Dry Run

The sun poked its head through our window the other day so I thought we'd give Violet's sun hat a try.  Of course, at this rate of growth, she'll outgrow it by summer!

A Moment

You are waking up very early these days...  6 a.m. is the new normal it seems.  That's the time mom and dad were waking up to have an hour or so together before you woke up but I think you're onto us!  Well, that means your first nap comes about 7:30 a.m.  This morning, while you laid curled up against me nursing to sleep, I took a moment... lifted my head to get some perspective.  I'm beginning to worry about these moments and how I'll ever be able to remember how beautiful and amazing they are in a year, five years, ten years from now.  I have a notoriously bad memory but I'm trying now to commit the details to my memory so that I can savor them when you're too old to cuddle.  :)  Your little hand was resting on my chest and your knees bent and your little feet pulled up against my thighs.  That was one realization right there.  I remember very clearly when your little feet were just at my hip level when we laid together in this position (that's a delicate way of saying I remember when you got to a length where your kicks were particularly bothersome!).  Now your feet are closer to my knees than my hips.  Such a very big girl!  You are only 5 months old and I cannot believe how much you have changed and grown.  I wish I could jump back to your newborn days and just feel your little body once more, those tiny little hands and skinny legs, with the perspective I have now.  You are very solidly a little person now!  I feel so lucky that I don't have to rush off to work right now and stay home with you, even when we have a difficult day or two.  I would not miss this for the world.  

First Snow! and First Cold...

It's snowing in Seattle!  It's started on Sunday and by Monday we had a good accumulation on the ground.  It was so beautiful!  I bundled you into a bear suit and we took a look out in the backyard.  You were curious but maybe not so impressed?

You got to check it out from inside with your dad too for a bit.  

Unfortunately, we've all come down with a little cold and dad had to go to San Francisco for a couple days.  So... Mom and Violet have been cooped up in the house for a couple days with snow on the ground outside.  You have had a little cough and some congestion but seem to be doing better although you have spent the last two days fussing and crying and screaming.  Yikes!  Mom gets a little stir crazy anyways so this has been a rough couple of days.  And with dad being gone... I'm so very much looking forward to him coming home tonight.  And to you feeling better!

Teething

Whoa nelly!  Here we go.  While we were under the impression that we saw some "pre-teething" symptoms a while back, clearly that was nothing compared to the real thing.  I think it's actually begun!  You have a cry that tells us that you're uncomfortable... and we've heard it more often than we'd like to the last two days.  You absolutely must be chewing on something at all times and that only seems to satisfy for a short time.  Today was the worst...  after a night of little sleep, you did not nap all day.  You just wouldn't go!  Not while nursing, not in the carrier, not with a good long bounce on the exercise ball or some time in the rocking chair.  That's all we got kid!  Not more tricks up the sleeve!

On advise from friends, we got some teething tablets to give to you.  They're homeopathic.  It's a mystery to me what they're actually doing and so far the seem to have done little.  I tried one as your'e supposed to dissolve them in baby's mouth and I was skeptical they wouldn't choke you.  No, they dissolve into a quick paste right away and don't have the horrible taste of the infant pain reliever, Pedia Care.  They may have done something.  They may not.

At your fussiest we remind ourselves that having a tooth push up, slowly, through one's gums must be a very painful and miserable experience.  Sorry kid!