much to my disapproval) carry her around to different parts of the house. They have never expressed any dislike for her, and have never appeared upset about the attention she requires as a baby. Sometimes (or several times a day) Rhett will roar at her like a monster and she will cry. But that's about the worst of it.
Lucy has funny hair. She was born with a good head of it, but then she rubbed a pretty good bald spot into the back. It's finally filled in again, but the really funny thing is the two long strands of hair behind each ear. They're almost down to her shoulders, while the rest or her sweet, soft baby hair is still close cropped to her head.
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| June 28, 2011--3 months old |
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| October 26, 2011--7 months old |
A couple of months ago Rhett told me that Lucy has "blueberry eyes." And she does! We've called them that ever since. There's no telling whether they'll stay blue, but they sure are beautiful, and we get comments about her blue eyes from strangers all the time.
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| July 28, 2011--4 months old |
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| September 20, 2011--6 months old |
Lucy is on the move! She started moving herself around the house pretty efficiently when she was only 5 months old, scooting in a way the boys didn't learn till they were about 7 1/2 months old.
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| September 20, 2011 |
Her first tooth popped through in mid-October. Actually, I noticed it was already there when I was checking her mouth after a little bonk that made her gum bleed. It had probably broken through a couple of days before and we didn't notice. She, like the boys, is not a fussy teether. Her second tooth came out a little while later.
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| October 12, 2011--7 months old |
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| October 14, 2011 |
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| October 26, 2011 |
Lucy's name inspired our kids' Peanuts-themed Halloween costumes for this year. Although I didn't manage to get a great picture, you can sort of see the little puffed sleeves and scalloped collar in the "Lucy" dress I made for her out of a thrifted men's blue corduroy shirt. It was a project that I probably put too much time into for so little return, but I don't really mind.
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| October 31, 2011 |
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| October 31, 2011--In her "Lucy" costume with Benjamin as Snoopy |
Recently Lucy started saying "ba ba" a lot. It's fun to hear the beginnings of words from her. Paul and I are each trying to get her to say "Dada" and "Mama" respectively. I think I'm winning. While she was in bed with us this morning before church she said "ma ma" a few times, but I will admit that I don't think she's making the sounds in association with me yet. I can't wait until she does.
I cannot describe enough just how much we all love our little girl! She brings so much light to my days and joy to our home.
