Living The Good Life

Mitch and I have made some significant changes to our lifestyle, which was already far from extravagant, for me to stay home with Clara this year.  I've been finding the challenge of budget-living invigorating.  It's amazing how much I used to think I needed that I really don't need, or really even want when I put it all in perspective.

Stuff is great, and I like stuff, but it's also fun to figure out how to do without stuff.  You know, like shop the ads, buy off-brands, make my own cards, cloth diapers, turn up the AC, no dryer sheets, make my own baby food, go for walks or runs instead of to the gym, let the dishes air dry in the dishwasher, think twice before buying something, turn off the lights, switch to cheaper contact solution and toiletries, get creative with toys for baby, use the library, no new clothes (not even from Goodwill), no cable, find the free entertainment, no professional childcare, et cetera.  It's really amazing.

Clara and I had a little date to Costco today.  It was representative of our new season of life, as Mitch pointed out at dinner after I'd described our day.

First we went to the photo center to pick up our prints.  I'd ordered pictures for a photo album I'm putting together for Clara of her out-of-town family members and friends.  I apologetically paid with one dollar bill and three dollars in quarters.  The cashier didn't mind.  Then we walked around and tried all the free samples.  After that, we walked around again, browsing the store for entertainment and exercise.  Then, when the sample people changed shifts, we went back around for more samples!  And that was lunch.

When Clara was sleepy we loaded up in the car and returned home.  It was a great afternoon!  I met a lot of nice Costco employees and we had a little outing.  This cute baby I stroll around attracts her fair share of attention.

On a side note, Clara really liked her photo album.  She was especially happy when she saw her Uncle John. After a few pages, we went back to John, and she gave the same excited, happy reaction as before.  So cute.

The photo Clara most enjoyed today.

Just for You Dad

The narration explains the significance of the moment.

Cry-It-Out Clara

The principle of letting a baby "cry it out" is so basic and so important for his or her well-being, yet it is surprisingly torturous for a new parent such as myself. 

I know she's crying because she's tired and simply needs to fall asleep to be all better, but I still have a strong desire to rescue her from this situation that seems so awful to her: all alone, forlorn, in her crib, so tired, and no one coming to comfort her.

But, says my pediatrician, babies need to develop the skill of self-soothing and falling asleep without help.  So today we began our efforts in this area.

I picked the time of her morning nap, 9am when I knew she'd be tired, and put her in her crib with some calming music and let her figure out the rest.  I was going to give her some attention after she exceeded 5 minutes of continuous crying, but thankfully we never reached that point, although we worked through 20 minutes of intermittent crying.

This was the end result.

Do all babies sleep spread eagle, or just mine?

The Music of My Life

Clara has discovered screaming.  She now indulges in this new-found skill with great enthusiasm and dedication during the majority of her waking hours.

Nice.

Baby Versus Vacuum Cleaner

Clara doesn't particularly like loud noises, so you can imagine how she feels about the vacuum cleaner.

The first time I vacuumed with her in the same room she was happily bouncing in her Jumperoo.  When the noise came on she 'jumped' (of the startled variety) and then, as the vacuum worked its way closer, she filled her lungs, scrunched up her face, and let loose her loudest, most mad cry.

I'm thinking "uh oh... she's so upset, she's going to be hard to calm down."  I quickly switched off the vacuum and turned to get her, but there was silence.  She had instantly quieted back down and, although still suspiciously surveying me and the vacuum, continued with a couple of small Jumperoo bounces.

I moved the vacuum away from her and cautiously resumed my task.  The moment the sound kicked on, her eyes locked in on the enemy, her body froze, poised in her Jumperoo on two tip-toes, ready to react on a moments notice if need be.  She did not move a muscle as I finished, except to swivel her head, keeping the vacuum decidedly locked in her cross hairs as I moved around the room.

I found this all quite humorous, so as an almost identical situation unfolded while I vacuumed yesterday (minus the crying), I asked Mitch to take a picture.

Clara at 4 Months

Weight: 16 lbs (91st percentile among female Caucasian babies)

Length: 25.5" (90th percentile)

What She Likes:  She likes jumping in her jumperoo, although she still requires help from a pillow placed under her feet to actually reach the floor.  She jumps with increasing coordination, and has some pretty impressive Irish-jig-type moves.  She likes her mobile, which never fails to put a big smile on her face.  She likes sitting up, looking all around, talking and squealing, the patty cake song, any other song that involves actions, her Bumbo, and bath time!

What She Can Do:  She can roll from front to back, laugh, grab objects and bring them to her mouth, smack her lips, and grab her toes.  She can also lift her head to a 90 degree angle when on her tummy.

Other Information:  The back of her head is not currently her best angle...  she has a great head shape, but it's accompanied by a huge bald spot.  She was sick for the first time this week.  She spent two days with a runny nose, throwing up, and sleeping in her swing or laying in my arms.  That was pretty sad.

Overall, I LOVE this age.  She is so much fun!  It's great because if I put a toy in her hand she chomps on it and plays with it independently.  She can even find it again if she drops it.  This new development has made her more content.  She doesn't need as much entertainment from me during her awake hours because she's now able to interact with her environment.  Car rides are much better too.

Yay for four months! :)

"Oh my gosh! She just rolled over!"

That's a direct quote from me.

I had no idea I would be this excited!  How nice of her to roll over for the first time with me standing over her watching the whole thing.

She did it four times in a row.  The first was a spontaneous roll from tummy to back as I positioned her to snap the back of her outfit.  I didn't even know what was happening until the sudden flop of success.  Before me were four limbs sticking up in the air and two wide eyes staring back at me in amazement.

The second roll was to show daddy, the third for the video camera, and the fourth because I wanted to see if she'd do it again.  She seemed increasingly satisfied with herself after each consecutive roll.

Clara doesn't like to be on her tummy.  Nonetheless, we have daily tummy-time to encourage her muscle development.  This new rolling thing means she now holds the power to get herself promptly OUT of tummy time.  No wonder she seemed so proud (even though it was mixed in with shock).

Rolling over is no easy task and involves special strategy.  First, she has to lean to one side until her center of gravity is officially skewed.  It may take several "leans" to get far enough over, which seems to be a bit frustrating.  The goal is to position her head far enough to the side to encourage gravity to more fully engage it, and use it as a weight to pull her shoulders over.  This starts as an ever-so-slow tipping motion and then, BAM, the top half of her body is over.  She then has to wiggle her hips in such a way as to decrease their resistance against the mattress and her lower half follows suit!  See the video below for an expert tutorial... :)