How Everything Relates Back to Erica

I always wanted to be a Mommy, from the very first doll I held, it was my dream. There were many things I didn't know, which could be a post all their own. Today I will write about this fact I did not know before becoming a Mommy: Everything somehow relates back to Erica.

Simple things relate back to Erica -- Can I stay a little late at work if needed? NO! I want to get home and see Erica. Can I go to CVS and rob them (as my father says because of my amazing deals)? Not yet! I have to wait until either after bedtime, in between naptime, or some appropriate Erica-time.

More complicated things relate back to Erica. This is how I thought of the topic of this post. I will listen to something on the news and wonder how it effects Erica. Kidnapping? Must protect Erica. Swine Flu? What if one of us gets it, including Erica?

Speaking of being sick, I Don't Have The Swine Flu, but I am pretty sick with some awful allergies and respiratory stuff. Hope Erica doesn't get it! Sorry, boring post. Three weeks to write it and it still isn't the exciting "Everything relates back to Erica" post I had planned.

Better Day, Yippee!

When I left the blog yesterday, Erica ended up taking about a one hour nap.  I was so proud of her.  It was hard work but she did it.  Today has been the miracle day from heaven, and I think we might have both learned something.  I adjusted the schedule to a longer time in between eating and naps and she must be grown up enough to handle it!  Two hour nap in the AM and now she's almost hit one hour for her late afternoon nap.  Seems like 4:10 is quite late for her PM nap, but I will take it for today and adjust when possible.  She went to bed great last night so I know she was exhausted.  We will get there. Mommies have been helping babies nap ever since Eve helped Cain and Abel I suppose.  Sometimes I wonder what kind of grief (if any) Jesus gave Mary.  Doesn't seem possible:)

Maybe some babies never learn to nap

I really don't want to portray glum negativity, but I am wondering this afternoon if Erica will EVER EVER EVER learn to take good naps.  Who are these kids who take 2 hour naps in the morning and then more 2 hour naps in the afternoon and then go on and sleep for 12 hours at night?  Can someone please give me remedial lessons?  Am I that unskilled that I can't even teach my sweet little girl to get the rest she needs??  I am very sad and frustrated at our progress.

Today I am home for day one of my short spring break.  Since I usually work Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday and I am off Thursday this week, it is almost having a whole week off even though it is just one work day off.  Get it?  So I thought this would be a good week to work with Erica on scheduling and napping.  Disaster already.  What am I doing wrong?  Does she have something missing from her brain that doesn't allow her to learn this?

Here are direct quotes from the notebook I am keeping:

Wednesday schedule fixing day 1

March 18

6:30 woke up

6:45 6 oz.

9:00 nap after 17 min cry (kept crying 30 min)

9:25 two more tries - put in bed asleep :(

slept 5 or 10 min

cried another 15 - I give up

10:45 6 oz.

11:25 down crying for nap

11:45 finally asleep

12:25 woke up

2:45 6 oz.

fell asleep 10 min on shoulder woke up when I put down :(

3:42 in bed wide awake

wrapped in blanket

Now it is 4:03 and she started crying about 3 min after I put her in bed.  Now what do I do?  She isn't going to sleep!  I am a terrible sleep trainer.  I honestly need help.

**** UPDATE **** Maybe I am just impatient and it is my issue, not hers.  Here is the rest of the notebook for this nap:

4:07 I'm not holding my breath, which is good b/c by the time I wrote this sentence she was crying again.

4:09 maybe? no.

4:10 possible?

OK this is promising 3:42 to 4:10 cried 28 min.

Wish List

Aunt Laura sent me a link to another Mommy's blog which was an ongoing wish list for her children's grandparents and relatives to know what the kids needed.  I have to figure out how to put this on this blog.  For now I will list a few things that people might be wondering about for an upcoming holiday involving bunnies, chocolate, dresses, and a real story of a risen savior.

www.popatot.com  has a really cool outdoor play area I saw online.  It would be cool to take to Daniel's baseball games, the park, out on our deck, or wherever and it can be used until she is 18 months or 33 pounds.

Sizes:

For now -- Spring clothes in 9 month size (Old Navy or Gymboree will be 6-12 month that fit well); lightweight long-sleeved shirts, pants, short-sleeved shirts and dresses.

Shoes -- Robeez or similar (soft leather soles) size 6-12 months.  These will be good when she starts pulling up or taking steps, especially at school.

For summer -- Shorts and t-shirts in 12 months size (or the next size in whatever brand after 9 months or 12 months).  She has a lot of dresses in this size already.

Equipment:

As soon as Erica starts crawling, we need baby gates for the stairs!   We will measure the width needed and add to this post.

So, there is my first wish list post.

Another Napping Post, Photo Link, and Carrots!

Wow!  We did it!  Sorry for another napping post, but maybe when we get this down pat it will be old news.  Erica napped on Monday at SCHOOL for two 30-minute nap, put down to sleep by a teacher she has only met briefly.  Good girl!  Yesterday she took two good naps at GM and GP's house, one of them was 1 and 1/2 hours!  Today she has taken one morning nap of 1 and 1/2 hours, and has just gone down after a little struggle for a nice afternoon nap.  What happened was she fell asleep in the stroller during my walk in the park, only slept 20 minutes so I was hoping she would still go down for a good nap after we got home.  She had a bottle, we played and played and folded laundry and we tried one time but she was flailing all around so I thought it would be best to give it a little more time.  One thing I'm learning is that for these daytime naps, if she isn't exactly ready, she will be unable to fall asleep without an hour of excruiciating crying.  I am just tired of putting her through that when she seems to be learning to calm herself as long as it doesn't get too far out of hand.  So... we got up and played a little while longer.  Then I swaddled her, sang a few new songs, and she finally started acting drowsy.  I still realize it is important to put her in bed before she falls asleep all the way, something about a skill that will help her in life.  I trust this advice.  Russell said recently that he thinks she is learning this and I agree.

On another note, we had a great photo session with Mattie who has taken all of Erica's professional shots since she was one day old.  You can see the link at www.mattiecallahan.com.  Click on the gallery and Erica 6 weeks, then use our last name for the password.  I am so happy with the pictures of how she has grown and of Erica with her precious grandparents.  It will be so much fun in August when we have pictures taken with the Massey grandparents!  What a gift for Erica to have such loving grandparents -- all four!

Last bit of news -- Erica has been trying some more new foods.  We got some cute shots of the carrot night.  Enjoy.

First day of school and Erica's curl

Well this will be short because I am fairly exhausted and you would think Erica would be exhausted too but she is giving me a run for my money tonight and Russell is working late.  So let's just put it this way...  She's A Tough Cookie.  She cried quite a lot and I cried privately inside my office right across the hall from her class even with the door closed I could hear her and it nearly drove me to insanity.

Enjoy her little curl.  I am not officially saying she will have curly hair, but this one appeared after taking off her winter hat this afternoon.

Erica to start school tomorrow

Erica is going to start coming with me to Parents' Day Out on Mondays, starting tomorrow.  It will be an adventure for both of us.  For Erica, it will be a long day in a classroom with two teachers and up to five other babies, mostly who have already turned one year old and are walking.  For me, I will get to wonder how she's doing and definitely hear her if she cries because her classroom is right across from my office.  Yikes.  Pray for us, OK?

Well, we trusted our pediatrician and have carried on with sleep training.  Erica has really learned to go to bed drowsy and put herself to sleep the rest of the way.  Sometimes she can even put herself back to sleep if she wakes up.  You notice the word, "sometimes."  Other times, like the past two nights, she was woken up shrieking and not been able to put herself back to sleep.  Therefore, we, her parents, have helped her.  That is how we love her, helping her learn and adjust and get through the hard times.

We just love her soooooooooooooooooo much!

The spoon feeding hasn't been any more exciting.  She doesn't seem to really want anything badly enough to work it into a final swallow.  Most of the food ends up spit back out or played with in her hands.  Maybe she will go straight to finger foods.  She loves to put Cheerios in her mouth and sometimes she actually swallows them.  Today I tried little chunks of banana (sorry Aunts Laura and Nette) and she thought that was pretty cool.

Another think Erica is working on is rolling over. She doesn't like it.  The best that she does is dive off the boppy when she is propped up on it, and then roll herself onto her tummy to try and reach something.  

She also love tags.  Anything with a tag!  The most exciting Christmas toys all over the house, boppy, blankets, anything... she goes for the tag.  Yesterday I even propped her up on the boppy tummy side down because she wanted to reach the tag and it helped distract her for a good five minutes.