Dear Siena – 3 Months

Dear Siena,

Welcome to 2016! Your birth year is officially in the past and we have a whole lot of growing and learning to do in 2016. Before we look forward, let’s talk about your third month of life. It was an exciting month, with your first Christmas and New Year celebrations on the books. You changed dramatically again (I think this will be a theme) and your personality is really starting to shine through.

You’re a social and talkative baby, constantly making us smile with your coos, shrieks and grins.  You started making noises right around your two month birthday and now at three months, you’ve seemingly made up your own vocabulary which you practice throughout the day without being prompted. You’re extremely curious and love to be carried around upright so that you can check out your surroundings and don’t like to be carried “like a baby” anymore. You especially like the refrigerator covered in Christmas cards from your family and friends. You definitely let us know when you don’t like something, and we have a feeling you’re going to be a very spirited child!

You can now hold your head up and enjoy sitting up on the end of tables (with help of course) so you can check everything out. You also somehow managed to roll over from your stomach to back, despite your continued hated for tummy time (you probably just rolled over so you wouldn’t have to hang out on your tummy any longer).  Just today actually, you rolled from back to tummy in your swaddle after you woke from a nap by using some sort of torpedo leg move (not counting this as real “rolling over”). Luckily we caught it on the monitor as soon as it happened and were able to run up to your room to rescue you! I guess that means no more swaddling. We’re scared.

You’ve also started to grab your toys and bring them to your mouth and you interact with your play mat more than ever, grabbing the rings and the side bar. You also grab blankets and pull them up to your face and mouth and pull on my hair whenever you can. You still like to push off of people when they are holding you in their lap, almost like you’re trying to stand up. You also have started pushing off with your feet while sitting in your rock and play and sometimes I worry you’ll fall out. I guess we need to actually use all those straps now!

I read you books and you carefully study each page. I almost feel like you’re frustrated because you understand and process more in your head than you are able to physically or verbally communicate. You love to be read to, sung to (the easiest way to make you smile and the ABC’s, Old McDonald and a song that your dad and I made up ourselves are my go-tos), talked to, and you are enjoying your toys for the first time. You especially love your light up, music playing sea horse and your Sophie the Giraffe doll. You enjoy baths and even don’t mind when the water runs down your face, but hate getting out of the water into the cold air. Your dad says you better figure it out because he plans to take you surfing pretty much as soon as you can stand up.

Speaking of things you don’t like – you don’t like baby carriers, although I keep trying (I think maybe you’re too close to food without being able to have it and it drives you crazy!?). I did successfully take you to Trader Joe’s in the Ergo but I think you only put up with it because you were so distracted by all the pretty colorful food and people. You also don’t like driving in the car which is the complete opposite of most babies, but you still love to be swung in your car seat (yes, this is as hard for the person swinging as it sounds). You still won’t take a pacifier, although we haven’t tried in over a month. At this point, we figure at least it’s a habit we don’t have to break one day. It still remains that no matter what, nursing you or swinging you in the car seat will stop your cries immediately.

Physically, you’re still in 3 month clothes, although some of your sleepers in that size are now too short for you. You still wear size 1 diapers, although we’ll be buying Size 2 from now on since you’re over 12 pounds now and I can tell they are getting smaller on you. We know you’re still a tall, skinny string bean, but your face and thighs are filling out more these days. You don’t eat a ton in each sitting (even when we give you a bottle you won’t drink more than 4 ounces, often 3-3.5), although when you nurse, you still take your time, usually around 30 minutes per session (but this is shorter than it used to be). I spend a significant portion of my day nursing you and we live life in intervals of eating, playing and getting you to sleep ( you usually take 4 naps a day).

We took a few steps forward and the same number back in the sleep department this month. You started the month going strong with 6 hour stretches and then gave us a few nights of 7-8.5 hours of sleep which gave us a ray of hope that uninterrupted nights of sleep are in our future. But then you decided that you’d prefer to have a 2-2:30 a.m. snack every night instead, no matter what time you go to bed (which makes me think you’re not always actually hungry, just have some internal alarm clock that goes off around 2 a.m.). I know it could be worse – often you only wake one time over the period of 10 hours and you don’t fuss when being put down to bed at night or in the middle of the night which makes waking up for a feeding less intrusive since you just fall right back to sleep afterward (doesn’t mean your mom and dad do though).

We are still implementing the eat – play – sleep cycle (I do not nurse you to sleep except in the middle of the night and in extreme cases when it’s clear a nap will not happen without it) and we almost always put you down for bed at the same time (9 p.m.) and wake up around the same time (with the holidays it hasn’t been quite as consistent), but despite all of that and your mom’s constant wishing, you aren’t sleeping through the night. Now that the holidays are over, I’m hoping a more consistent schedule and possibly an additional daytime feeding, will help.

Speaking of sleep, as of last week you’re sleeping in your crib for most naps and at night! It was harder than I thought to move you out of our room – I was totally emotional about having you so far away. You still nap in the car seat or swing from time to time – when we are out and about or if you absolutely won’t go to sleep in your crib we will resort to swinging you in the car seat, which always calms you down. For some reason you do just fine going to bed at night and in the middle of the night, but resist nap time nearly every time, even when I try to put you down even before you’re fussy.

This month was really fun because you celebrated your first Christmas! We took you to meet Santa, went to the Encinitas Christmas Parade, picked out and decorated a tree, listened to the Michael Buble Christmas album repeat and made Christmas cookies. On Christmas Eve we went to your Nana and Boo’s house for Christmas Eve dinner. Your Aunt Claire, Uncle Josh and my mom (your Grandma Christy) were also there. We all stayed the night (and you slept great in the pack and play) and had Christmas breakfast and opened presents together the next day. That afternoon we headed to Great Grandma Ewing’s house for a big celebration with my extended family. You were much more alert and happy than you were at Thanksgiving which made it more relaxing and fun for everyone.

You had quite the social life in December as well, hanging out with new and old friends. Our next door neighbors had their baby, Ellie, who is exactly 2 months younger than you, and our friends Vicky and Kelly had their baby, Emi, who is 2 1/2 months younger than you. These girls are going to be your good friends soon! We also went to a New Years Eve party where you got to hang out with your friend Kairi and a bunch of new baby friends. Your dad took two full weeks off over the holidays and has been able to spend a lot more time with you and has also allowed me to go on some runs and more hot yoga classes. Speaking of workouts, your mom and dad started P90X this month. You either sleep through it or watch us as we workout in our homemade gym in the garage. Sometimes you even want to be included and we use you as a weight.

Your dad and I were able to get out of the house alone a few times this month, once for a birthday friend’s birthday dinner (your Grandma Christy watched you and even put you to bed!) and another time for my birthday dinner (Aunt Claire watched you!). We missed you but it’s also good for us to get out and be on our own sometimes! We both agreed that we need to make it a priority to have at least one date night a month outside of the house (and others at home). Luckily we have your dad’s family only a 30 min drive away who are all pretty excited to watch you. Your dad and I also got out for a few 3 mile walks along the coast, a coffee date and a few dinners and lunches out.

They say there is a “fourth trimester” to pregnancy because the first three months of a baby’s life are basically about you adjusting to you new surroundings outside the womb. The fourth trimester is over and we’ve pretty excited to see what happens next. We love you!

Love,

Mommy