Seventeen weeks.

Good lord! You are keeping us guessing what with huge growth spurts, poop everywhere, napless days, and crazy good hand eye coordination. Our days are full and satisfying and the balance feels good. A rhythm of busy to slow, punctuated by frequent meals and days spent outside working on the vegetable garden or walking with the dog. You seemed to tolerate your first shower this week and didn't mind when the water got in your eyes. You are fascinated by animals and baby Vincent, reaching out for a handful of fur and a baby foot. You are working on outgrowing your car seat and tend to scream a little when we strap you in... although you just smiled at me today, probably because I was singing "we're going out! and we're not gonna pout!" Parenthood is more and more a never ending song and dance routine.

You get put to bed now at 8:00 before we eat dinner, your Pop lays you on the bed and reads you a story as you drift off to sleep, fingers safely in your mouth. Some days you are sweet as can be, babbling and content. Other days, like today, you refuse to be put down, screeching and flailing and staying awake until late in the afternoon. Your gums itch and we give you a rotating cast of characters to help soothe them, and in turn, yourself. They run the gamut from chilly nubby teething rings, soft textured cloths, cold peeled carrot sticks, Sophie the giraffe, your parents' fingers... we'll try anything once. 

I celebrated my twenty-fifth birthday this week. Last year you were still a ball of madly multiplying cells. Now you are almost fourth months old and happily so strong. We love helping you stand on our laps, pulling you up when your knees give out. Being your mama at this age feels just right. I find it very simple lately to appreciate each day for exactly what it is... I don't find myself dwelling too much on the future or the past, at least not as much as I used to. Part of this is the time in a day. I would rather be in the moment with a chubby baby or otherwise reading, watching a movie, cooking. It all falls into place and we all feel productive at the end of the day, even if the laundry is still in the dryer and there are stacks of books and piles of stuff to sell on eBay taking over the dining room table. 

We all still sleep well and you eat at least twice, once at midnight and again around 4:00. You are keeping up with the stay dry through the night trend and use the potty first thing. You have, however, become quite the acrobatic sleeper, often turning sideways and effectively leaving each of your parents with less room than a twin sized bed. In the morning, after your pop leaves for work, I move to his side of the bed and sleep for another thirty minutes or so before we start our day with breakfast and conversation. Lately I put you in the bed for your naps and sometimes you nurse on the bed too. I realized that you are so easily distracted that you will fight sleep and eating in order to watch the dogs wrestle or to play. You roll yourself over to get more comfortable and contort yourself into exaggerated positions mid nap. Sometimes I get a fleeting glimpse of babyness when you fall asleep on my chest.

You love the mirror and making faces at the baby in it. We put you in the yard on a blanket with no clothes on and you think it's the greatest thing ever. You roll around and your pop found a clover in your mouth. Sometimes I sit you up above the dishwasher and hand you a spoon to play with while I cook. You like watching the clothes go from the washer to the dryer and stare with very wide eyes as we do laundry together. You were an absolute angel at your Grandpapa's when he watched you while we went out on a birthday date... you were given a bottle for the second time ever and you held it yourself, snatching it right out of Pop's grip. You keep us endlessly amused, exhausted, guessing, sighing, swaying, slightly damp, and waist deep in laundry but we wouldn't have it any other way.

Sixteen weeks.

The theme of this past week was movement. Rolling over for the win! You rolled back to front everywhere we went, often while being changed. When I wake up in the morning you are propped up on your chubby little arms, babbling away and grinning at me from your new favorite vantage point. You have yet to master the stomach to back roll but your form is certainly helpful- your round tummy will make it that much easier! I have to keep myself from helping you too much. Sometimes you get frustrated or stuck, one arm pinned underneath your weight. You clasp fists to increase your strength. I try my best to let you figure it out on your own, and you usually do. You have started rolling over in your sleep too, one arm bent underneath yourself, two middle fingers faithfully in your mouth. You (and your parents) are thrilled with this new skill set. What a relief it must be for you to be well on your way to mobility!

Your feet are also increasingly holding your interest. You are slowly but surely working them in the direction of your mouth and enjoy sucking on your fingers while holding one or both feet aloft. We leave you on the floor quite a bit and it is not uncommon for several hours to pass while you contentedly roll around, batting and grasping at dangling objects, chewing on anything and everything, and falling asleep with Sophie in hand. I never really put you down for naps. I try to time our outings to either wear you out or give you a nap opportunity- or both. You are very well adjusted and fall asleep when you're tired for the most part. You have slept very well this week, back to your usually form after some initial teething upset. I balance our busy days with slow days at home, giving you time to rest and recharge after the constant stimulation of a trip to the grocery or a long walk. This seems to work well and helps to keep you in good sweet form.

You kick like a little pony, often so hard that we give up on diapers for the greater portion of the day. This makes using the potty very easy in theory, though we still miss plenty of opportunities. At least three nights now you have held it all night and everyone enjoys the dryness. We bathed you in the kitchen sink with bath toys from my younger days... you promptly put the plastic duck in your mouth and gummed it thoroughly. We have had a struggle with diaper rash lately, despite all your nakey time and frequent changes. Sensitive skin like your parents perhaps? So far the solution seems to be a healthy dose of a coconut oil and tea tree concoction which we slather on your bum at every change. Anything from the drugstore failed us miserably and led us to the conclusion that we should probably be able to safely eat anything that goes on your skin, what with your propensity for chewing on your own limbs.

The weekend brought a trip to the farmer's Market with both babies for (baby) plants and seeds. It was hot hot hot and you wore a sun hat and sunscreen. Later we cruised around the East side in the stroller and ate dinner with Grandpapa while the waitresses fawned over you. You attended church with myself and Mimi on Easter Sunday where you joined a whole chorus of noisy babies. You were asleep by the end, feet in my lap and head on Mimi's. You wore a dress of mine, yellow seersucker with grass green rickrack,  applique carrots and bunny decorating the hem. You are such a little bunny yourself, crinkling your nose at anything that amuses you. 

This week we look forward to working in the garden and further paring down of the accumulation of stuff. With the chaos of the superfluous at bay a rhythm will continue to emerge. A clear space will leave room for play as well, something that is becoming more vital by the day. We don't read to you much yet but we talk to you constantly. You love textured things on your gums and soft fabric you try to pull over your face. You drool all over yourself sometimes and wake up with crazy hair. I often have to remind myself that you were indeed birthed. It feels both recent and far away. Much like my own younger days which occasionally crystallize as I careen towards a quarter century of Earthly time. It's such a trip to now be Mama and Pop! 

Fifteen weeks.

This week was growth and big changes. This week brought new sounds and more strength. You found your feet. Most of your days were spent naked. You pooped in the potty and peed in the toilet at Grandpapa's. You ate like a horse all week. You slept through the night with a dry diaper. You flirted and charmed your way around town, collecting compliments from everyone. You received two baths, one for fun and one out of necessity. You started teething and babbling. You started wearing some of your 12 month clothing. You started looking over your shoulder at us. You got a most distressing bug bite. You were weighed and measured at the WIC office- you gained one pound and grew one inch last month! The nurses fought over who would hold you while I stepped on the scale. Your cuteness cannot be contained. 

I found myself savoring a quiet afternoon nursing you on our bed. You fell asleep in my lap, a less and less frequent occurrence these days. The sweetness was almost overwhelming. You are growing at just the right pace but it is all still so fleeting. You are sleeping well, better than last week, and have been quite dry through the night. You often use the potty before and after bedtime. Naked time has no doubt helped with this and you seem much more prone to waiting for a potty opportunity when not wearing any clothes. Of course, sometimes you pee on us but we don't mind. Humans are washable! 

You really started noticing the dogs this week. You sit in my lap while they wrestle on the living room rug and you watch them, wide eyed, surprised when one of them comes in close for a kiss. You are endlessly entertained by standing up. We hold your hands and you pant and grin, knees buckling, but really standing so strong. You look like you want to leap right off of our laps. I really have to keep my eye on you now that you're become so wriggly. I practically found you under the couch not five minutes after I had set you down on the play mat. It will be a challenge to keep up with you once you figure out just how mobile you can be.

You've started reaching out and grasping with both hands, accurately swiping at your toys, You really enjoyed putting fabric in your mouth this week. I would find you with diapers (clean ones!), pants, your lovey- all were fair game for chewing. One afternoon you carried a pair of leggings clenched in your tiny fist for two hours, like a prize. Conversing with you has become such fun. Your tone has changed to a more musical one as you try out consonants in addition to the vowels you've been working on for a while now. We talk to you all the time. A visit to Public Square Park with its fountains reminded us that we can't wait for even warmer weather and playing in water. You'll be a little swimmer for sure. We love wearing you out with interaction, especially outings with fellow babies. 

Spring is treating us very well. You couldn't be sweeter. Watching you grow is a joy that knows no bounds. Keep it up, baby girl.

Fourteen weeks.

You are one quarter of a year old, coming up on 100 days of growing wildly.

This past week brought changes. You cried more this week than the past month combined, often just before a (later...) bedtime of 9:00. You ate less frequently, but with intense focus when you were hungry enough. You move like crazy! I recognize the flips and kicks you were doing in the womb not too long ago. When we put you down on your play mat you turn onto your side and scoot your way around it, like the hands on a clock. Your face is increasingly expressive. Changing your diaper has become an aerobics exercise for all of us. I have to hold down your feet with one hand while fastening your diaper with the other, lest you kick yourself right off the changing table. You are becoming adept at the grab 'n' gum, where whatever lucky object you grab finds its way to your mouth, or at least close to your mouth. Sometimes you just hit yourself in the face over and over. 

You have started to discover your own volume, screeching like a bird or monkey, practicing your vowels and sticking out your tongue. You entertain yourself upon waking from a nap. I sometimes find you holding a toy that was not necessarily near you when you fell asleep. We brought your Grandpapa lunch on his birthday and hit the trifecta of baby fussiness all at once- too tired, too wet, too hungry. You screamed your head off, and finally fell asleep in his lap (the first of two times his lap proved to be an excellent napping spot for you!) We had a much needed rainy day afterwards spent doing tax returns and laundry. These slow days at home allow both of us to gently recuperate. 

We struggled a bit with bedtime this week, as you cried past 9:00 on two nights, only quieting down with the help of a Mom or Pop finger (a soother you haven't used for a long while). The rest of the week you were down by 8:00 with hardly a peep. Such is the tumultuous life of a three month old. We had a play date at the Nature Playground, essentially a mud pit for tiny children. You will love it when you are old enough to appreciate it. On one afternoon we brought you out to the yard with us while we dug up a bed for herbs. You loved the view from your hammock and chattered away, chewing on Sophie and watching us dig up dirt. You'll be gardening with us soon enough. 

You still love observing from the Ergo when we go to the grocery store, the flower market, the library. It is the most fun, taking you places. You stay awake, peering over the strap as you chew on it, wide eyed. Every new environment both delights and overwhelms. Anyone can tell that your brain is really working, taking it all in and storing it for later. I often wonder how these outings supplement your dreams? Standing up is your favorite activity that keeps you amused. Your face lights up at your new found strength and you grin a drooly grin. You hold onto our hands and weeble wobble back and forth. We don't let you fall... usually. When you sit in our laps you clench and unclench your toes, grabbing at our clothing or a finger. You kick us in bed when you need a change. Sometimes you sleep with one leg out of the covers, like your Pop. You tend to fall asleep in your car seat as I pull into the driveway. I stay in the car, with the engine off and the driver's seat reclined, listening to NPR until you wake up. It can be blissful. Every night when we carry you to bed one of us gets to pick you up... we trade off. That way we each get to enjoy "the nuzzle" when you bury your face into our chest or neck. 

We're looking forward to a lot more walks... reading out loud... a bath every once in awhile... trips to the library, the post office, the grocery... all of the things that make up life. We will try swimming in the community pool some afternoons and feeding you homegrown carrots and beets. We can't wait to get a kiddie pool for the backyard so that you and baby Vincent can splash on the hot days. We have plans for naked baby painting time on huge rolls of kraft paper and hikes to waterfalls. There will be long car trips soon and you will be leaving the state to watch your uncle graduate from college! Even the simplest activities take on new meaning when a baby is seeing it all for the first time. We are endlessly grateful that we are the ones who get to show you the way!