Transition from Newborn to Baby

Little One,

You definitely made the transition this month from newborn to baby. You have also started to show your personality this month as well.

You show signs of needing sleep far less than your brother. It is not that you can't go long between feedings at night (you are still sleeping pretty well most nights) but you wake up early ready to play and sit up, sometimes in the middle of the night too. You also nap far worse too. If you catnap in the morning, however, I can normally count on a minimum 4 hour nap in the afternoon as you collapse into exhaustion. You are a very light sleeper though and will wake easily (despite no effort on our part to cut down on noise).

You are still nursed, but we have been supplementing a lot this month...especially at night time. Since you are pretty cheerful unless you are tired or hungry (unfortunately events that occur a lot), I have been trying to make life simpler by giving you a bottle at night even if you just ate 45 minutes earlier (the nursing just won't work that closely together). You will regularly drink 4 oz. in bottle form at a time now. You generally eat about 5 times a day now. You are on no particular schedule, but I can count on the fact that in the morning you want to eat every 3 hours and will go longer in the afternoon and shorter in the evening.

While you had learned to flip yourself over from tummy to back at 4 weeks old, you stopped doing it for a while. This month has brought that back, as well as a very concerted effort--not yet achieved--to go the opposite direction too. When in your carrier swing (a great invention for babies like you), you will even try to flip yourself over--and often end up in a sideways position.

You love your tummy!!! This does make it a bit more difficult to enjoy your toys, crib mobile, and what is going on, etc...but you have such an incredibly strong neck that you will just lift your head and stare around for 15-20 minutes at a time. You are so alert, that I often cannot sneak off after putting you in your crib or swing. You love to have me nearby and often let me know when I have gotten out of eyesight. (PS, you still want to sit up completely upright at all times though if not on your tummy)

While the pacifier still soothes you somewhat, you have found your fingers. They are attached permanently, after all. I predicted you would already be a thumb-sucker by now, but you have proven me wrong. Apparently you like to suck 2-3 fingers at a time instead. I regularly find you in your crib this way.

You look fantastic in chocolate brown. You are starting to get a bit of hair back on your receding hairline, even as your hair is lightening a bit. You still look very petite despite being 50th percentile.

You took your first airplane trip this month--to visit friends and grandparents. You did amazingly well for a 2 1/2 month old.

You will have to be a tough-cookie to put up with your brother's form of loving. He is very sweet most of the time but is not gentle at all! You are quite the drama queen though--screaming bloody murder even when not warranted.

I am really looking forward to the maturity that another month brings, as well as hopefully the last of your fussiness...for a while.

We love you, Elizabeth!!!