Madelyn's 5th Month

"Days are long but years are short."

I try to take a moment every day and just relish in Madelyn as she is right now.  I feel like as moms we get so caught up in what is coming next that we forget to treasure what we have right now.  Lately, I've been obsessing over solids - are we doing purees or BLW? or both?  to cereal or not to cereal?  rice or oatmeal?  how much caution do we give to food allergies since neither Nick or I have any?  But then I realized once we introduce solids we are that much closer to ending our breastfeeding relationship and that makes me sad.  So for now, I am going to love every moment of nursing this sweet baby girl, even if it means three times a night like it did last night.

I kept this mantra going for most of Madelyn's fifth month since month four seemed to fly by in a blur.  As a result, I feel like I fully appreciated everything March-April brought us.

Sleep - the 4 month wakeful period got us out of our routine as we were doing whatever it took to get some sleep around here.  This usually meant Madelyn fell asleep on her Daddy's knees and then would get transferred to the pack n play when we went to bed.  That only lasted an hour or so and she'd be up again.  I brought her into bed with us and would side lie nurse until we both fell back asleep.  Next time she woke up, we'd both flip over and she'd nurse from the other side.  Although we were sleeping, it wasn't the greatest sleep in the world.  Nick actually ended up on the couch a few times because I was so afraid of smothering her.  The last couple of weeks I decided we needed our sanity, I mean sleep restored so back to the routine it was.  Here's what we do, for those who want to know.  Anytime from 6:30-7pm (ish) I bring Madelyn into her room and turn on her Rock-a-bye Baby Journey CD.  I strip her down and put on her jammies.  After this, we hit the rocking chair and read 1-3 stories based on her level of tiredness.  We then head back over to the changing table and put her sleep sack on over her jammies.  Back to the rocker we go for her bedtime feeding.  She nurses on both sides and is usually pretty sleepy by the time she's done.  I then carry her into our room and lay her in the pack n play.  I turn on her seahorse and give her the wubbanub. 



During our "whatever works" phase - sleeping naked back in the Rock n Play.

 Now the first night we went back to the routine, it was a little rough.  Her little body forgot that pack n play meant sleep so we would give her the wubbanub and she'd be content for 5-10 minutes and then spit it out and start fussing.  Nick or I would head back in and replace the pacifier, turn back on the seahorse and she'd be good to go for another chunk of time.  It took 2-3 times of replacing the pacifier before she fell asleep.  Second night, only 1-2 times.  Now she's usually asleep before I even leave the room.  When she wakes up at night, I take her into her room and nurse her in the rocker rather than our bed.  I then lay her back down in her rock n play, turn on the seahorse and give her the wubbanub.

Naps are now in the pack n play as well but we skip the routine and I just lay her down once she starts rubbing her eyes.  I darken the room, turn on the seahorse and give her the wubbanub.

Vocals - this girl loves to yell.  She also loves to scream.  Not in an angry crying way but more in the shrill little voice that only little girls seem capable of.  It can break an eardrum but the smile she gives after is hilarious.  She's found her voice and is testing the waters to see exactly how loud she can be.  Miss. M has also started laughing, which means Nick and I have started doing whatever it takes to hear that gut giggle.  Oh how I love that sound!  I've been waiting to hear that sound.  I am pretty sure the only thing better than that will be the day her sweet little voice says Mama for the first time. 

Not really vocals but it is still worth mentioning the drool.  Oh the drool!  No teeth have popped through yet but this girl goes through about a bib every two hours.  I never understood why baby clothes came with all these bibs - now I get it.  It would be nice if her bib matched her outfit but there's no way I could possibly have that many matching bibs.  The sad part is most of her pictures this month have that dang bib in them.  Oh well.

Movement - she is still rolling front to back but hasn't mastered back to front.  That dang arm!  She's gotten much better at front to back and will do it just about everytime she's on her belly.  I've started putting her in the boppy for some tummy time because I still want her working those chest and neck muscles but she keeps flipping if she's not somewhat restricted.  We are in a Baby & Me class and part of the routine is having the baby pull up using your fingers for support.  She has figured out the sequence and now tries to pull up anytime she's lying down and you put your fingers in her hand.  The little turkey is strong and has decided she's not stopping with pulling herself into a sitting position and has moved on to a standing position.

Tummy time on the Boppy

She also found her feet this month. The second you set her on the changing table and strip her pants off, her feet her in her hands. I literally have to pry those toes away so I can change her diaper.

Look Mom! I've got feet!

Madelyn still loves her jumperoo.  Sad Mama moment, my big girl doesn't need the pillow underneath anymore.  Her toes now touch the floor on her own.  I'm pretty sure she likes having that solid surface and has started kicking her legs out each time she jumps as if she's dancing a jig.

Her playmat is also a favorite right now.  Madelyn loves reaching out for toys and has started putting together cause and effect.  She likes being the one to make things jingle and jangle.


She also loves being outside.  The weather finally broke this month and we've been taking her out on a pretty regular basis.  She gets crazy excited and starts flapping her arms and kicking her legs like a mad woman the second she feels the breeze.  I've also started running again and let me tell you, it is WAY harder pushing a stroller than running without one.  Wowza!

Breastfeeding - Madelyn eats like a champ.  She eats for about 5-10 minutes on each side and is done.  That's it.  She definitely gets down to business.  At first, I thought something was wrong since everything I'd read said nursing sessions usually take 30-45 minutes but she continues to gain wait.  I've even pumped afterward and I get next to nothing so she's draining them pretty well.  I've also pumped a full boob and I usually get 4-5oz on each side so I know it isn't a supply issue.  I guess she can't be bothered with staying on the boob for long periods of time - this girl's got stuff to do.  She was taking a bottle pretty easily but in the last month or so has decided she'd rather not.  Unless she is ravishingly hungry, she'd prefer to wait to drink directly from the tap.  I don't usually have to leave her for longer than a few hours so it hasn't been an issue.  Plus, I know she will eat from a bottle if she has no other option.  It's just not her first choice.


So there ya have it.  Madelyn's fifth month in a nutshell.

Hamming it up for the camera!