Dear Siena – 5 Months

Dear Siena,

Five months is so close to half a year. I go back to work in less than three weeks and I can’t believe that our precious full days together are coming to an end. I know you’re going to do great in day care and will thrive there but it makes me very sad to think about spending so much time away from you.

This month you truly left your newborn status behind. You are officially giggling, although it’s always prompted by your dad or me (no spontaneous giggles yet). You are rolling like crazy and your curiosity about everything around you is at an all time high. You are fascinated with everything and want to look at it closely and put it in your mouth (which means everything is covered in drool). You discovered your feet this month, which means not only have you mastered the Happy Baby yoga pose, but you love to put your feet in your mouth.

You squirm constantly and diaper changes are becoming more interesting by the day since you now try to turn over every time we set you down. Giving you a toy to distract you seems to help. You really seem to pay attention to me and your dad when we speak (this isn’t necessarily new, but you are more focused than ever) and you are showing interest in wanting to be included in our meals (although we are waiting to give you solid food until sometime around your 6 month birthday).

One of the best things that happened this month is that you don’t really seem to mind being in the car while awake anymore. If I give you a toy and make sure the sun isn’t in your eyes, you’ll happily play in the backseat instead of screaming for attention like you used to. This makes me very happy, especially since we have two road trips planned this month.

I packed up pretty much all of your 3 month clothes and you’re wearing 3-6 month/6 month sizes exclusively now. You’re now tall enough to fit in your Baby Einstein activity jumper and you have an intense laser focus when you’re playing in it. You now enjoy spending time on your belly and will comfortably play in that position for over 10 minutes at a time, unless of course you roll over first (but chances are, you’ll roll right back). You enjoy playing with your Baby Einstein piano  while on your tummy and you’ve gotten really good at hitting the buttons. You’ve also started to do the super man pose sometimes while on your belly and you push off with your legs as if you want to go somewhere. I keep wondering when you’re going to crawl although I know you have to learn to sit first.

I’m happy to say that you didn’t have any sort of four month sleep regression, even after we transitioned you out of the Magical Merlin Suit because you would NOT stop rolling over in it (it was well worth having it for the 6 weeks you did sleep in it). The first night we moved you into a sleep sack (we use the GroBag) was rough mostly because I kept getting worried when you’d roll onto your side or stomach to sleep, but now that I understand that you just prefer to sleep that way, I’m ok with it. Although you still sleep a consistent 8 hour first stretch, since your bedtime is 8 p.m. that still means we’re waking up sometime around 4 a.m. to feed you in the night. I feel a mix of impatience for you to start sleeping all the way through til 7 a.m. and relief that at least you only wake one time and are a good napper.

Sadly, you’re battling you first cold right now. It breaks our hearts to watch you cough, sneeze, and sniffle. Despite all your symptoms, you are still in good spirits and are as smiley as ever.

Nana has started coming over every Thursday to spend time with you while I go do yoga or go for a run with my friends. It’s nice that you get to spend some quality alone time with her! Nana and Boo and your Aunt Claire and Uncle Josh also babysat you a few times so that your Dad and I could have a date night. We celebrated our first Valentine’s Day as a family by having a picnic at the park and your dad and I also had our own night together.

This month was the first time that I left you overnight. I went to LA for the Marathon Olympic Trials and you got to spend over a full day alone with your dad! I got to experience pumping for a full day on the go which was interesting at times, but in the end it actually gave me more confidence about pumping at work. This month was also the first time you experienced group daycare (or being watched by any stranger for that matter). YogaSix recently added daycare services and I took you there last week for the first time while I did a yoga class. You did great and I was able to relax more than I thought I would during class.

The weather was amazing this month, with some days hitting 80 degrees, and I took you to the beach for the first time! I can’t wait for you to learn to love the beach as much as your dad and I do. Or maybe I can wait – time, please slow down!!!

Love,

Mom

Mamas, when did you first leave your baby overnight and/or with a stranger? Any tips for going back to work!? 

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