11 months ago, we were getting to know each other “on the outside,” and finding our groove with breastfeeding, coping with loneliness while your papa was away, and just soaking in each other’s presence. The fourth trimester is just that. We were still connected 24/7, you depended entirely on me, and I on you. We may not occupy the same space all the time any more, but you and I are still so entwined, in body and in spirit. You and I are never alone.

10 months ago, you started paying attention to the world beyond my face and my breasts. You wanted to make sense of things. From the moment you were born, everyone commented on how alert you were, and your awareness of the shapes and sounds around you was quite clear. You were a sponge. (You still are.) You didn’t want to miss a thing. (You still don’t.)

9 months ago, we were venturing out together more, and babywearing every time. You were no longer nursing 12 hours a day, and started having longer stretches of “happy awake time” (time when you were awake but not hungry, so we could play and sing). You were getting better control of your body, and expressing your emotions, not just your needs. Smiles and laughter filled our days. I feel so grateful that you are still such a happy child.

8 months ago, you fell in love with books. You loved to watch us turn the pages, listen to our voices reading sing-songy prose, and take in the colors and shapes of the illustrations. Is it any wonder then, since your love of books has only grown, that one of your newest signs is “book” (as soon as you sit on the potty)? Now, you turn the pages yourself, know how to “lift the flaps” on interactive books, and have some favorite books you keep coming back to.

7 months ago, you began teething. I wish I could say it has been quick or easy for you, but you’ve pretty much been teething ever since then. In fact, today you are working on tooth number 8, and it’s giving you a hard time. I wish I could take away your pain.

6 months ago, you were sitting, rolling, pivoting, grasping, shaking, chewing… PLAYING. I began to have a love-hate relationship with the second half of the night when you wanted to nurse nonstop while I dozed on and off. I loved snuggling you and waking up to your sweet face, but was feeling truly unrested for the first time since you were born. These days, you’ve added crawling and cruising around furniture to your locomotive tools, and although you still wake to nurse at night, we are both sleeping much more soundly.

5 months ago, we had just completed a month together alone, during which time I got horribly sick with a stomach virus (but you hung in there like a champ while I vomited. A lot.) You were trying so hard to learn to crawl, and we finally gave you your first food since your daddy had come home. Now, time on our own has become more routine since your papa has been here and there, getting ready for deployment, you zoom around the whole house, and you eat entire hamburgers and bowls of peas.

4 months ago, you were STILL trying to figure out how to crawl and working on those darned teeth. So frustrating for you! But you were doing so well with pottying, even at other people’s houses and in public (in “big people” toilets). You were becoming such a social butterfly, and having playdates with little baby friends all the time. You started waving at people, and interacting in new ways. Lately, pottying in public toilets is frequent enough to be unexciting, and you’ve upped your social game from just waving to actually flirting with strangers, playing peek-a-boo: smiling coyly, then hiding in my shoulder, then peering around again to see if the other person is still watching you.

3 months ago, you were communicating so much with us. You were using your sign language to let me know what you needed, and to tell me when you had to potty. You were starting to feel confident with crawling, and learning to sleep better at night. Your papa and I tried to get you to nurse more at the beginning of the night so your long sleep stretch would be while I was asleep too, and this was making me feel much more rested, so I could be a better mama for you during the day. Since then, you had sign language strikes and potty pauses (mostly due to TEETHING – on both counts), but now you are signing again, and you have added “book” and “please” to your ASL vocabulary. You also say “yes,” “hi,” and “Dada” out loud (in the right context).

2 months ago, you started really babbling. You had made some sounds before, of course, but now the super-cute “baby talk” had started. It wasn’t constant, but you were definitely using tone and inflection to get your meaning across when you needed to. You were also getting better at falling asleep in your bed on your own. I could hug you and kiss you and leave you alone, and you would fall asleep after not too long. And now? You talk. All. Day. Long. And I love it. Especially when you say “tay-too” or another approximation of “thank you.” What a sweetie. And I love that you haven’t ever said “no.” A LOT of “yes” though. You are still doing great with your floor bed. And sometimes, when we are playing in your room, if you get sleepy you climb onto it and lay down for a minute, which signals to me that it’s time to wrap things up and let you nap.

1 month ago, you had settled into what had become a bit of a routine. And, teething aside, that’s where we still are. Lots of snuggles, some good naps (if I don’t run you around town too much), playing, eating food, nursing… the pace of our days is wonderful. And that different kind of love I suddenly felt a year ago at 5:56 when I held you in my arms?

I still feel this love every.

Single.

Day.

We’re finally getting ready to paint her room the color we’ve had in mind since before she was born. I just hope it turns out the way I have envisioned it. I didn’t do a patch test with the paint, so I’m not positive, but I did have the paint chip up on the wall for a long time.

I can’t wait for the paint to be finished, so that we can put her room back together and actually hang her art on the walls. I feel sad that her room hasn’t been “finished” and we’ve lived here for more than half of her life – 6 months!

Meanwhile, I’ve been in the kitchen, mixing up a spice rub

…and washing some local carrots…

… for the best roast beef. Ready for the oven! (It’s in there now.)

I’m also going to make some mashed cauliflower for us. Too much food for 3 people? Maybe so, BUT I’m loving having my husband home again, and having an excuse to actually COOK-cook. Making roast beef for 2 adults is only half as crazy as making it for just one. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

(Also, husband home apparently = more blog posts. Go figure!)

Have you missed me?

Instead, I rotated her toys a few times – which appeases her for a little while, but soon her toys become boring to her again, and now that she’s crawling (and I mean REALLY crawling), this means she RACES over to whatever non-toy item she sees first, to explore it. Which, you know, means putting it in her mouth. Even if it’s the dog’s chew toys. Gross. I catch her MOST of the time.

So today, while “popping in” to World Market to buy a spring form pan, I decided to search for some lovely things for Anneliese to play with. Treasures.

And I found them.

2 painted (and lacquered) paper mache eggs; 3 napkin rings – one rope, one straw, one wooden; one fancy decorated metal box; one wooden guiro (the frog shaped percussion instrument).

A pretty silky bag that snaps closed; a tiny metal whisk; a lightweight painted wooden mirror.

And these wonderful wooden condiment spoons that are tied together. They’re intended to be untied of course, but I like how they’re like a set of keys or a rattle this way.

Yes, I did show them to her early. But by Sunday, she won’t remember anything about this…

When she gets bigger, I can put things into the bag and the box for her to discover, and she can use the spoons (untied) for transferring dried beans or rice from one container to another.

This basket isn’t intended to be a one-time thing. I’m looking forward to finding new items to put into it for her – around the house, in nature, and in shops.

World Market was just a good place to start!

This morning, we snuggled for a while and she fell asleep again, and I managed to sneak out of the bed with her still in it, still asleep.

I just went in to check on her (over an hour later) and she is sleeping on her back – something she never ever does. She looked so peaceful and so sweet, I had to take a picture. But just one, because I didn’t want my camera sounds to wake her. Snuck out again.

Bliss.

We met up at Hidden Valley park, which has rolling hills of grass, a duck pond, and playgrounds. Anneliese got to wear her new sun hat, and I got to break in my awesome waterproof-backed picnic blanket.

Henri wasn’t sure what to think of all the ladies.

Allen was sporting his awesome Aviators and chilling.

Annalyce seems to have lost her awesome floppy hat while she was drinking some water.

I love mamas and babies just snuggling and talking. So laid back. So comfy.

This is a beautiful family. I’m so happy to have met Christiana and her girls through Hanford’s La Leche League.

Ella tried on the GIGANTIC flower I got for her. And generally looked adorable.

Thanks to Krystale for taking some pictures of me and Anneliese!

The next day was the Spring Swap Meet on base, and I got to show off all my Joyful A. Baby wares. Oh yeah, have I told you? I’ve started a little baby boutique. And boy stuff is coming soon! If you’re local to me, ask about hosting a home party. I’ve done one and have 3 more coming up soon!

Still setting up in this picture (I’m sitting on the ground)…

Tutus! Stationery!

Lots of flowers…

More flowers and headbands.

And my sweet friend Rachel was right across from me, so we got to chat the whole time.

Anneliese was in the ring sling the entire time, and she was perfect. She nursed twice (everyone thought she was sleeping!), took a great nap, and quietly observed all the excitement around her.

Lots of starbucks baby dates happened. Here’s Anneliese and Kaitlynn.

Having a little baby squabble. Soooo cute. Like a slow motion bar fight.

I don’t know how Anneliese and I make soooo much laundry. Our clothes, towels, cloth diapers, kitchen towels, cloth napkins, baby blankets…. oh wait. I do know how we make so much laundry. But I’m good with it. We only make a bag of trash (or less) per week.

Here she is in her super-cute airplane pajamas. Pilots’ daughters gotta represent.

Trying very hard to crawl, and noticing the drawer knobs I so carefully picked out for her. I love this. Love watching her discover new things.

Cosleeping is wonderful and crazy all at once. Most nights, she ends up nursing nonstop for the second half of the night, nestled in my arm or draped over my body. A couple nights, I actually put her on the bed and scooted away once she fell asleep, which was awesome because I got to tummy-sleep. And while I’m NOT happy my husband is away, I now understand why cosleeping families want California King sized beds. Babies take up more room than you’d think! Perfect for me and her in a queen.

Anneliese is so helpful with chores like sorting out the junk mail for recycling.

To be continued…

The temperature was perfect. I got to wear capris and a sleeveless top, with a light hoodie that I took off as the day got warmer.

Anneliese got to play in the grass and clovers.

But she wasn’t really feeling it… which I’m 98% sure is because she’s teething again.

My never-fussy (only cries when super-sleepy) baby was fussy today. She had snot, and felt warm, and coughed a little, and sneezed some. All of which she was doing right before her bottom teeth popped through. Ibuprofen keeps the swelling down enough that she no longer had the snot/cough/sneeze, and hopefully it reduced her pain too.

Yes, we have the amber necklace on. Yes, I give her Borion’s camilia drops, chamomile drops, and Hyland’s teething gel. My friend Amber picked up some teething tablets (not Hyland’s but the same ingredients. I forgot the name of them though) for Anneliese too – so sweet.

After a 6pm meltdown, and an hour and a half of holding, nursing, and holding some more, Anneliese fell asleep. Two minutes later, she was awake again, crying at the top of her lungs. So I took her out of her room for some half-hearted (on her part, not mine) playtime.

Have I mentioned before that I love watching Anneliese play? The way she explores her toys is just so fun to see.

And even if she’s not feeling well…

…she finds her toys fascinating.

She’s learning that pieces of things go together.

(Don’t be too impressed by this picture. The square was already there, and she was banging the triangle on the puzzle base, not gently placing it in the hole. Yes, she’s a baby. But Mother, if you want to share this with your friends and tell them she’s a genius and can do puzzles already, feel free.)

And she watches me watching her. We talk about the toys, or I talk and she listens. Sometimes she talks but I don’t know what she’s saying yet.

But then this happens… tired again. And the sleep stuff I’ve been posting about lately? Still good. 5 minutes from lights out to her sleeping on her bed. That was half an hour ago.

Soft and drowsy hours are creeping,
Hill and vale in slumber sleeping,
Mother dear her watch is keeping,
All through the night

An Irish wish for my daughter on this St. Patrick’s Day:

May love and laughter light your days,
and warm your heart and home.
May good and faithful friends be yours,
wherever you may roam.
May peace and plenty bless your world
with joy that long endures.
May all life’s passing seasons
bring the best to you and yours!

Last night, Anneliese woke at 3am. She was just making fussy sounds and then putting her head back down, not crying. So I watched her on the monitor. About 40 minutes later, she was asleep again, on her own. No crying, just fussing.

She woke again at about 5:30 because she had rolled off of her floor bed. Either that or she woke and then rolled off… who knows. It’s not a far drop and she doesn’t get hurt when that happens, but it’s definitely surprising and not restful!

So I went in and got her and brought her to my bed. Nursed her, and then she slept in the co-sleeper for a while before waking and wanting to nurse again in the morning.

After that, she was still sleepy so I lay her on my bed beside me. She napped again, for a while. Then she just hung out on my bed, still resting, but awake.

Please note:

1) She hasn’t been able to put herself back to sleep when waking at night in months.

2) She has NEVER slept on my bed without being in contact with my (or my husband’s) body before. And I don’t mean her foot touching my leg. I mean full-body contact.

3) She has NEVER just hung out, relaxing on her tummy. Ever.

We went to take some pictures for a friend, and Anneliese rested in the ring sling the whole time (with my hoodie zipped up completely covering her, because it was very windy and cold). Then when we came back home, she nursed and went back to bed.

I turned off the light, put her on her bed, said, “It’s time to go to sleep, baby girl.” and left. With her eyes opened, watching me leave. Usually that would mean instantly pushing up and crying out. This time? She drifted off to sleep. No problem. No struggle.

And she slept for 2 hours, without waking.

A twitter mama (who has a “locked” account so I don’t know if she wants me to link/share) told me that what I’ve been doing is called “Crying in arms.” So I googled it, and came up with this article, which confirmed my thoughts about the whole thing. I also came across this thread on mothering.com with lots of mamas emphasizing the differences between cry-it-out and crying-in-arms. This is good stuff.

I wrote a few weeks ago about Anneliese’s sleeping, and what I was trying to make the whole situation better for everyone. Well I’ve been experimenting with something new the last 3 days.

And the last 3 days, Anneliese has had great naps – including one 2-hour nap each day, and 1 or 2 1-hour naps each day. And our bedtime routine is much shorter, smoother, and more effective. Meaning I don’t have to try 58 times to get Anneliese to stop nursing and to lay on her bed. Tonight it took 2 minutes from the time I turned off her lights to the time I left her room with her (mostly) asleep on her bed.

First, I’ll go over the things that I kept from our last sleep changes (Copying and pasting the main points from the last sleep post, and adding comments.) Then I’ll tell you what I added.

• Starting the bedtime routine much earlier than before. – Before, I thought “bedtime” was around 8. In reality, Anneliese tends to get sleepy around 6:30. Now I know, and watch for sleep signals. If it’s possible (if we’re at home, don’t have to go out, etc.) then as soon as she yawns or rubs her eyes, I start. But sometimes we’re out beyond that time, and the last couple of days it hasn’t seemed to be an issue. I just do the bedtime routine as soon as we get home.
• HAVING more of an established bedtime routine. – Sort of. But not the long drawn-out routine that was in my last post. In reality what I’ve been doing lately looks more like this:
  • Change Anneliese’s diaper and offer potty
  • PJs and sleep sack
  • Nurse if she’s hungry
  • Read a story. Maybe re-read it or read a second one if she’s super-alert and into it.
  • White noise on, lights off
  • Hold her for a few minutes, until she is very relaxed, eyes closed.
  • Tell her I’m going to put her on her bed, and do it.
  • Sit on the edge of her bed for a couple minutes, patting her back if she stirs, but mostly “hands off.”
  • Leave
  • (Don’t worry – I am still giving her baths, just right after she eats if she gets messy… I’ve found it’s easier to give her food and baths in the middle of the day rather than at night.)
• Creating a “lovie.” Hers is this adorable super-soft sheep. – Yes, still doing this. When I nurse her and hold her before bed, it is between us, under her arm. When I put her on her bed, I wrap one of her arms around it.
• I TRIED the “Pantley Pull-Off” – This NEVER worked. Anneliese has an insatiable desire to nurse. If I do what Pantley’s book says and keep letting her re-latch every time she cries out or roots, I am there all night. So no.
• Creating a “sleep cue” sentence. When Anneliese is totally relaxed and drifting to sleep, but not asleep yet, I say, “Time to go to sleep now, Baby Girl.” – I have been doing this, still. And the association seems to be established now. If she is lying on her bed, relaxed but with her eyes still open and looking around, and I say the “sleep cue” sentence, she closes her eyes. If she’s in my arms with her eyes closed but still feels tense, and I say it, I can feel her body relax and become heavier.
• Using white noise – which we’ve done for a while, because it really helps. – Still doing this.

So what did I add?

I, who was and still am totally against “Cry It Out” and similar methods, let my baby cry. I didn’t leave the room and close the door or put ear plugs in. I didn’t watch her on the video monitor, while counting down 5 minutes until I could go save her. I held her in my arms.

Here’s the thing… before, she would cry because of being overtired. The only thing that was WRONG was that she was tired. Her diaper was clean and dry, her tummy was full of milk. Her mama or papa was holding her, helping her go to sleep. Even so, we felt like we had to FIX something when she was crying. Really though, you can’t FIX a baby being awake when she is sleepy. You can distract from the hurt or discomfort… by walking, rocking, jiggling, bouncing, shushing, swaying, back patting… the list goes on. And I feel like my tension when trying to fix the mystery-ailment probably transferred to Anneliese, making her feel tense as well.

But the distractions don’t help in the big picture, because when Anneliese wakes up in the middle of the night, or too early during a nap, she doesn’t have me or her dad there immediately to distract her from the tired feeling, so she cries. And I don’t mean “fussy sounds.” I mean WAILING immediately upon waking. She doesn’t do that now.

I want her to know I’m here for her. I want her to know that sometimes you just have to let your feelings out, to talk about them (or cry about them) and that I’m listening. So what I did the first day (Sunday) for the first nap was hold her.

She cried.

I held her pacifier at about her chest level, so she could get it when she wanted it, but it wasn’t in the way.

She cried.

She waved her arms around. I told her that her tummy was full and her diaper was dry and that I was right there.

She cried.

I told her that whenever she was ready for it, her paci was right here. That nothing was wrong in the world, and I stayed totally calm and relaxed, not stressing about trying to discover and fix the cause of the crying (because I know it was just because she was sleepy).

After a little more crying, she leaned toward her pacifier and sucked on it. Totally relaxed.

A few minutes later, she cried again. This time, for only a minute or so. Then she grabbed her pacifier with her mouth again. Sucked. After a couple more short crying jags, she fell asleep in my arms. Comfortably. It didn’t feel like she had given up on me. She knew I was right there, holding her. All of her needs were met, and she was safe, and I was listening to her concerns and her feelings. Her heart wasn’t racing. She wasn’t sweating or shuddering. She was completely relaxed. I told her I was going to put her on her bed, and I did. Then I patted her back for a little while and said, “It’s time to go to sleep now, baby girl.” And after a couple of minutes, I left.

She slept for 2 hours. It was her longest nap in many weeks.

For her second nap, she didn’t cry as much. But there were still the little sobbing jags, with paci sucking in between. But she knew I was there, holding her and letting her work it out. I just wasn’t trying to FIX anything anymore… no more walking, rocking, jiggling, bouncing, shushing, swaying, back patting… just telling her I’m here, I love you, you’re safe. Everything is okay.

That night, her first sleep stretch was 4 hours instead of her usual 3.

Yesterday, for her first nap of the day, she woke after about an hour. I saw her on the monitor, raising her head and fussing (NOT the wailing she has been doing… but fussy sounds, which she hasn’t done since she was about 3 months old), then lowering her head and resting again. I decided to see if she could work it out and fall asleep again, and watched her. She never full-out cried. She didn’t wail. She fussed a little, relaxed, and went back to sleep for another hour.

Today she had another 2-hour nap. This time, she flipped over onto her back when she woke up after the first hour. If she’s on her back, her arms wave around and she cannot fall asleep on her own. She’s too frantic to roll back onto her tummy herself. So I went in to help. I held her for about  a minute (no crying at all) and then laid her on her bed again, fully asleep.

Tonight? As I said before, after nursing and a story, when I turned out the lights, it took literally TWO MINUTES before she was settled on her bed, (mostly) asleep, and I was leaving the room. NO tears. As soon as I held her in my arms, she took her pacifier and closed her eyes. Her body was totally relaxed, so I said, “I’m going to lay you on your bed now.” And I did. She opened her eyes as I was transferring her, but then relaxed again once she was on her bed. I patted her back, kissed her, and said “It’s time to go to sleep now, baby girl.” Then I left. She has woken up once since then, and it took me under 2 minutes to get her settled and sleeping again.

This might all be a coincidence. It might have nothing to do with my no longer trying to FIX what isn’t broken. But I don’t think so.

There were some tears. It’s not a “No-Cry Sleep Solution” obviously. But it was a far cry (ha) from some heart-wrenching exercise in ignoring your baby’s tears, “teaching self-soothing” through tough love, or whatever. There were no ear plugs involved, no closed doors, or baby monitors turned to zero volume.

She’s not magically sleeping through the night either. But I’m hoping that since being sleepy isn’t a complete disaster in her mind, maybe she will pick up on the fact that ALL I do to get her back to sleep is hold her a little, then put her back down. I’m not walking, rocking, jiggling, bouncing, shushing, swaying, back patting, or nursing her back to sleep. She doesn’t NEED me to get back to sleep. She’s doing it on her own. So I’m hoping that she figures that out and doesn’t need to “call for” me when she wakes… unless she is actually hungry or actually uncomfortable or wet or something.

We’ll see. But this has been an awesome week for naps and bedtimes. And I don’t feel one whit like I’ve compromised my parenting values or ideals to get here.

Last month, we were in the throes of teething, but a bit after Anneliese turned 6 months old, those two bottom teeth popped through her gums. After a few more days of pain, she seemed much more comfortable. And sharp.

Seriously, don’t put your finger in there.

So now she has two teeth, and I thought I would be sad that the “gummy baby smile” was gone, but apparently Nature designed things to ease mamas into it… because I hardly ever see those teeth! And when I do, they’re CUTE. I think it’ll be weird when the top ones come in though.

And enough people have asked me that I should probably write about it a little… teeth shouldn’t really affect breastfeeding. Now and then she nibbles a little (mostly when she is sleepy or distracted, and the nursing session was really over anyway) but I just say, “OW!” and she stops. She doesn’t really do it often, and she hasn’t CHOMPED or anything. And when she is nursing well with a proper latch, I don’t feel her teeth at all because her tongue covers them. When she gets the top ones, they won’t affect nursing either. If you can feel the top teeth “hanging on” it’s probably because baby isn’t close enough to you, and doesn’t have a big enough “mouth full.” If the baby has a good latch, again, you won’t even notice the teeth. I’m not worried about the top ones coming in.

I was a solo mama most of the past month, since my husband was on a ship doing work-ups for deployment. I had this whole big list of things I wanted to get done. And, well… here’s what I got done:

• Hang pictures in the hallway, incorrectly.
• Buy materials to make a top for the washer and dryer, but not actually make it.
• Get photos printed and in our “Family” frame. (It’s in quotes because the frame says the word, “Family”, not because it’s not really our family.)
• Keep the baby alive.
• Get very, very sick. (Stomach bug / food poisoning… went out to dinner with three other girls, and we all got it.)
• Vomit while the baby cries. (It was so horrible. She wanted to nurse, which made me thirsty. I’d take a sip of water, and then have to vomit it back up… so I would have to unlatch her and run to the bathroom to do that, and she was scared and crying… and when I came back, she wanted to nurse for comfort again. Repeat ad nauseum.)
• Recover. Thank you to my sweet friends – Christina who brought me water and crackers, Joni who brought me yogurt and coconut water, Amber who brought me yogurt, bananas, and applesauce. You made my week-long quarantine possible, and contributed greatly to my recovery. I really appreciate you all. </Oscar acceptance speech>
• Nurse, a lot.
• Keep the baby from eating my food. Even though she wanted it. Because her papa wasn’t home to see.
• Eat food. Some of it cooked.
• Take out the trash once.
• Take out the recycling twice.
• Install curtain rods in the living room and hang curtains (woo hoo!)
• Coffee. Lots and lots of coffee. Playdates at Starbucks.

And as soon as my husband returned? FOOD for Anneliese! Yes, this is Anneliese with a FAKE carrot… but I promise, we gave her real food. We started our Baby-Led Weaning adventures with mashed hard boiled egg yolk. I know BLW isn’t about mush and purees, but how else do you eat an egg yolk? And she fed it to herself with a spoon, so it was still baby-led.

Do you want to see Anneliese eat food? Want to see her make faces? Want to see her generally be adorable? I started a new blog called Baby-Led Weaning Blog (I’m very creative, you see) just for that! Except that unlike Joyful Abode, it’s a multi-mama blog where several of us are sharing our Baby-Led Solids adventures! If you want to see just my posts though, click to see Anneliese’s Baby-Led Weaning Foods.

And this? I think this might be why she’s sleeping so horribly lately. She’s trying to figure out how to get from a sitting position onto her knees… so she does this sideways half-kneely thing, puts her hands in front of her on the ground, and rocks a liiiiiittle forward. Not far enough to actually get on her knees, but I can tell she’s thinking about it.

Please, please let her learn how to crawl quickly.

Not because I want her to be all over the house in the blink of an eye, but because I need her little mind to be at rest so she can get some sleep! I truly think that’s what “it” is lately… I swear we were in a more normal sleep pattern a week or two ago. She was taking naps and sleeping for a few hours at a time at night. Maybe not the most ideal (naps could be longer, night sleep could be longer) but it only took about 20 minutes to get her back to sleep when she would wake up at night. And she took multiple naps per day. Today? a 30-minute babywearing nap, a 20 minute nap at home (which took me about 45 minutes to get her to sleep for), then when she went to bed, she woke up half an hour later. A couple hours later, and she’s woken up 2 more times… hopefully she’ll sleep longer this stretch.

Anyway, enough about sleep. My baby girl is SEVEN MONTHS OLD.

I’m about to post an awesome video of Anneliese eating a lemon at Baby-Led Weaning Blog. You should come check it out.