This has easily been the most challenging & exhausting, yet most fun month simultaneously!
Crazy how that works out?! At 3 months Elyse is vaccinated & we are actually making big moves OUTSIDE of the house!! It is MAJOR to take this show on the road, but I love getting back out into the world! ๐
GROWTH
Elyse is growing like a champ! She is up to 12.5 lbs now, and still rocking her size 1 diapers & 0-3 month clothing. We are in love with her big belly, arm/leg rolls and noggin. She is holding her head up so well, sticking her tongue out, kicking & waving her arms with excitement, and has figured out how to suck her thumb for comfort, mostly preferring it over her paci!
EATING
Elyse continues to exclusively breast feed! I am so thankful that we are in a good rhythm with breastfeeding & I continue to have a solid supply! I now officially have 3 pump sets (to help with rotating parts & washing/sterilizing routines) & a manual pump! I finally used the manual pump & plan to keep it at my bedside to easily reach for that 1st morning engorgement pump session. My goal for next month is to pump more, but cleaning ALL of the parts, storing milk & packing up the all supplies can be so overwhelming, for us it’s much easier to directly feed her even though it does take up so much of my time.
SLEEPING
For 1-2 weeks (lol, it felt like forever!) Elyse had a night/day mix up, aka- would go to sleep any time between 4am-7am and then would want to sleep until noon -1pm!! It was such a crazy problem to have, because we conquered the consecutive hours hurdle but they were not even close to the ideal times of day!! I was along for the ride & so thankful I wasn’t back at work yet- as this wild schedule made it impossible to plan anything! I was trying to live a “normal schedule” while supporting Elyse day/night and was EXHAUSTED to say the least… To reset her sleeping we adopted the Mom’s on Call Program schedule & completed the rigorous routine of feed/play/nap every hour on the dot. Using this schedule definitely helped us to reset things, but it’s not the perfect routine for our family… since then we have tweaked the routine for us & have been working to master wake windows & prioritize day time naps that do not exceed 2hrs. Her bed time is still later then I would like & she requires some coaxing to go to sleep, but she 100% sleeps through the night once she is all tucked in & for that we are THANKFUL.
LIKES/DISLIKES
Lately she has really enjoyed riding in the car and snuggling/studying her Bandana Buddy- Doggy! I am so happy she does so well in her car seat, allowing us to travel more and visit with lots of friends & family this month- we stayed in Greensboro for a week + and got to spend lots of quality time with friends & family, it was wonderful! She has had so many outings! 1st- Zinc House Winery, then lots of restaurants, family homes & Little Doodles Playhouse! She is also enjoying books, seeing herself in the mirror, rocking in her glider & playing hard on her Kick & Play Piano Gym ๐ E doesn’t get terribly fussy luckily- just don’t make her wait to eat, splash her with cold water or take too long to change her clothes!
MILESTONES & HIGHLIGHTS
Being in Greensboro away from home for so long was huge for us as parents- we are learning what it takes to travel overnight with our entire family- baby & puppy. These days we all require a lot of stuff! It is wild, but worth it to me to be prepared for everything & we use it all!
- Meeting her friends- Avery & Liam, all 3 babies were born within a few weeks of each other!
- Reddick family dinners at Jilly & Pops
- Taco night with Noelle, Colby & Tucker!
- Quality Selph, Lomax & Akeeke time
- 1st trip to Grammy’s house!
- Our 1st Mommy & Me day outing- errands & the dog groomer, phew!
Elyse you are so precious to us! Thanks for being such a trooper and always along for the ride! You make everyone around you happier & smilier, unless it’s 5am and your fussing at us?! Wow- glad we figured out sleeping better, so we can enjoy the days out with new friends! Looking forward to getting more & more efficient at going places together, I have finally figured out how to fold up the stroller! haha woo!
