Healthy Little Swimmer
Evie's cold is gone (thank goodness) so she's been a lot more fun these last few weeks. We've had lots of outings that are making this winter just fly by.
This was definitely the winter to have a baby - the weather in Calgary has been pretty amazing aside from a couple of cold weeks. It was 17 degrees a couple Sundays ago - who would have guessed that Evie would have her first afternoon on the back deck in January?
We have been getting out and about quite a bit lately. Last week we experienced 'Stars and Strollers' for the first time with my friend Suzanne her baby girl Alexis who was just born at the beginning of January and one of her friends who had a 5 month old. We headed up to Silvercity in the Cross Iron Mills mall just north of Calgary and saw 'The Imitation Game' - I was pleasantly surprised that they show an adult movie for those parents who have younger babies who don't really watch movies. They also show a kids movie at the same time for parents with younger kids. They keep the lights up for the movie and don't turn the sound up all the way. Everyone just parks their strollers at the front of the theatre and they also set up a change table there. It's pretty laid back, and you don't feel bad if your baby cries a bit....there was usually one mom walking around with her baby at any given time (me included). Hopefully we'll have a chance to go back again before Evie is a bit older and won't sleep in my arms happily anymore.
We have been trying to get out with the other moms and babies I know fairly regularly - that makes the days go by quickly. I think by the time summer rolls around, there will be a pretty solid crew of babies for Evie to play with (as much as she can anyway). I have about 5 friends who are due within the next 3-4 months and 5 more who already have babies that are within a few months of Evie. It's very nice to have that kind of support and be able to share stories with people who are going through similar experiences. I think there are a lot of 'right' ways to raise babies and everyone will figure out the best option for their own child, but it is still helpful to hear about others' experiences and tips when it comes to sleep/feeding/behaviour etc.
Evie playing with her new friend Julien, my friend Jenine's son who was born about a month after Evie
We went out to Banff this weekend for my friend Nicole's bachelorette party (well, only part of it). I had hoped to go without Evelyn, but she has decided she no longer likes the bottle. We tried for the last couple weeks to get her drinking from the bottle but she would just throw her head back, gag, and scream. She was accepting it around 6-7 weeks, but I'm guessing that we didn't use it frequently enough (breastfeeding is just way too convenient the majority of times). So leaving Evie at home wasn't really an option. We had a nice lunch at a greek restaurant and then went back to the hotel where the group was staying and Evie went swimming for the first time. She loved it and it was the cutest thing ever. I just held her head and she floated around (must be those buoyant chubby thighs!). She was a little shocked when her feet first touched the water, but never cried and seemed to like it a lot once she got used to it.
Excited baby - although she had no idea what she was in for at this point
Baby's first swim
She just floated around cooing happily for about 15 minutes - it was adorable (no bias here :). And no, she wasn't wearing a lifejacket - that is the natural buoyancy of a well-fed baby
Evie's neck strength is getting much better so we took out the exer-saucer that her friend Ben lent us - her feet don't touch the floor yet, but she seems to like some time to play in an upright position instead of on her back or belly.
One more gigantic baby-related contraption to take up our limited floor space :)
We said goodbye to the night-time swaddle last night for the first time. A few nights ago Evie had probably one of the most restless nights thus far - just constantly struggling to get out of the swaddle. Knowing that we would eventually have to stop swaddling her when she could roll over and that babies often use their hands to self soothe, I thought it would be a good chance to try out one of the many sleep sacks that have hung in her closet the last four months, yet to be used. I have also been rocking her to sleep (which is not really recommended for the long term as it can make babies rely on you to fall asleep). So last night I rocked her a little, but only to the point of being drowsy so she wasn't fully asleep when I set her down. I sat in her room for a while with her - she cried a little but never an all-out cry and I helped her to keep the soother in her mouth (we'll worry about breaking that habit in a while from now). She definitely moved around a lot, flailing her arms - but that seemed to settle her down. She fell asleep on her own and woke up at 2 and 6 to eat, but overall it was pretty successful. I think I was up way more than her though, as she is definitely a noisier sleeper when she's not swaddled. The baby monitor would go off probably every hour, but I would just look at the camera and see she was just tossing and turning (closed circuit camera we mounted beside her crib that streams to our phones).
Hopefully the next few nights go well too - Last night was following a very busy day (swimming, lunch in Banff) - so I'm sure she was extra tired.
Goodbye swaddle (I'm a little sad because I just love how sweet and peaceful a swaddled baby looks)
The one not-so-fun phase she seems to be entering is the cling-to-mom mood that she sometimes experiences. Don't get me wrong - it definitely makes me feel very special and needed, but its hard at the end of a day when I would like a break and she just won't settle unless I'm holding her. It's not fun for Craig either - it's nothing he has or hasn't done to bond with her, she just wants her mom sometimes. So we've been through a few dinners that I start and then have to instruct Craig through the finishing steps. I even had him rolling out pastry a few days ago for our Chicken Pot Pies - definitely a team effort. From everyone I've talked to though, and the reading I've done - it's really common, especially among breastfed babies and like most phases in babies, it will pass.
Evie is getting a lot more interactive - she also had her first laugh the other day when I was laughing at her in the mirror. I think it will be a while before I can capture that on camera, but it just melted my heart when it happened (and so now of course I spend a crazy amount of time trying to make her do it again).
I'll leave you with a couple recent pictures and videos of her playing.
Intrigued by the giraffe that my co-worker's 4.5-year old twin boys picked out for her
Flopsy the bunny - I am trying to get her to snuggle with this little blankie as a way to self soothe
Centre of attention
Just a girl hanging with her pups - She has actually started to notice the dogs and look at them more in the last couple weeks. They have been sneaking in lots of kisses too.
Love this picture - story time with Daddy
This was definitely the winter to have a baby - the weather in Calgary has been pretty amazing aside from a couple of cold weeks. It was 17 degrees a couple Sundays ago - who would have guessed that Evie would have her first afternoon on the back deck in January?
We have been getting out and about quite a bit lately. Last week we experienced 'Stars and Strollers' for the first time with my friend Suzanne her baby girl Alexis who was just born at the beginning of January and one of her friends who had a 5 month old. We headed up to Silvercity in the Cross Iron Mills mall just north of Calgary and saw 'The Imitation Game' - I was pleasantly surprised that they show an adult movie for those parents who have younger babies who don't really watch movies. They also show a kids movie at the same time for parents with younger kids. They keep the lights up for the movie and don't turn the sound up all the way. Everyone just parks their strollers at the front of the theatre and they also set up a change table there. It's pretty laid back, and you don't feel bad if your baby cries a bit....there was usually one mom walking around with her baby at any given time (me included). Hopefully we'll have a chance to go back again before Evie is a bit older and won't sleep in my arms happily anymore.
We have been trying to get out with the other moms and babies I know fairly regularly - that makes the days go by quickly. I think by the time summer rolls around, there will be a pretty solid crew of babies for Evie to play with (as much as she can anyway). I have about 5 friends who are due within the next 3-4 months and 5 more who already have babies that are within a few months of Evie. It's very nice to have that kind of support and be able to share stories with people who are going through similar experiences. I think there are a lot of 'right' ways to raise babies and everyone will figure out the best option for their own child, but it is still helpful to hear about others' experiences and tips when it comes to sleep/feeding/behaviour etc.
Evie playing with her new friend Julien, my friend Jenine's son who was born about a month after Evie
Evie showing off her new rolling skills (she only goes this far, and only to this side)
We went out to Banff this weekend for my friend Nicole's bachelorette party (well, only part of it). I had hoped to go without Evelyn, but she has decided she no longer likes the bottle. We tried for the last couple weeks to get her drinking from the bottle but she would just throw her head back, gag, and scream. She was accepting it around 6-7 weeks, but I'm guessing that we didn't use it frequently enough (breastfeeding is just way too convenient the majority of times). So leaving Evie at home wasn't really an option. We had a nice lunch at a greek restaurant and then went back to the hotel where the group was staying and Evie went swimming for the first time. She loved it and it was the cutest thing ever. I just held her head and she floated around (must be those buoyant chubby thighs!). She was a little shocked when her feet first touched the water, but never cried and seemed to like it a lot once she got used to it.
Excited baby - although she had no idea what she was in for at this point
She just floated around cooing happily for about 15 minutes - it was adorable (no bias here :). And no, she wasn't wearing a lifejacket - that is the natural buoyancy of a well-fed baby
Evie's neck strength is getting much better so we took out the exer-saucer that her friend Ben lent us - her feet don't touch the floor yet, but she seems to like some time to play in an upright position instead of on her back or belly.
One more gigantic baby-related contraption to take up our limited floor space :)
We said goodbye to the night-time swaddle last night for the first time. A few nights ago Evie had probably one of the most restless nights thus far - just constantly struggling to get out of the swaddle. Knowing that we would eventually have to stop swaddling her when she could roll over and that babies often use their hands to self soothe, I thought it would be a good chance to try out one of the many sleep sacks that have hung in her closet the last four months, yet to be used. I have also been rocking her to sleep (which is not really recommended for the long term as it can make babies rely on you to fall asleep). So last night I rocked her a little, but only to the point of being drowsy so she wasn't fully asleep when I set her down. I sat in her room for a while with her - she cried a little but never an all-out cry and I helped her to keep the soother in her mouth (we'll worry about breaking that habit in a while from now). She definitely moved around a lot, flailing her arms - but that seemed to settle her down. She fell asleep on her own and woke up at 2 and 6 to eat, but overall it was pretty successful. I think I was up way more than her though, as she is definitely a noisier sleeper when she's not swaddled. The baby monitor would go off probably every hour, but I would just look at the camera and see she was just tossing and turning (closed circuit camera we mounted beside her crib that streams to our phones).
Hopefully the next few nights go well too - Last night was following a very busy day (swimming, lunch in Banff) - so I'm sure she was extra tired.
Goodbye swaddle (I'm a little sad because I just love how sweet and peaceful a swaddled baby looks)
The one not-so-fun phase she seems to be entering is the cling-to-mom mood that she sometimes experiences. Don't get me wrong - it definitely makes me feel very special and needed, but its hard at the end of a day when I would like a break and she just won't settle unless I'm holding her. It's not fun for Craig either - it's nothing he has or hasn't done to bond with her, she just wants her mom sometimes. So we've been through a few dinners that I start and then have to instruct Craig through the finishing steps. I even had him rolling out pastry a few days ago for our Chicken Pot Pies - definitely a team effort. From everyone I've talked to though, and the reading I've done - it's really common, especially among breastfed babies and like most phases in babies, it will pass.
Evie is getting a lot more interactive - she also had her first laugh the other day when I was laughing at her in the mirror. I think it will be a while before I can capture that on camera, but it just melted my heart when it happened (and so now of course I spend a crazy amount of time trying to make her do it again).
I'll leave you with a couple recent pictures and videos of her playing.
Intrigued by the giraffe that my co-worker's 4.5-year old twin boys picked out for her
Flopsy the bunny - I am trying to get her to snuggle with this little blankie as a way to self soothe
Centre of attention
Just a girl hanging with her pups - She has actually started to notice the dogs and look at them more in the last couple weeks. They have been sneaking in lots of kisses too.
Love this picture - story time with Daddy
Happy morning smiles (makes getting up a bit easier when you get to see this)
Playing in her mat
Cows can't be trusted..I may have overdone it a little :)
Discovering the exer-saucer
Wow she has really changed so much (in only a few weeks) I like the cow video the best. Poor Evie doesn't seem to like cows.
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