Happy Halloween

Lilly's first Halloween! She went as a peapod - and it's a gender neutral costume so a lot of people thought she was a boy. But also a lot were like, "oh what a cute/sweet (insert your adjective here) baby" in the pea costume. We did a dry run of putting her in her costume this morning, to see that everything fit, and really just an excuse to put her in it and see how'd she look. It all went well, and around 5:30 we put her in the attire. And then we walked about 10 blocks to State Street, where the Police block off the streets to car traffic and about 300-400 kids come trick or treat. Mark's Great Uncle Albert and Aunt Linda live on State Street, so we brought Lilly over there to trick or treat and visit. It was a nice walk over, went Joseph up to St. Charles and then St. Charles over to State Street. It was still light out and you could see kids (and adults) coming out in their costumes.

On the way over, I told Mark I didn't feel like a real New Orleans parent because I didn't have my to go cup with my alcohol beverage inside. We didn't take the stroller, rather opted to carry her the distance, and Mark said had we had the stroller, with its cupholders, we would have had our drinks. And thus blended in with the others.

But Halloween was fun. I've always liked this holiday - and Mark can tell you every year I buy tons of candy though I can count on one hand the number of trick or treaters we've had over the past 4 years. But State Street is packed, tons of people out. Parties going on. Even one house does a haunted house. We opted to not take Lilly in it this year. And then on our way back we walked down Octavia, from St. Charles, and that street is also packed with families and kids and adults in costumes. It was great to get out and see the little ones in their garb, brings a smile to your face to see how excited they all are. Or in our case, Lilly fell asleep on our way home, while on State Street. Next year she'll be able to eat a bit of her candy ( we got butterfingers, a Milky Way, Caramel Junior Mints, and 1 Peanut M&M - it's all ours!). And fun to see it through her eyes, albeit they were closed but we were making the memories for her.

Friday

Yesterday was a good day. Nope, a really great day. And because of a prior commitment, Regina couldn't come Thursday so she came Friday. I went to Morris Jeff, saw my first graders. We did some math, played outside, and then ate lunch (square cheese pizza, green beans, syrupy pears, and animal crackers). I said good-bye to them, after lining them up for their Spanish class and hearing the myriad of costumes (Princess, Olivia the Pig, Spiderman, among others) that the students said they were going to be for Halloween. I then returned a candle to Saks and came home to eat and pump. And see Toots and Regina. And Toots was playing well. I told Regina that we had Lilly in the Bebe Pod Chair, and Regina wasn't sure if she was ready for the chair, as she didn't think Lilly could support her head. But when we put her in it, she did and could support her head, and Regina was just amazed with this child.

And I remember looking at her, and thinking, she's a little person. But she's our little person. And it's hard remembering that she is a little person in disguise, that even though she can't talk, she can still interact through her squeals, smiles, spit ups, and yes, even cries. It's a weird feeling but a complete one. After Lilly went down for her nap, Regina and I talked for a while before I went out and ran some more errands. I checked out the Children's Hospital Parenting Center (free class from Newborns to 6 months, every Tuesday from 10:30-12) and hope to go to some of the classes (also an infant massage class on Saturdays) and meet other parents.

And then I met Aunt Bitsy and saw her try on her wedding dress (she looks amazing!) and then we went for a drink and some tasty snacks (bruschetta and prosceutto) and then went to a new Children's Shop (Nola's Ark) where I found Lilly's Thanksgiving outfit. And why am I going on with my day? Because it was a good one. A full one. And I was still able to spend time with Lilly but able to get out and reclaim some of me without worrying ( I knew she was in capable and good hands with Regina!).

Even though Lilly had a huge meltdown ( I think half the people on Aunt Bitsy's block heard her screams and cries) when we went to Adam and Elizabeth's house for drinks last night, it was still awesome to get out. I felt awful, for her and for Adam, Bitsy, Aimee, and Mark, when she was going into full upset mode. Nothing would soothe her. It went on for quite a while. Even the dogs didn't know what to do with her. But finally she calmed down (Mark walked the length of their house, taking long strides and that seemed to calm her). And we were able to stay and drink and hang out. And it felt like it had been a while since we did that, just getting out, going over to someone's house and drinking. And Lilly was fine (minus the meltdown). She slept for a bit and I drank loads of good white wine.

So a really good, full day. A great day!

I'm a Wiggle Worm

Lilly's fingernails grow at such a fast rate. It seems that once they are cut, her nails need to be trimmed the next day. And so, as time passes, I've become more comfortable with the tiny nail scissors and feel ok about cutting her nails ( in the beginning I relied on other people (and mittens) to do the job for me). But just over the past couple of weeks, Lilly has turned into the biggest wiggle worm. She squirms on the mat, in your arms, in bed (slept last night with her arms extended in a big V) - you get the idea. And when she sleeps she has her thumb (sometimes fist) in her mouth, and so trying to cut fingernails has been difficult. They say to cut the nails while napping so the babies can't move around as much. But they sure didn't take into consideration the sucking of the thumb.

So the cutting has been delayed and Mark can tell you for a few days in a row, I kept saying, we need to cut her nails, and I just didn't do it. So today, I knew was the day. But she only napped for about 30 minutes during her first nap, and her right fingers were in her mouth, so no go. So after she fed for the second meal, I got the scissors and started to cut. But she's such a wiggle worm, that I would start on one finger and forget which ones I had done because she's constantly shifting (not to mention cooing/squealing). But my mom suggested to start from the pinky and go in. I had been starting with no finger in particular and trying to get the ones I could. But the thumb, no matter how you get to it, is quite hard, no matter how much she's shifting. It's a hard appendage to cut! But alas, her nails are trimmed (for now at least). We'll see how long the manicure lasts.

But she's also a wiggle worm when trying to feed her a bottle. If she can sense sound (especially from the tv) she twists her neck towards the noise. She's not keen on sitting up for the bottle, she likes to be splayed out. I'll try to get a bottle feeding on video so you can see her posture (lack thereof).

The First 100 Days

The first 100 days - so crucial in Congress that the President issues a report and the media comments on the performance for days leading up to and on the 100th day. And well, in the style of our government and in honor of the Senator's future profession (just getting her ready for Congress), I thought I would take a step back and comment on how we've done during the first 100 days and doing on the 101st day and beyond.

Lilly is a trip. Constantly wiggling and so badly wants to be on the go. She's 'scooting' on the mat, trying to get some traction and get herself to crawl. She'll become easily frustrated when she can't get moving. She'll roll from her back to stomach and vice versa. Sometimes she becomes hampered by an arm that she hasn't figured out what do with it yet but for the most part, she'll roll from side to side, lift her stomach and then try to start 'scooting' The socks have come off. The mat is slick enough without the accessories, so I figured its warm enough inside and out, and she can do without her socks, well at least for the time being. I did bring them down with me as I'll put them on when we leave the house.

She also like wearing skirts/dresses/onesies with a skirt as she enjoys bringing the dress part to her mouth. Or grabbing onto it tightly. Either one or both will do. Her thumb has become her new peace pipe. The pacifier will go with the clothes she is outgrowing, as she loves the thumb so much she doesn't need it. And quite frankly its nice, she can keep her thumb in and can put it back in her mouth, whereas she would cry once the peace pipe fell out. So now while she can (and does) take her thumb out, at least she can place it back in her mouth.

We're getting high pitch squeals. And lot's of spit up lately. And she's becoming regular again (pooped twice yesterday, twice already this morning). She's an exercise in patience. Reminding us to slow down and enjoy each day and not become frustrated when something doesn't go right (or on schedule). The stroller she does not so much enjoy but the Baby Bjorn is much better. Her hair, depending on the day and amount of light streaming into the room, is getting lighter, though the back of her head is still pretty much dark. Her eyes are still blue and her eyelashes are so long and beautiful. Perhaps before she runs for Congress she will be a mascara model.

Regina coming in two days a week is really working out. Lilly loves her and I feel so comfortable leaving her. Volunteering at Morris Jeff is really fun, the first graders are so sweet, and yesterday one asked if I could stay with her for forever. I'm helping them out with writing, some phonics and math. And then we play at recess and I sit with them at lunch. And then I come home, eat lunch (pump) and then hit the gym or run other errands or both. Like everything, somedays are easier than others. I have to remind myself to get out of the house, especially with her. And now that she's taken so much better to the Baby Bjorn, walking is fun and easy. But she's fun to listen to, the squeals are great (on my Vimeo page and Blog if you haven't heard them by now).

99 days of Lilly

We've had 99 fun-filled, memory making days with Lilly. Last night, as per Regina's suggestion, we put her down early. We gave her a bath at 7:45 and then gave her a bottle and she fell asleep by 8:30. It was glorious (just too bad Mad Men wasn't on!) and she slept until 7 this morning. Mark said she stirred around 5AM, but put herself back to sleep. He said we had a conversation about this at 5AM, but I have no recollection of these events. So we are hoping for a repeat of last night, though it looks like we won't be able to put her down too early. Just now about to eat dinner and it's 7:40PM.

High Pitch Video

This is video that I wanted to accompany the 'my new sounds' post but it wouldn't load last night, despite numerous attempts. But this morning it loads - go figure!

My new sounds

Lilly has discovered her high pitched singing/operatic voice. She can shriek! She can coo. And she can scream. All in these high pitched tones. They are cute but not so when squealed right into your ear. It's weird. But cool that she's getting her voice. I wonder what she's going to sound like. Will she have a combination of mine and Mark's voice? Or will it be something entirely her own?If its anything like the high pitched sounds, then I definitely think its all her.

Must have been the spit up!

Texas Rangers win! Advance to their first ever world series. All that spit up (check out above the 'E' and on the mat - that's just what you can visibly see) sent good vibes to the team. Congratulations!

Geaux Rangers

She pooped twice today, once in the morning hours, and the other around 5-6pm. Thank goodness she's back to being regular.

She started out and ended the day in the outfit pictured. As per Grandpa David and Uncle Jeffery, we put her in the Texas Rangers shirt to lend them good luck and support in their game six against the Yankees in the ALCS. She was totally fine in it. She was up at 6. Ate heartily. And then as she was playing on mat, she also spit up. Heartily. We're talking five times. First two times were mild, but then the combined next two leave white curds in her neck and not only on her shirt but mine as well (I've gone through three today). But Regina once said if a baby spits up on you then it's good luck. So as I told my siblings and parents, she's definitely given the Rangers good vibes and luck. So while I took her out of the shirt for the majority of the day, I was able to wash it (along with the jungle gym mat, twice in two days) so she could put it back on for the start of the pre-game show. And so far, the spit up luck seems to be working. It's the top of the 9th, and the Rangers are two outs away from the World Series, the first time in franchise history.

Poop, Glorious Poop

I never thought I would be so excited to see Lilly poop. It had been since Monday evening, and she's usually pretty regular, mostly everyday, if not every other. But with the exception of some dry, small movement, no go since Monday. You could tell Lilly wanted to go, she would strain, try to push something, but above all, she was farting up a storm. And these weren't ladylike farts - these stunk. Pure adult smelling ones. She certainly gave off an odor. But nothing with Regina Tuesday. Nothing Wednesday. So when I was telling Regina to look out for her poop, she mentioned that if Lilly went three days, I might want to think about a baby suppository. She said all I had to do was stick it between her butt cheeks and the hold the butt cheeks close, so it didn't fall out, as Lilly would probably trying to push it out. And then she said be prepared for poop.

Well, I was gearing myself up for it, to call Uptown Pharmacy and have them add a baby suppository to make prescription delivery, when, around 6PM, she started straining. She got that half smile, and her face turned a bit red, so I could tell it was coming. She also stopped eating, as she needed to clear the way, to make room for incoming food.

But after 5-10 minutes, nothing happened. She still strained but no squirt or splat. So I resigned myself to the baby suppository. But then she started crying. And she started smelling. An odor was wafting out of her diaper. So i was like, did she?

And sure enough, she did. She did it on the sly. I told her she was a stealth pooper. And once I cleaned her up, only three wipe diaper, she devoured the bottle, and then fell asleep. So pooping was good! Never thought I'd be super excited or rejoicing for poop. Baby suppository will have to wait for another day and someone else's butt cheeks.

My new stats!

Lilly was three months old on Monday. And today we went to see Dr. Gorman for her check up and receive two shots - Hepatitis B and Pneomococcal. She was not a happy camper receiving the immunizations, pneumo burns as it is injected. When we got to the Doctor's building and riding up the elevator to the 6th floor, Lilly didn't like the motion and feeling. So she began to cry inside the elevator car. Unfortunately for her, we had to stop at three floors before we got to the 6th floor. So as we left Dr. Gorman's office and she was wailing (mother's in the waiting area looked at us sympathetically as she's screaming, and said shot, huh? I said two!), Mark suggested we walk down the stairs. Good call. She fell asleep on my shoulder.

Anyway, all is good with Lilly Rose. She grew an inch from her two month check up, she's now at 24 inches. And she's a bit shy of 15 pounds, she's at 14 pounds, 14 ounces. Dr. Gorman said she's definitely a New Orleans girl as she likes to eat. And her head is 40.5.

We go back for the 4 month check up the Monday before Thanksgiving where she'll receive another shot. At her fifth month, she receives two more. She was definitely a trooper, slept in the car ride home. Stayed asleep for about an hour, and woke up with some pep, unlike her last go around with the shot. She played on her mat ( even fell asleep on it, sucking her thumb, for a little bit), ate, and finally went down for a nap at 5:30PM. She's been asleep for about an hour. Here's hoping to a smooth evening and her not being afraid of needles!

Some new things

Lilly has accomplished much in her 3 months! Last Sunday, while we were at Aunt Bitsy's watching the Saints game, she held her bottle on her own. She has since repeated this feat, and will hold it for a bit and then get tired or bored (or perhaps something else) and then put it down. But then she gets mad that her bottle is taken away! But it's all her doing! So she's got to learn some control and how to keep her bottle at her mouth. She's definitely found her thumb, and while she's an equal opportunity thumb sucker, we think she is beginning to favor her right one. Regina has mentioned that she's a hard sucker - she's replaced her Maggie Simpson pacifier sounds with Maggie Simpson type thumb sucking.

She's also sat in her red Bebo pod chair. She supported her head and sat up. But it was a lot of work for her so she was only in it for a bit before she started to whine and we took her out. But it's a cool chair and I hope she likes it! And Monday morning she rolled over, from her back to her stomach. She was so nonchalant about it, she was just on her back, got her weight behind her and did. It was right after Mark went to the office. And ever since I've been trying to capture it on video. I spent 18 minutes last night, with her teasing me, she would get some weight, roll, but not make it fully over. The flip camera had no battery left, so I was worried that once I stopped filming, she would roll over. So I kept the camera on her, full 18 minutes worth. And she finally did it - at the end. But I posted the video to Vimeo ten hours ago and it's still converting - it's a large file. So once its on the site, I'll post the link. Aunt Sarah saw her do it today (or was it yesterday, I can't remember, the days seem to run together) and Regina said she rolled over a couple of times yesterday. Here's hoping that Mark will see her do it tonight!

LRM's Baby Naming

It's official. Lilly Rose is 3 months! But yesterday she also received her Hebrew name, for the second time. She's known in the Jewish world as 'Shoshana' which is coincidentally my Hebrew name too (I don't think its my given Hebrew name, but I didn't know it at the time of our marriage and Ketubah signing, so I made one up that sounded pretty). Shoshana means 'rose' or 'flower' so its perfect for our two flower named daughter.

The naming was perfect. We had great weather, a great rabbi, great friends, but most importantly great family present! We had three generations of Rose's on the Mintz side (Aunt Carolyn Rose and cousin Glynn Rose) present. We explained how we picked Lillian Rose - the L's for my dad's parents Libby and Leon, and for Mel's grandmother Lil and Rose goes back 5 generations (she's the 6th) on Mark's dad's mother's side. She's the seventh woman (yikes, she'll be a woman!) to have Rose in her name. Well, seven that we know of! Her name reflects the love we have for the people who are no longer with us and our hope that she'll continue their legacy and good works.

She held up well. She was awake for a couple hours past her naptime and was passed around from family members to friends. And she looked super cute in her new black and white dress, though she kept popping her collar! We finally found an outfit for her to wear her matching black and white Mary Jane socks. I thought we might wear them to Safta Margot's tea party but never switched them out with the regular socks. And one thing about her dress, she just kept playing with it, the skirt part. She put some of the material in her mouth. She grabbed onto the dress. And she didn't have a meltdown, or really just get super cranky, until the end of the Saints game, when she awoke from her nap and was hungry.

We've got a ton of food leftover, so if you are in the NOLA area and want egg salad, tuna salad, potato salad, chicken salad, cookies, challah or brownies, come on by. Just call first! The rabbi remarked that life is short and that with kids it seems to fly by faster. These past three months certainly have. And at times, when it feels like it is going too fast, I just take a breather, and reflect on all the stuff/developments/new experiences she's (and we've) done. And it's a lot. So our sweet Toots is 3 months and has an official Hebrew name. Good times.

Here's a link to the video of her baby naming - http://vimeo.com/15935485

Late Night with Lilly Rose

My disclaimer - I can generally stay up and be functional from 6AM to 10:30PM. 11PM is pushing it. Even 10:45PM. I never see the Colbert Report - but the Daily Show I can somewhat see and catch and most important be coherent. But those are my hours. I'm more of a morning person, and after a day of being with Lilly Rose, I'm worn out. So Mark's 'on duty' for bedtime and he does a great job with her. He's got bedtime, the swaddling, the burrito song, bathtime and feeding down pat. I'm his assistant. So last night, Mark was out at a function, and Mel and JJ and I put her to sleep (amidst the Mylicon drop overdose scare). And while she went down for 30-40 minutes, she was up, at 10:15. Both JJ and I went up, fed her more, and at 10:30, I came back down while JJ rocked her. I pumped, JJ put her down, and we thought she was asleep. But nope, she was just waiting for her dad and JJ to play with her. So here's JJ, with her account of being up with Lilly Rose.

Lilly decided that she really was not ready for bed but wanted to watch Jay Leno or David Letterman and Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. I really think she was just waiting up for her Daddy to get home so she could share some time and smiles with him. She was not ready to go down for the night. I brought her over into the guest room and in my bed so that she and I could watch David Letterman. Letterman was almost over, Mark came home and thought he would put her down for the night. So this was about 11:45 --he gave her another 2 ounces of milk and put her in her crib. It seems that she was still not really tired and really wanted to see Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. So Lilly decided to call for her Daddy to come upstairs again and get her out of her crib. As any good Father would, Mark came up again and picked her up and tried to give her some more milk. She definitely needed to be rewrapped as a burrito baby again since she had wiggled out of her swaddling blanket. Mark brought her into my room so he could swaddle her on the bed. He wrapped Lilly tightly in her blanket (again) and tried to convince her it really would be a good thing to get some sleep for the night. She still did not seem tired, where as Mark was quite tired since he had been up since 6:30 am and had been at work and a reception for some Judges until 11:00 pm. By this time it was 1:00 a.m. and Lilly was going strong but still being a very sweet girl. Mark put her down in her crib (again), went back down the stairs and got back in bed. Lilly started fussing again but I got her and rocked her for a while. She finally settled down and went to sleep about 1:20 a.m. I hope she enjoyed the late night shows and I also hope for Jen and Mark that this is the first and last time she decides that she wants to have Late Night with Lilly Rose.

Too much

Ok, 1, 2, 3, freak out. Tonight, Mel and JJ were putting Lilly to bed, and she was having bad gas. I got the bottle ready, swaddled her, and as Mel was feeding her, measured out her gas drops. She does this thing where she will arch her back and wiggle and scream/cry out in pain. And it's not a tired cry but a 'get this gas out of me' cry. It's no fun to listen to as I can assume that her little belly doesn't enjoy the gas residing there.

Anyway, the gas drops are a good thing. But the problem is the dropper. For babies under 24 months and 24 pounds, you are supposed to give them .3ml. For babies over both the age and weight limit, you give .6ml. Now the dropper is measured out to .6ml and its difficult to get out the dropper to just .3ml. So when giving her the drops, I try to get it down from .6 to .3. So at least I know she's getting the correct dosage. You angle the medicine towards the inner cheek, so the baby will swallow instead of spitting out.

But tonight, as I was trying to measure out from .6 to .3, I accidentally gave her more than .3ml. It was more like .5ml. And for once she took it all, and didn't spit it out or down herself. So I knew she got more than she was supposed to receive. So I immediately check the label. Yes, only supposed to get .3ml. And it says in case of accidental overdose, call poison control right away. Well, it was an accident. But is it an overdose? I go into the guest room, show my mom the dropper, and she reassures me that its ok.

I'm not convinced. Brain is going into irrational mode. I re-read the instructions two more times. Nothing changes. Still in case of accidental overdose, I'm supposed to call poison control. My mom and Mel reassure me. I try to put the doubt out of my mind. I read Lilly two stories - 'Olivia' and 'Goodnight Moon.' And all the while, Lilly is doing fine, she's eating well. She's sucking down the bottle. And she should be my evidence, my case for her doing just fine. But nope. I rely on my brain and the irrational and obsessive thoughts residing there.

Finally, before Lilly is put into her crib, I decide that I will feel better if I call the pediatrician, and hear it from his/her mouth. So I look up Dr. Hales' number, give a call, and wait for the answering service to pick up. Goes through the various options. If it's an emergency, hang up and call 911. If you need to schedule an appointment, call back during office hours. And then my option, if its and urgent medical emergency, stay on the line.

Now my brain works up. Well, she seems fine. Maybe its not a medical emergency. I didn't want to be portrayed as someone who cries wolf. So I hung up. I head back upstairs as Mel and JJ were coming down. She was fine. And asleep. So I tell them I hung up but I am still worried. So they tell me to call the pharmacist. So I look up a 24 hour pharmacy, find one at Walgreens at the corner of S. Carrollton and Claiborne, and get the number. Talk to the pharmacist who tells me that a little over .3ml is ok and she should be fine. And those words call my mind. And all is good.

She's sleeping now. I'm tired. But it's still scary to realize that a small mistake can hurt her. She's so precious. I don't want to hurt her. Just makes you realize, just hits it home that you are responsible for her. It's the job that never ends.

An Universal Sign

Notice the impressive use of her middle finger. She's learning already!!

Lunch with Aunt Linda

JJ kept the monitor from Tuesday night into Wednesday morning and it was a glorious night's sleep. Mark and I got a sound night's sleep - no grunting noises coming from the monitor. We are both so attuned to them, that to go a night without it was awesome. But we woke up the next morning, both curious as to how she did for JJ. Turns out she slept through the night, but JJ woke up every couple of hours, hearing the grunts coming from the crib.

She woke up at 7AM. And really didn't go down for another nap until closer to noon. She's definitely getting on another sleep schedule. And we went to lunch with Mark's Aunt Linda. Lilly Rose slept through the entire lunch. We went to the Flaming Torch, which is just on Octavia Street, just on the other side of Magazine. She was asleep when we put her in the car seat, and she didn't stir once she was placed in it. She was quiet throughout the short car ride, Still as a mouse through lunch. Which allowed us to have an enjoyable and delicious (and hands-free!) lunch. She woke up about 30 minutes after we got home and boy was she hungry!

I've found my thumb

Lilly has found her thumb, well most of the time. She can clumsily stick her thumb in her mouth, but in the act she also pokes her eyes and scratches the surrounding areas of her face. In the morning, before she wakes, one can not only hear the sucking of the thumb through the monitor but can also see her jerky motion when one goes to pick her up. No complaints here. It soothes her and allows us a little more shut eye. I was a thumb sucker, and according to my mom, I was a compulsive thumb sucker. They had to put nasty tasting (non toxic) fingernail polish on my thumb when I was three or four to get my to stop. I definitely did quit by the end of Kindergarten, so I am game for her to suck. Now ask me again in five years and it might be a different story. But for now, the additional 5-10-20 minutes of sleep is golden. I'll take that and nasty tasting fingernail polish any day.

JJ's visit

JJ came in yesterday and will be with us until Sunday. She came with this new hat for Lilly and unlike the other hat we got her, this one fits! It's snug and will keep the sun shielded from her face. We've had a good day so far, I made chicken salad for dinner, JJ's played and fed Lilly. And we both have just enjoyed listening to Lilly's babbling and cooing. She's smiling a lot more, and can now smile in response to a smile given to her, so I like doing that.

For the afternoon, Lilly just didn't want to get up from her 1PM nap. She woke up crying and seemingly hungry. I fed her but she fell asleep on the breast. I moved her around. I burped her. She would wake up, suck some more, and then fall back asleep. So I moved her some more. She would open her eyes, and then they would slowly fall close, and her head would move back, and she just wanted to sleep. It was funny, Lilly just didn't want to get up. She would smile as she went back to sleep. And while she got off schedule and didn't eat as much as she should have, it did give JJ a perfect chance to cut Lilly's nails. So when the eyelids shut, the fingernails are trimmed. But she's up now (it's 5:25, she got up at 4) and just enjoying the jungle gym mat. She's definitely refreshed from her long afternoon nap!

Lilly's first Blue Box

Lilly got her first blue box last week. A Tiffany's gift came in the mail from the Alexander family and inside was a beautiful engraved silver picture frame! It's sitting, pictureless (got to find the right one) on her 'Lilly' shelf. But soon a picture will be set inside.

The Peace Pipe

The peace pipe is a glorious thing. That is when it stays in. But the problem with the peace pipe is that the sucking motion and her lack of coordination can force the soothing mechanism out of her mouth. So last Thursday, Regina was watching her, and Lilly just didn't want to sleep. She had two naps, all of about 30 minutes each. I got home before she was about to go down for her 5PM nap, and when she went down in her napper, she wanted nothing of the sort. So Regina picked her up and we put the peace pipe in her mouth. But it would not stay in. And I can't remember, but we started talking about wouldn't it be great to have something to keep in the pacifier in the mouth? My mom and I had theorized that it would need something like elastic to keep it around the head and ultimately in the mouth. And Regina came up with the same option, and when she was staying with us, she made mittens from socks, so we had bought elastic and had some left over. So I got it and she fashioned the elastic around the peace pipe. We put it around her head and had to trim the ends and then adjust to make sure it wasn't too tight. And then with it around her head, we put her back in the napper. And I would like to say that the peace pipe staying in her mouth, helped her to sleep. But unfortunately, I think the elastic was either too tight or foreign to her, or both, and she just kept on crying and crying. And so it was taken out. And I held her. And she didn't nap for the 5PM slot. And I think it might have traumatized her - she didn't really enjoy the napper for the next two days. And she wasn't a fan of the peace pipe (didn't put the elastic around her head). But her sleep schedule is also changing. She's staying up for longer, whereas she would be up for about an hour, maybe an hour and a half. Now she's extending it to almost two hours. So I hope it's the sleep schedule and not the peace pipe device. I'd hate to think that in twenty years from now, she'll be on some therapist's couch, talking about how I scarred her for life, because of a roll of elastic and a peace pipe. That's definitely not one way to keep the peace!

Roll Tide Roll

So I've been a slacker and have not been able to update the blog as often as I would like. She's growing, rolling, pooping, all the fun things she's doing at 12 weeks of life. We had a busy weekend. It was parents and Homecoming weekend at Tulane, so Mark's aunt and uncle were in town as well as his grandparents, Mimi and Papa. Mimi and Papa came over Thursday and played with Lilly. We also saw them for dinner Friday night, where Lilly did an excellent job in the restaurant. It was incredibly loud, enough of a high decibel level to make someone anxious. But she enjoyed being held, mostly by Mark and Aunt Sarah (other restaurant patron would remark to Sarah that she had a beautiful baby. Sarah replied by saying, she enjoyed being an aunt. That it was fun to be an aunt!) There was also a huge mirror that she loved looking at herself in. She got a great expression on her face. But the most impressive thing was that she felt comfortable enough, in a new setting and with the noise, to poop an explosive diaper. She got it midway up her back, and Mark took her in the men's room and changed her, out of her pink dinner outfit ( a new one from our friends Jake and Lauren) to a standard pink onesie and matching socks.

Saturday night, we, along with 5 other people, threw Aunt Bitsy and Uncle Adam a stock the bar party at the house. Mo and Mel babysat Lilly, who slept through a bunch of the party. It was a tense LSU-FL game, so there was loads and loads of yelling, screaming, cheering and booing. And for the first part, Lilly was in our room, but she was not affected by the noise in one bit. Probably slept the best all day. And then at 8:30, she was washed and ate, and went to sleep until 11 or 11:30. I am just amazed that she slept through the end of the game, the noise level was loud and right below her room. But she was fine with it, just as she was fine with Gautreaux's the night before. I guess Sleep Sheep is doing its job!

I'm grabbing items!

Lilly has not only been grabbing items but she's also holding onto them. In this picture she's holding Sleep Sheep's paw. When she's on her jungle gym mat, she loves holding onto the yellow rubbery wing part of the bee that hangs down from the sun mirror. She'll grab it, hold onto it, while kicking her legs, like she's riding a bicycle. In addition to these items, she's also 'holding' onto her bottle. She's definitely putting her fingers around the top of it, like she wants to be in control of it, but she's not there yet.

Her cradle cap is back -I thought we had gotten rid of it by using the Selsun Blue dandruff shampoo. We dab a little bit above her eyes and at the base of her scalp and then rinse it off. Yesterday we noticed the flakes of skin coming back, so put it on her face at her bath last night, and boy did she holler! Not a happy camper. We think it irritated her skin. But I could hear her cries from her bathtub to the kitchen, where I was getting her bottle ready. But luckily she quieted down, but she was not a happy camper.

Auntie Laaa and Auntie Ruth

Auntie Laa and Auntie Ruth came to visit last weekend to visit and meet Lilly. They even baby-sat as Mark and I had two functions to attend - and they were great at it! Ruth enjoyed carrying Lilly in the football hold (see picture) and Laa enjoyed taking lots of awesome pics of her. It was fun for them to meet her and it was great to see them. Laa and Lilly (and me) have a widows peak so it was cool to see. She was also very good, sleeping through the night and not crying as to disturb the guests next to her room! We ate lots of cupcakes, pizza, went shopping and went for walks, we really enjoyed the walk in Audobon Park! Though Lilly hasn't been taking to the stroller, so Ruth carried her while I pushed the empty vessel! We miss them already - hope they come back soon!

Littlegate

Lilly got up this morning a bit before 7AM. She's definitely found her fingers, and at times, her thumb. Mark swaddled her last night, but left her hands free, so in case she lost her peace pipe, she could go quickly for the fingers. At first, and it sounds silly, I didn't want her to find her fingers. I wanted to be able to put the pacifier in, not because I don't want her sucking her thumb ( I was a great thumb sucker!) but because I wanted to feel needed. If she's napping, and loses it, I wanted to feel like she needed me to put it back in. I wanted to feel needed. But then if she can find her fingers, and it soothes her, then its ok. She hasn't always found them, so she still needs me (or Mark) to get up and put the pacifier back in. I might feel sad the day she completely, consistently finds her thumb, but hopefully that isn't for a while!

Anyway, in between her naps, and she's been taking short ones this morning. We've have the 45 minute intruder, which is a phenomenon author Gary Ezzo (Becoming Babywise) writes about. Basically she's on a 3-3.5 hour feeding cycle. She'll eat for the first 30 minutes or so of the cycle, play for the next 15-45 minutes (though it depends on how she's feeling) and then sleep the rest of the time. The 45 minute intruder is when she wakes up early out of her nap, because she's either hungry, wet, or overstimulated (and not able to sleep well). Hunger has been the culprit, so here's hoping she's gone down for her long nap now. But I digress, anyway, between her naps, I contacted a local private school about the possibility of sending Lilly two days a week for Fall 2011. I've had some friends send their kids there, and I've heard nothing but good reviews. So I spoke with someone from Littlegate (http://littlegate.com/) and made an appointment to visit the school. We're going November 11. I was also told by friends to submit an application ASAP as the waiting list is really long! So I filled it out, let me tell you, it's bizarre. Filling out something, for her, as her mom, so far in advance! And it was just basic info, but still weird. I'm used to filling out forms for myself but to be responsible for someone else -just crazy. Mark keeps saying how he expects someone to take her from us at night, like how can we be responsible for an infant? But we are - no one comes to get her! So will keep you posted on the Littlegate visit!