Growing and Changing

I haven't been around here much in the last week or so because little Miss Ellie has been needing just about every last ounce of my attention and energy since mid-last week. She will be 11 weeks old on Thursday, and I think she has been going through some kind of growth spurt. Last week my usually super-happy baby was Fuss Central. For one thing, she refused to nap for any real length of time (unless she was cuddled up against me or in my arms, which is sweet and nice, but mama's gotta do some laundry and take a shower from time to time, you know? Actually, she's napping against me right now as I type this very sentence.)

Napping in her mommy's arms

Her "turtle" sleeping face as she naps in my lap

For a day or two, she didn't even want to nurse without a fight, which NEVER happens. This is a child who loves to eat. Of course, this quickly reversed course and now she wants to eat every two hours like clockwork, and for very long stretches of time. She also woke up a couple of times in the middle of the night, which she hasn't done since the beginning (and we count our blessings for that, don't you worry).

Basically, she was just out of sorts. I saw an awful lot of this:

That is one unhappy baby in a hat.

And not nearly enough of this:

Now that face just warms the heart, doesn't it?

(Note to Ellie: notice you are in your crib and are waking up after a nice long nap in this oh-so-happy picture, HINT HINT)

Of course, she did always have smiles for her daddy and the mobile on her Pack 'N Play, which has some sort of dog-bear hybrid animal on it that she apparently finds hilarious.

Those Dog-Bears get her every time.

Fun times with Daddy on her activity mat

So Daddy and Dog-Bears were set with baby smiles, but Mommy had to work for it. I feel like I spent four straight days sitting in the glider in my bedroom trying to rock my unhappy baby to sleep. I felt terrible - I hate to see her having a hard time. It's a rough life being a baby, and I just wanted to fix it for her.

When we weren't rocking and praying for sleep, we took lots of walks because being in the stroller always calms this little girl down. If she won't nap at home, she almost always will doze off for at least 30-45 minutes in the stroller. So this mama got lots of exercise last week, pretty much just pacing the Hoboken waterfront.

Ellie is unimpressed with the view of downtown. But, praise the Lord, she's sleeping!

I have read that sometimes babies sort of get themselves out of whack when they're working on a new skill, and I can't help but wonder if that might be what has been happening here. Ellie seems to be figuring out her hands, for one thing - she loves to suck on her fists, and even found herself a thumb the other day.

Oh, boy.

Her little kicking legs have been going to town too, and she has started pushing off with her feet to propel herself backwards. She scoots all over the place if you lay her down on her back, be it in her crib, on her play mat, wherever. The child is working hard to make herself mobile. Get ready, Achilles! Your days of peaceful slumber are numbered! Be on the lookout!

Sizing each other up

And now, the latest development is that it looks like she might be working on rolling over. I had her on her play mat the other day and looked away for one minute, and when I looked back I saw this:

She's all, "uh, MOM, something is happening here! Is this normal?!"

She has started pushing off with her feet and arching her back and turning sideways, which results in her ending up on her side. If she can just get that pesky arm out of the way, she'll roll herself right over. Of course, she'll be downright livid when she actually succeeds, only to discover that she just put herself into tummy time. Yes, she still hates tummy time.

Such torture.

So maybe her disgruntledness for the last week or so is due to all these changes. I mean, that's an awful lot to have going on in your life, you know? And at least her sad faces can still be cute:

Epic pout!

Even so, I am glad that we seem to be turning a corner and the smiles are back!

Happy girl!