Smile!

So I write on the blog that she isn't smiling "on cue" and yet the next day she smiled for me 3x. We are noticing her doing it more and more!

Emma went 3 days (Mon, Tues, Wed) without taking a real nap. When I say "real" I mean anything longer than 20 consecutive minutes. We even took a road trip on Monday and Tuesday and she cried more than anything on those trips. It was a bummer. Then Wednesday night, she slept for 10 straight hours. For the past week, I have allowed myself to sleep with her and this has truly helped how long she sleeps for. I said I would never do it and one night it sort of happened by accident when we fell asleep on the recliner and she slept for 5.5 hours. The next day it happened again. Then during the day it was for 3 hours. I became hooked to the sleep I was getting. I hadn't gotten this much since sometime before August. Wednesday night came and she slept for 10 straight hours...it was amazing! Then Thanksgiving she ended up sleeping most of the day away..and same with today (Friday). Apparently her little body is trying to catch up now. Thursday night she slept for 7 hours straight. Even when she does get up she doesn't seem to be interested in eating. I give her a pacifier and/or change her diaper and she goes back to sleep...now again..this is when we cuddle. So this tells me that (a) she can sleep through the night (b) doesn't need to eat during the night so now we are going to try and get her to sleep in her crib again. The downside: with her spitting up I need to have her sleep at an incline. The only time she likes this is on her tummy on my chest. She isn't even a fan of her bouncy a whole lot due to her reflux/spitting up..so this is our latest challenge.

Here is a picture of her on Thanksgiving morning. I had to get up and go to the bathroom so I propped her on some blankets. This is the recliner we slept the entire night on. When I looked at the clock and it said 6am I was confused..thinking it had to be a mistake...Emma slept for 2 hours beyond that :)

Baptism & the next challenge

Hello

Sorry for the lack of updates!

November 14, Emma was baptised in to her new Christian life. We chose Corey's aunt and uncle, Todd & Bryn. They are some of the best people we know! Not only are they his aunt and uncle that we feel the closest to, but they are always so willing to help us with anything we need; they would do anything for anyone and we know they are the perfect choice for Baby Emma. After service, we had the family to our house for lunch and unfortunately the Vikings disappointed us again :(


She has become a fussier baby and I have noticed that she sounds like she has air in her belly and she seems to be spitting up a lot more frequently. Sometimes she spits up right after she eats and sometimes its hours later. We are burping her enough and so I know that isn't the issue. I have talked to some people and they mentioned acid reflux, which all the symptoms line up with. The last two days she hasn't been able to sleep for longer than 20/30 minutes during the day and then about 2 hours at night. I have been sleeping next to her on the couch because the way she has been gurgling and gagging worries me and I prefer to sleep next to her than wake up constantly and want to check on her. We went to the doctor today because she just seems so uncomfortable and cries a lot-she thought it could be reflux as well. She said there isn't any test its just trial and error-that is easier said than done! My nephews and one of my nieces had a milk (formula) allergy and also had the same symptoms as Emma..so that is another possibility. We are testing her for allergies this week..so I will keep you posted on that. She may also have too slow of a nipple, inadequate bottles, oh and the list goes on. Being a mom is hard work at times!

At the doctor we found out that she is 12 lbs and 13 ounces, our healthy girl has really grown! Here are some updated pictures!

This bib was a present from Grandma Lisa and so we thought we would show it off. Of the four pictures I took this is the only one where she isn't cross-eyed!








This picture was taken today--with the shirt my sister gave her. Once she grows out of this one we have the same one size 6 mo, 9 mo, and 12 mo. Yes, she thinks she is funny!

..and a happy smile! She doesn't smile "on-cue" but every now and then we get a few big ones :)

Week 3 Challenge- Thrush

We all have our challenges and Emma is making sure that we experience some together.
Week 1 Challenge- being a new mom
Week 2 " "- inconsistent sleeping begins
Week 3 " "- Thrush

Thrush is an infection of the mouth. There are white spots that form on the tongue (not just flat white from the formula) as well as cheeks, lips, throat, roof..all that good stuff. It can be sore and can prevent a baby from eating because the sucking motion hurts. It can also be the cause of a fever. Luckily, Emma has been a real trooper. She is more fussy at times than normal but otherwise she has been eating normal, which is a huge relief! We got some medicine that we give her 4x a day and she takes it well. Even after just a couple doses the spots on her tongue have really cleared up..although we are far from being done (and I have been instructed by a very smart pharmacist that I need to continue giving it to her for 2 days after it is gone :)

In my last post I mentioned Colic- I have been doing some research and reading because I want to get Emma more on a schedule, which can help colicy babies. I am not looking to become a hyper-scheduler or only feeding her at certain times (to go around my schedule) but I want to become consistent and get her on a pattern. Now, some of you may be saying, "DUH, you need a schedule." Some things have been scheduled like her night time routine, but throughout the day it was a bit more relaxed then it is going to be. I have read a couple books but my favorite so far is "On Becoming Babywise" by Gary Ezzo. This book has been criticized because some think that you should ONLY feed your baby at certain times (ex; every 3 hours). This is not the case, he recommends a specific schedule but always says- if your baby is hungry feed her! I have learned some great things and, to be honest, I am not sure that she has colic but instead showing symptoms of other things related to inconsistency. We are trying out a new schedule so we will see how it goes!

Cereal- I found "cereal" nipples and, of course, this has solved my issue of a nipple either getting clogged or drowning her. Love them!

Other than Emma- our lives are pretty boring. She keeps us busy and on our toes! I can't believe that she will be a month old next Wednesday- time really does go by fast!