Trio

At Delaney’s age, Franny wore these cute little jeans. With Delaney quickly outgrowing many of her clothes, I pulled these out thinking they would be a perfect fit. The length was just right, but the waist was inches too big for her teeny middle. Like Cole, she is very lean, but rather than a long torso she has long legs. This combination makes for a tough fit when it comes to baby pants. Too bad, since we have so many great hand-me-downs from Franny. I think Delaney is going to be in leggings for many months to come.

Pants’ real waist and  Delaney’s waist

…she’s sleeping again! At last—these beautiful smiles are those of a well rested baby! Delaney has been sleeping so much better over the last four nights. She does still roll over onto her stomach, but it is no longer causing her to wake up. She’s has been up twice a night, but that is an enormous improvement over the last few weeks, and almost back where she was a few months ago. We hope it lasts!

Delaney has graciously shared her bedroom with us for the last five months. It’s been part office-part storage room-part Delaney room. But it is now for her and her alone. Her recent sleeping challenges led me to the decision to tackle this transition in tandem with keeping her in a sustainable sleep position. And, in the process, hopefully reduce the number of sleepless nights in our future. So far, it seems to not be a non-issue. She actually seems to be more comfortable there, and she did seem to sleep a little better last night. Maybe tonight we’ll all get some solid rest.

There aren’t many babies that sleep as well as we would like them to. It is always an encouraging sign when they are able to roll over on their own, so if they do roll over in their sleep, you can actually leave them there and hopefully enjoy a couple of additional hours of sleep. But, then there’s Delaney. Saturday night she started rolling over in her sleep. Rather than prolonging a blissful slumber, this process wakes her up and in a most unhappy mood. I’m not sure why she doesn’t just roll back over, but this new development doesn’t just happen two or three times a night. Six or seven times would be more accurate. We’re all tired, and ironically, I am trying to think of ways to keep her on her back. We’ll see what tonight brings. She went to bed two hours ago and she’s already been up once. That’s really not a good sign.

Delaney's new sounds from T on Vimeo.

There is no limit to the amount of baby gear available for infants:  bouncers, swings, high chairs, the list goes on and on.  I really dislike all his equipment—it is usually large, bulky, plastic, and rarely the kind of stimulation I think is really appropriate for infants—they frequently seem to be an onslaught of annoying ‘‘music” and bells and whistles designed to function as a substitute caregiver.  That said, there is a point where the unpredictable sleep schedule of a baby also requires a place to put them when necessary.  I can’t put Delaney on the floor when I take a shower, I can’t hold her while I make meals, and sometimes I just need a break.  This collapsible travel swing serves as my ‘helper’ upstairs and a bouncer and highchair serve the same purpose downstairs.  She doesn’t really like either, but tolerates them for enough time for me to take care of various routine things throughout the day.  I look forward to the day when I can donate and discard these things.  Until then, I continue to remind myself that these are just a few of the insignificant little things that come with babies, but are temporary and will eventually be gone from sight. 

Delaney used to sleep so soundly. But, up just once during the night has evolved into up every two to three hours. It has been going on long enough that we know it is not a temporary phase—it is our norm. One of the reasons for the change is probably due to her irregular nap schedule during the second half of the summer. Her lack of recuperative sleep is most likely manifesting itself with night wakings. So, we have begun to prioritize her sleep schedule, in attempts to try and consolidate her 4 short naps during the day into 2 long naps, as well as extending her durations of night sleep. She’s still little, and needs to get up to eat during the night. This current schedule, however, will be the end of us all if it continues, and isn’t healthy for Delaney, either. We’re two weeks into it, and old habits are definitely hard to break, but I think we’re starting to see some change. Now, she down to three naps and has been up only twice during the last two nights. I am definitely hoping that this a new pattern emerging. We’ll see…

Since her arrival into the family, Delaney and Cole haven’t been the fastest friends. His exuberant affection has been somewhat unwelcome and frequently upsetting to her. But the last couple of weeks, these two have seem to have found a connection. She now smiles whenever she sees him and he makes her giggle like no one else. Today, he made her laugh out loud—the first time I’ve ever heard her do this. I am sure it is that she is older now, and can better appreciate his sweetness and silliness; he is learning to be more gentle with her, as well. It is wonderful to see them enjoy each other so much. He had obviously adored her for months, but it was definitely not reciprocated. He has a squeaky voice that he uses only for Delaney, which is both hilarious and sweet, and he always tries to help her and play with her. As she gets older, it’s going to be a lot of fun to see this relationship evolve.

This weekend, Delaney discovered her feet, and has been completely fascinated ever since. I think it’s one of sweetest milestones of this age.

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This sweet girl had the power to make our vacation a challenge and a regret. We had neither, as our vacation was wonderful. This sweet girl endured a plane ride to San Diego with a half hour stop in Oakland; followed by just one day in a strange house and a day trip to San Clemente before being taken to Disneyland where she rode in the Ergo for two days and spent one night in a strange hotel room; then, taken back to the cousins’ house for a day; rode in the Ergo for another full day at Legoland; spent the next morning at the beach and then taken on a tour of Carlsbad; flew home with another half hour stop in Sacramento. Finally, after a week on the go with some very stimulating activities, happy to be home. Thank you, Delaney, for giving us such a great vacation. We know it pushed you to your limits, but you went through it all with grace and patience. You’re an amazing little girl.

Today, the gang returned from Starbucks with a coffee sticker for Delaney. With all three sporting the same sticker, his gesture of inclusion brought Delaney into the ranks of the ‘matching siblings’, which is very big amongst Franny and Cole. Matching pajamas, matching shirts, matching hats…the list goes on and on. It’s incredibly silly, but very endearing as it is almost entirely led by them. And, I admittedly love it, as well.

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Auntie Noelle is finally starting to get the smiles from Delaney! I predict there will soon be three vying for her attention. But, I know she wouldn’t have it any other way, which is probably why they all adore her so!

Sweet Delaney, now three months old, has lost nearly all her hair and now her eyes are starting to change color. I can’t wait to find out what she is going to look like!

I just can’t get enough of these…

Yesterday, Delaney had her two month well baby check-up. She charmed her doctor with her sweet smiles and then let loose her trademark screams on the poor nurse administering her vaccines. In the end, there were no surprises—just a healthy, happy baby. We love that.

The stats:

Weight: 9 pounds, 9.8 ounces 10th percentile

Height: 58.5 cm (1’ 11.03”) 50th percentile

Dr.’s assessment: “She looks perfect…and, she’s really cute!” Of course, we agree completely!

After much fuss, Delaney finally found a spot that comforted her. Patient Grandpa just seemed to know. No fluster, no pass off—just welcome calm and slight adjustment after adjustment until she was settled peacefully on his shoulder. A very nice break for both of us, I think!

There are days that I really feel for Delaney. She is frequently literally surrounded by her two siblings and is constantly bombarded with affection. Although they both adore her, they also have a hard time understanding the impact their enthusiastic (for lack of a better word) behavior has on her. I though that Cole had it rough in his early months, but Delaney has that multiplied by two! At least I can be comforted knowing that it is intended to be positive affection. It’s no wonder she spent the first seven weeks of her life sleeping around the clock!

There is no better way to start and end the day…

Delaney Reese has now been with us for two months. With two older siblings, she really endures a lot, from being on the go to being endlessly kissed and hugged to having her pacifier shoved into her mouth from all angles (not to mention the two older siblings fighting over who will do the shoving). In spite of all this affection, she does seem to be a happy baby—we get lots of coos and smiles, and she is quite content most of the time.

Although I now can’t imagine life without her, the memory of her birth is still very vivid in my mind. It is very calming and emotional to remember the joy of delivering this healthy and beautiful little girl. It is also an incredible joy to wake up to her sweet face every morning. How lucky we are!