Checking in

It's been a while since I posted!  What can I say, we got busy.  Hurray!

Emma will be 2 months old on Sunday.  I can hardly believe it.  Time is flying by.  Here's what's new with her:

• She is still sleeping really well at night.  She has dropped one of her nightly feedings, so she is down to just one feeding during the night, usually between 4:00am and 5:00am.  I can usually get her back down after that to sleep for another couple of hours. I think our bedtime routine is working really well.  She seems to understand the "it's time to sleep" cues; with the dark room, swaddling, and white noise.  She calms right down after I swaddle her tightly in the Miracle Blanket.  She is still going down between 9:00pm and 9:30pm.  
• She has developed a new skill - sucking on her hands!  This made her fussy for a couple of days (developing new skills does that to them).  But it's cute to watch her go to town on her hand.  Calms her down.  She will also suck on her arm, or my hand as well.
• She is SO BIG.  Over 10 pounds now.  She has chunked up and has cute chubby cheeks and thighs. She is out of her newborn clothes and in the 0 - 3 month size now.
• She is getting good at independent play.  By that I mean I can set her down for a bit in her chair, the boppy, or on her activity mat and she will babble and entertain herself for a while.  Gives me a chance to get something done!
• She is taking the bottle a little bit better.  Depends on the day and her mood.  I just keep telling myself she's not going to starve and when I'm not around she will take it eventually.
• We went to a local lake for the first time (see picture below).  She had a good time except she did NOT like the water.  In her defense it was freezing.

We are headed to the cabin this weekend and I am NERVOUS.  I am worried she will not react well to being away from home and her routine, and will be up all night.  We are going to try to maintain the routine as much as possible at the cabin.  This is mainly the bedtime routine that I'm referring to - quiet time before bed, dim lights and soft talking, then white noise where she's sleeping, no lights, swaddling, and then rocking and nursing to sleep. Hopefully it goes okay!  I keep telling myself if it's horrible and I'm not getting any sleep we can just pack up and come home early.  But I'm tentatively optimistic that it will be fine.

After we get back from the cabin I start school.  I'll be in class on Wednesday nights and every other Saturday.  Randy is in charge while I'm gone!  I know it will be tough at first but in time she will adjust to being alone with him and taking the bottle for food.  I worry about Randy 'cause I know he's in for some long crying periods with her.  But every day I try to leave Emma alone with him for short amounts of time so they can both get used to it.  It breaks my heart to see both her and Randy upset, but I just keep telling myself to give it time.

Personally I'm excited to start class and develop some kind of life outside of being home with baby all the time.  In addition to actually being in class I'll be very busy with homework.  2 graduate classes = a LOT of reading, online discussions, papers, presentations, and a final exam.   Emma is also signed up for an ECFE (Early Childhood Family Education) class once a week, and baby storytime at the library once a week.  We are a busy little family!