Ivy || 4 Months Old

Today Ivy turns four months old! This was a long month of other life craziness so my mind is foggy with memories and stress and spit-up and adjustments. But here we are at the 4 month milestone!! It's one I'm a little scared of going into. That big sleep regression that everyone talks about looms on the horizon. I fear Ivy is diving into it a little early. Peace be with us! The sleep deprivation has returned.

Ivy at Four Months

Weight: 13 lbs. (11 lbs. 4 oz. last month)

Height: 25 inches (24 inches last month)

Personality: chatty and curious

Likes

BATHS! Still her favorite

Sitting up and looking around

Stroller rides

Jamming her fingers/fist down her throat

Looking at her mobile

Gnawing on toys

Kicking

"Talking"

Dislikes

Being put in her chair, getting a diaper change, or being laid down shortly after getting up from a nap. She wants you to hold her...or else!

Getting spit-up wiped off her face

Being strapped into the stroller

Clothes/diaper changes

Waiting for a bottle

Loud/sudden noises

 

Wearing

Size 2 diapers

Tracking along just like Kip did, Ivy is starting to chunk up a bit. Baby chub!!! She is getting squishy and I love it! I feel like babies are easier to handle with a little more heft to them. She is in 3-6 month size clothes but still fits into some 3 month outfits. Now that the weather is cooling off I feel like we have a new wardrobe to tap into! Pants!! Long sleeves!! Holiday attire! It's fun 

Love to Dream swaddle transition sack for naps and bed

Things I want to remember about Ivy at four months old:

When she discovered her hands and started grabbing and grasping and bringing toys to her mouth

Her concentration on picking something up

The way she pulls and plays with her ear while nursing

How she slams her legs and feet down on her mattress in the middle of the night...just like Kip did. Thunk!

How she "talks" to me in the middle of the night

Her huge grin that makes her body wiggle with excitement 

Her beautiful blue eyes

How she is nearly always wearing a wet outfit covered in spit-up 

"Peanut butter poop" (Kip flipped out when he saw her diaper one day and called it PB)

Puking in the bath (Kip was horrified)

Toots that smell like poots 

The way Kip says "eww sister pukey-up...she needs a burp cloth!"

Noticing a trend? Ivy is a dainty little lady but she is also kind of gross.

 

 

Sleep

Oooh sleep, the plague of parenthood. Ivy has always been a good sleeper, all things considered. Last month she was only waking once in the night to feed. As soon as we moved into the house she started sleeping 5:30/6 pm - 6 am. It was ideal! She would wake up around the time Kip would come into our room after his OK to Wake clock turned on. And we would all get up for the day at 6 am. Then...last week...she started waking in the night again. Try as I might to simply give her the pacifier, she would get so excited to see me that she would start "talking." Not crying just cooing and making lots of noise until I finally gave-in and nursed her back to sleep. I thought it was a one-off. But we are now on night eight of this happening. Naps are crap too. We lost track of her wake windows and she takes forever to fall asleep some times. Often refuses naps after 3 pm unless it's in the stroller. It's a mess over here and I choose to blame my return to work, attempting to adjust to different caretakers every day (between Mandy and Dan and me) as well as developmental milestones (learning to grasp and starting to try to sit-up) as well as the 4 month sleep regression that everyone talks about. Will we survive? Yeah. Drained and exhausted but we'll get there.

Eat

This month we got Ivy used to bottle feeding. It took a bit of time but she enjoys it now. She likes freshly pumped milk slightly warmed. She does not like my frozen milk AT ALL! We've been able to get her to take 1 oz frozen to 2 oz fresh but I feel like that's a lot of work for little pay off. We end up having to dump half a frozen bag every day at that rate. We still want to try the drop of pure vanilla to see if that helps her take it better but at this point I've started to make peace with the fact that I may have to toss my entire freezer stash. It's hard for me. It was hard earned milk and my frozen stash was such an asset for us when Kip was a baby. I could try to find a way to donate it but I'd have to warn the other mom about high lipase and more than likely she'd dump it anyway. Since I'm working from home mainly, I don't need to pump as often. So in that sense, the stress of needing to pump enough for the next day is not so great. We also tried formula to see if she liked that. She loved it. So we have that as a backup. 

 

You all know I have lots to say about breastfeeding but truly it feels like the least talked about thing during pregnancy. Yes, it is natural but that doesn't mean it comes naturally. It is SO MUCH work and stress and struggle. It is a sacrifice and for that reason I will never pass judgement on another mother for the choices she makes in how to feed her baby. There is so much behind the scenes that other people don't know. 

Ivy still has really bad reflux. It's constant and yet unpredictable. Some days are good, some bad, some awful. She is not allowed to be on our bed, new couch, or rug. I'm hoping she grows out of it soon! Fortunately she seems totally unbothered by it except for the inconvenience of needing to be changed into new dry outfits. She isn't fussy and doesn't appear to be in pain so although we've considered food sensitivities, it's so inconsistent we can't say for sure it's that either. Plus, she discovered putting her hands in her mouth which means additional spit-up when she accidentally gags herself.

Play

Oooh the stage of discovery! She loves looking at her mobile, being walked around the room, and stroller rides with the shade up so she can see. She started playing with rattles and teethers and is easily grasping and grabbing. She is starting to try and sit-up so she is often seen grunting and crunching in an effort to pull herself up. She loves water play and watching Kip play.

Sister bear you are a Jersey girl now! You get so much more fresh air and sunshine now and ample walks and space to move. You went to the beach for the first time and started taking naps in your own room! You love to explore and talk and eat! We love you baby girl! Happy 4 months!