Smiles All Around

Dana is fun! She is smiling a lot and truly is a happy baby. She is most chatty when she wakes up in the morning. It’s amazing that she wakes up smiling. I wish I could wake up that happy. After she wakes up, I nurse her and we talk for a bit. She really uses her voice and smiles right back at us. She is very playful and likes to roll around on her Gymini mat and look in the mirror. When she has had enough and is tired she starts to wine and grunt a little. If you don’t pick her up she will start to cry, as she is ready for her nap.  She tells me exactly what she wants. I do have to rock her to sleep though. Sometimes she likes her pacifier but she does like to be held for a while. Then I put her down for her nap and pray she sleeps longer than 15 minutes so I can get stuff done. Sometimes Dana naps for 30 minutes and sometimes for 3 1/2 hours. We are not in a routine but she is still so young. I am just happy when she gets a good nap. Then she is ready for more playtime. She is probably the happiest when nursing. I think she would stay there all day if I let her. I have gotten to recognize her cries and what she wants. She is a contented little baby by day. Nighttime is a different story.

Bath time is fun, and Dana loves splashing in her tub. She loves the water. After bath is playtime or feeding time followed by bedtime. She really runs me around at night. I know that she is tired and ready for bed, and I can walk and rock her for hours and she will fuss, cry and do anything not to fall asleep. Sometimes I nurse her to sleep in bed. Then once she is fast asleep, I move her to her crib. I know that it is wrong to do this and a bad habit, but it is a matter of survival. I am just so tired I would do anything to get her to sleep. Rob is great at getting her to bed but he is not always around. Once Dana is asleep she will usually go until 2 am when I feed her again in bed, then move her over to her crib. She will awaken at 6 or 7 for a feeding, and then it’s playtime with Marlee and Bradley before they leave for school.

We are all enjoying Dana and love watching her change every day. She is getting big and is responding to us with smiles and coos. Marlee (her 2nd mommy) loves giving her baths and playing with her and will always help me out when I need her to. Bradley tries to hog Dana and wants her all to himself, which does not fly to well with Marlee. Then we have a battle over Dana. Marlee’s favorite thing to do with Dana is dance with her. It makes me nervous when Marlee holds her but she does a great job of supporting her head and holds her tight. Bradley likes to play with her and her toys and can get her to smile easily. She is a true delight to have around even when I am thoroughly exhausted and about to fall flat on my face from lack of sleep.