Tough day.

Poor Mira had a hard day today. She slept alot, but when she was awake she was just unhappy. She needed alot of reassurance. Her temperature was normal, so I don't think she's sick. And I tried several different activities to distract her, but nothing worked, not even going outside or for a car ride or even over to Gramma's house. I hope she's ok tomorrow...

Being inclusive

I'm finding that I'm getting better about including Mira in whatever it is I need to do. When she was first born, I'd wait till she was sleeping to do a lot of things. Like chores, working out, reading, blogging, showering, making phone calls, or eating. But as she started sleeping less and less during the day, I was growing more and more frustrated about not finding enough time to do the things I wanted/needed to do for myself or the house. Finally, I had a revelation: I was just going to have to find a way to multi-task. So I started with my morning shower. Instead of trying to shower super quick while she slept and praying that I wouldn't step out of the shower to hear a crying baby, I tried putting her in her bouncy seat and taking the seat into the bathroom. Now we play peek-a-boo behind the shower curtain and Mira thinks it's super funny when Mommie has her head all covered in shampoo suds.

Since discovering that I can multi-task in the shower, I've been finding more ways to include Mira in my activities. When I work out, she sits in her swing and I make funny faces at her while I jump around the living room doing my aerobics. When I do the dishes, she sits in her bouncer and watches. I can do the laundry while she is doing tummy time. I can read a book while she nurses. I prop her up so that she can see out the window while I check my email and read blogs. She sits at the table with me while I eat and I explain the way I use utensils and she marvels at the way things seem to disappear into my mouth.

It all seems so easy now and so obvious, to just do everything that I need to do, but *with her* rather than alone. But I remember not so long ago being in a place where I felt like the only time I could do anything for me was when she didn't need anything, and the only time she didn't need anything was when she was asleep. I even felt guilty sometimes for not giving her 100% of my attention. I'm so glad that I have realized now how rediculous that is...

Too many nicknames?

I have so many nicknames for Mira. I call her sweetie pea, pretty girl, sugar bear, my love, ... and oh yeah, sometimes I even call her Mira. I've been wondering if all these nicknames are confusing her. Or at the very least, prolonging the amount of time it will take her to learn her own name. Should I cut back and stick to only one nickname? Cuz I couldn't do away with all of them... picking just one to use would be hard enough. And I refuse to do away with nicknames alltogether because I had a nickname that my dad called me growing up* and I loved (and still love) the nickname. It was (and still is) endearing and sentimental to me. But I'm wondering if I'm using too many for her to identify with one. Maybe I'm thinking about this way too hard...

*The nickname my dad used for me was chicken lips. Why? I have no idea. What are chicken lips anyway? Again, no idea. Do chickens even have lips? Absolutely not.

Conflicts of Interest

So, I've got a rather more serious question to ask the readership; how do *you* balance the overwhelming desire to be around your child; with the need to support them and your careers?

I know walking that line is at it's core - each parents dilemma. But I'm a fan of learning from others when it is possible to do so. And I ask - how did you strike your balance? What kinds of choices stand out for you?

Perhaps it is not a wise idea to put everything you can reach into your mouth.

As I've discussed in a previous post, Mira has been shoving her hands into her mouth. This eventually graduated to experimentation with fitting her entire fist in there. Apparently she has become tired with gagging herself on her fist and now thinks it is great fun to grab her clothing and chew on that. If she is wearing a dress, I pull it out of her mouth no less than 200 times a day. See below.

It's gotten to where, if she's not wearing something that she can get into her mouth, she will now grab her foot and attempt to bring that up to her face.

Well, today as Mira was waking up from her nap she discovered why it may not be wise to put everything you can reach into your mouth. I swear this was entirely candid.

Busy busy busy

Mira and I had a very busy day today. We got up in the morning and did our normal morning routine: check the weather, dress the baby, nurse, eat breakfast, workout, shower, dress. Then we prepared a picnic lunch for Brian and us. The building that Brian works in has a really nice courtyard and the weather was pretty today, if a bit warm.

After lunch with Brian, Mira and I went to run some errands: bank, Lowe's, coffee shop. Then we met my mom downtown and went to the farmer's market. I got some basil and oregano and some tabouli. My mom picked up some tomatoes and some cheese. Then we dropped in on my cousin, A, who has a boy who is a year old, N. N liked watching Mira nurse. Being adopted, he'd not been nursed by A. He thought it was so interesting that he decided he'd like to try it and went up to A and bit the front of her shirt. Then he got his baby doll out and showed us how to hold a baby... for about 0.2 seconds before shoving the doll into my mom's hands and running off to play with his toy tractor. N is a real man's man. There's only so much of this "baby care" bologna he can put up with. When we finally got home, we made dinner, then bathtime and Mira passed out an hour early which gave me a convenient break which I will now use to *gasp* read a book that has zero illustrations and absolutely nothing to do with babies.

Mira's a chatterbox.

Lately Mira has been really working out her vocal chords. At least once a day she gets into a talkative mood and just sits there and coos at me for like 15 minutes or so, which is a surprisingly long time for a 3-month old to do *anything*.

I love listening to her talk. To me, it's the most adorable thing in the world. I'll mimic her sounds for her. She's making lots of vowel sounds with the occasional "g" or "h" sound interjected.

This morning we were listening to some new music that I got for Mira. It's this great band called Lunch Money. The singer's voice is so happy and the lyrics are totally cute. The songs are all very melodic and enjoyable for me as well as for Mira, not too syrupy if you know what I mean. Anyway, Mira was really liking the music. (I know because she was actually not fussing through tummy time, which never happens.) So I snatched her up and started dancing with her. She loved it... so much that she had her first full-blown giggle while we were dancing. I can't believe the effect that had on me... tears of joy litterally. So now it's like I'm mommying with a new vigor, trying to do everything in my power to get that little giggle out again.

My baby is like crack and I'm a total junkie.

Bounce!

Yesterday Mira and I spent the afternoon with my parents. Gramma Donna was helping Mira to bounce.

Squishy Face

Mira thinks Daddy is great fun. He always has new and exciting games to play.

I just love the overalls she's wearing. They're all pink and girly. Why is it that kids look so cute in overalls? Cuz overalls almost invariably look dumb on adults. Perplexing...

Also, I love the look on her face when Brian squishes his own face. Her eyes get all big and concerned like, "Are you ok Daddy? Cuz your face is all messed up..."

Laura HATES Baby powder

So, funny this...

Laura cannot stand the smell of baby powder.  She recently bought some Luv's diapers and tonight began to rant about how stinky the baby was!?!?  I scooped up the baby expecting a dirty diaper (yes I really change a few of those... sometimes) and got only a face full of fresh smelling baby powder!  Yup; the same thing that saved me many a time on the mountain as I freshened the week old hiking shoes is absolutly repulsive to my wife... baby in the name not withstanding.  

I've been sworn on pain of death never EVER to buy Luvs again!  I took it that I shouldn't also ever buy the real deal...

Water water everywhere... wait... that's not water

So tonight I was getting the little darling ready to bathe, running the water into the tub while she sat, naky and grinning on my lap.  And what is going on... but my leg is getting warm... no cold... no wait OMG HAHAH.  Yes I just got peed on.  

It's a nothing event for most parents; and an even *more* nothing event for non-parents... but for me it was the highlight of my evening.  Yup - getting peed on was fun.  

What 

The 

Hell

Have 

I 

Gotten 

Myself

Into!?!?

Talking with a co-worker today; we shared the sentament that it's better to run errands during our lunch break - even the non-savory ones because after work family time is precious.  It truly has become the best part of the day for me.  Those giant smiles and proto-giggles; the wiggling and squirming; the coos and  BIG EYES staring into mine... even getting peed on just before bath time; all conspire to make my day better.  I can cope with anything - coming home to this.  

Teething already???

Could Mira be teething already? Over the last week or so, she's been shoving her hands into her mouth a LOT. Occasionally, she'll grab my finger, bring it to her mouth, and chew on it. And she's been excessively drooly. Brian and I joke that we have a baby fountain. This chewing thing is pretty new. Previously, if a finger made it to her mouth, she would suck on it, not chew. She also has moments where she's a tiny bit fussy (nothing serious, she just seems to be expressing unhappiness rather than screaming or crying... you'll see what I mean toward the end of the video).

I've tried some teethers: frozen, refrigerated, and room-temp. She has absolutely zero interest in doing anything with them. Except that some of them are fun colors and she'll stare at them for a while. But chewing on them? Forget it. That's what Mommie's finger is for. However, sometimes Mommie would like to be doing something else with that hand...

I picked up some baby Oragel. (Actually I got a different brand cuz this one was dye free and sugar free, but it's still just a benzocaine solution so essentially the same thing.) But on the bottle it says for babies 4 months and up. Does anyone know if I can use this for Mira (she's almost 3 months)? I guess I'll have to ask her pediatrician...

This video's kinda cute... I'm not biased at all. I'll have to teach her that ladies don't talk with their mouths full, though.

Mira's first Easter

Yesterday, of course, was Easter Sunday. Brian, Mira, and I spent lunch over at Grams' house (Brian's mom, Janice). The "Easter Bunny" had left Mira a beautiful basket full of gifts and treats.

After lunch we all went over to Papa's house (Brian's dad, Phil). Mira watched her cousin Ryan hunt easter eggs.

She seemed to put up really well with all the people and commotion at Phil's house. (That family is really big, so any gathering can easily amount to over 20 people.) She was passed around to several different family members, and she obligingly cooed and smiled. I know that most kids go through a shy period where they don't want to be held by anyone but Mommie, but I'm sort of hoping that Mira will skip that phase... Wishful thinking, I know, but she's been the perfect baby in so many ways that now I'm starting to get optimistic about how she'll behave. Brian and I joke that we have the "TV baby". You know, the one who patiently sits in their bassinet in the corner of the room, only injecting a coo into the conversation when there is a convenient pause in what the adults are saying. "TV babies" also go to sleep when Mom wants and only wake when Mom is ready to retrieve them. Ok so maybe Mira's not that good, but she constantly surprises me with how easy she is. By the time she turned two months old, she was sleeping one 6 hour stretch followed by one 3 hour stretch at night. Now that she's nearly 3 months, she regularly sleeps from about 10pm to 8am with only one night waking. She's never had a problem eating, whether via breast or bottle. She's happy and easy-going most of the time. She patiently sits in her swing every morning and watches while I do my morning work out. She travels relatively easily... I mean, who gets this lucky??? Don't get me wrong, being Mira's mother is still a LOT of work: there's diapers and nursing and pumping and reading and entertaining and teaching and errand-running and soothing and playing and on and on. What I'm saying is that I'm constantly surprised at how enjoyable she makes it all. Which I guess is a good way to feel about your child.

Bathtime experimentation

I've been taking some videos of bathtime. Brian usually gives Mira her bath. Its a nice way for them to spend time together, especially since Mira seems to enjoy bathing.



One night, Brian was filling her small tub and accidentally stoppered the big tub. So both tubs filled. Rather than drain the big tub, Brian decided that this might be a good time to teach Mira about boating...



The next night he did away with the baby tub all together... I'm not sure they were washing so much as playing. *Shrug.* I think Brian must have gotten bored with bathtime...

Four Generations of Family

Today we had dinner at Chuy's with my parents and my maternal grandparents. We ate out on the patio; the weather is so nice right now in Austin. It's nice to be able to do outside activities. I feel like I have to cram in as much outside time as I can right now because soon it will be over 100 degrees every day and then all the outside time we will get will be to dash between air-conditioned places. That and pool time... but that's another post. Anyway, we were all having dinner and I was thinking how nice it is that Mira is able to meet her great grandparents. Bob and Helen (my mother's parents) are such extraordinary people and the loving and supportive nature of their marriage has been so inspiring for me in my relationship with Brian. I only have a few fleeting memories of my own great grandparents, but I sincerely hope that Mira is able to have lasting memories of hers since they are certainly people worth remembering.

Mira loves ... Calculus?

Tonight we had my parents over for dinner so Mira got to see her Gramma Donna and her Grampa and her Auntie Katelyn. After dinner everyone left and she seemed really into the saying goodbye part. The door shut behind them and she got all excited. Like, "Where'd everyone go??? I was just getting used to them!" So we read a couple of stories to try to settle down for bed. But Mira decided that she would much rather "help" her daddy with his Calculus homework. And by "help" I mean sit on it and coo.

Once the camera got rolling, she got totally distracted by it. So a lot of the video is just her being stupefied by the camera. But there are a few really cute moments, so I'll post it anyway...

We had a good day today...

This morning Mira and I went to a playdate with a couple of other kids and their mommies. It was a beautiful day and we were at the park behind the Arboretum. It was nice to be outside, but we tried to stay out of the direct sun because I didn't want Mira to get sunburned. Mira enjoyed watching the other children do neat things like eat from a spoon and roll over and stand up. I enjoyed two-sided conversation.

Anyway, on our way back home I drove through Sonic for a cherry limeaid (yum). Mira was fascinated with the cup that it came in. It had bright colors on it and when it shook the ice inside made this great sound and the straw could go in and out. It was the coolest cup ever... or so Mira thought.

Later, she was trying out her vocal chords. She is working especially hard on the "G" sound. So lots of goo's and gaa's and ugg's. I tried to get some of our conversation on video...

Milestone: Rolling over

This morning, Mira rolled over for the first time. She and I were laying in bed together. I was a couple feet away from her. She was on her back and lifted her feet in the air and then kicked them over to one side. This turned her onto her side. Then she wriggled about a little more over the next minute or so and ended up on her belly. I'm not sure if it was a sincere attempt to get closer to me or if it was just an accident, but in either case she then got really upset that she was on her tummy. I didn't realize the significance of what had happened right away; it was kind of like, "Oh dear, Mira's upset because she's on her belly... I guess I'll pull her in to nurse... wait a minute... brain processing... Mira rolled over!"