Three Month Update

Guess who is three months old today!!! 

Here she is at one, two, and three months. Amazing how much she has changed in such a short amount of time. It's also amazing how three months can go by so fast, but it also feels like so long ago that we brought our babe home from the NICU.

Weight: No doctor visit this month to get a true measurement, but according to my scale, the babe is weighing in at 12 pounds. I'm not sure where she is packing that weight, though, cuz she is still a squirt.  She is still in 0-3 month clothes, although her legs are so long, most of her pants are 3-6 month and I just roll down the waist.

Length: I'm pretty sure Baby Tuna is 23ish inches long. I tried measuring her on the changing pad, but since this kid is in constant motion, it's impossible to know for sure. If she is indeed 23 inches, that means she's grown an inch and a half in the last month, maybe more!

This was her St. Patrick's outfit. Still a little roomy in the middle, but it really shows how much Z has grown!

Loves: She is ob-sessed with her Woobie. I mentioned this guy in her two month posting. I think they're technically called lovies or soothers, kind of a cross between a blanket and a stuffed animal, but infant sized. She clings to it when she falls asleep, and tries to eat his face when she plays. It's pretty cute.

She is still a big fan of her nightly bath (especially kicking and splashing) and the routine that follows it: getting wrapped up like a burrito in her towel and we dance our way back to her bedroom, diaper, lotion and massage as we play the wrap-up game with her blanket, then into her pjs and sleep sack to read Good Night Moon.

Baby Tuna really enjoys sitting in her Lionheart chair. It's similar to the Bumbo, and dont worry, I'm always right there and she's always buckled in. I put her up on the kitchen counter while I wash bottles or make my lunch, then she will sit with me on the floor while I eat. She is so ready to start sitting up on her own, and this little chair is perfect!

Oh look! There's Woobie again!

This kid is such a chatterbox. We "talk" all day long. I'd love to know what she's trying to say. Her babbles and squeals are just about the cutest thing ever!

It should come as no surprise to those who know me well that my child is drawn to the TV. I really try not to let her watch, in fact it's off for the majority of the day. But I do sneak in a little Sesame Street every morning. I figure if she's gonna watch, she might as well learn something. She only lasts about ten minutes, but is enthralled by the music and colors.

And I don't know if this counts as a "love", but this kid drools like it's her job, complete with bubble blowing and wet everything. She also loves sucking on her hands, which used to be a sign that she was ready to eat, but now she is constantly putting those things in her mouth.

Hates: The carseat. And anything else that causes her to be restrained, including swaddling and being strapped into the bouncer or swing. It has gotten better in the last month, but there are still a minimum of five minutes of screaming dramarama. I'm about over it.

Milestones: Baby Tuna is grabbing and grasping more and more every day. Last month it was more of a clutch, and only soft things like blankets and our shirts. But now, she is grabbing solid objects... and my hair. She's also trying to put the things she can grab into her mouth, which is easily done with soft things, but when she tries with other stuff, like her link ring, it's usually her hand that makes into the mouth.

She has become very good at following us around with her eyes and even turns her head from side to side. Sometimes she will turn her head towards a sound to see what is causing it. I've also noticed that she's started watching me eat, almost like she's studying for the future.

Sleep: Zoey's sleep habits are kind of all over the place. At night, she usually goes down between 7:30 and 8:30 (depending on when she wakes up from her late afternoon catnap) and will wake for a feeding anywhere between 1:00am and 3:30am. From there, she may wake up again at 5:00am or not until 7:00. There is no rhyme or reason to it. It makes for a lousy night's sleep for us because we are always on high alert. I'm also proud to say that Z is sleeping in her pack n play at night, instead of the bouncer. She had started scootching herself down in the bouncer so that her torso was almost totally horizontal and her little legs were hanging off. It finally dawned on me that she might be trying to tell us that she was ready to sleep flat. Duh!

During the day, the babe used to take two long three hour naps and a few catnaps. In the last week or so, all that changed. Now she will nap for 30-45 minutes at a time. It is impossible for me to get anything done in that amount of time! So frustrating.  She's also started screaming her face off as soon as I get her into snuggle position just before a nap. That lasts about five minutes, then she sleeps pretty peacefully. I don't get it and I'm hoping she grows out of it quick!

Diet: After all of our struggles with nursing, pumping, and the babe's digestive troubles, we have decided to transition her to formula. It was something we went back and forth on for quite some time, but it really is what's best for Zoey.  I think our biggest fear is that she will experience her digestive pain  (which includes lots of kicking and flailing, screaming, and torso twisting) while in recovery after her surgery next month, causing an even bigger problem. I won't go into a lot of detail here, cuz I plan to do a posting all about it. The plan is to increase the mix by half an ounce every few days. So far, Zoey is only up to one ounce of formula in each bottle, but things are going well. Fingers crossed!

Last week, we also celebrated my first Mother's Day. Our mothers (and the Hubs' dad) made the trip south to celebrate with us. The Hubs made a yummy lunch rather than doing brunch since I'm on an elimination diet and my beloved dairy has been given the ax. Really tough to come up with brunchy foods that don't involve cheese! Next year, we will have brunch with all kinds of cheesy deliciousness and mimosas to boot! The babe was dressed up to celebrate the day, but with all the commotion, wouldn't nap and was a bit of a fussy butt. She looked adorable, though!

Of course, Woobie had to make it into the shot!

Later in the afternoon, after the family left, was the best part of my first Mother's Day. Storms rolled in, so the Babe, the Hubs, and I put on our pjs, had some key lime pie and vegged out on the couch with the pup at our feet. It was true perfection!