Regressive Clair/regressive parenting

I either learned or was reminded of some very important things last night:

1. When you put it out into the world that you want to be able to spend more time with your baby daughter -- without being specific about how and when you'd like to spend more time with your baby daughter -- your words will likely come back to bite you in the butt.

2. There is such a thing as 8-9 month sleep regression. It has a lot to do with learning to crawl and other developmental things. And even though Clair is only 7.5 months old, we have all seen that she enjoys hitting her milestones early.

3. Our joint decision to teach our children how to sleep by letting them "work it out" apparently only applied to our double sons, not our single daughter. And when confronted about this inequity, my husband becomes an alien, sleeping half the night on the couch with our sleep-regressing daughter, because "it hurts him to hear her cry."

4.  Coffee is a wonderful thing.

I did say I wanted to see more of this face, didn't I? I know. I did.

2-month-checkup

Clair had her 2-month check-up yesterday!

Dr. Bodnar declared her "perfect," which we already knew. She's 12 lbs. 2 oz. (right where she should be) and 23 and a quarter inches tall (long?) She's eating well, sleeping not too shabbily and cooing, smiling, talking and dare I say, laughing? In other words, she's awesome.

Speaking of Clair laughing, do any of you remember a 3-D ultrasound photo of her that the tech said looked like she was laughing? Well, I took a very blurry iPhone photo of her recently in her swing (while it was swinging, making it extra blurry) and it reminded me so much of that U/S pic, that I had to find it again. And sure enough, I really do believe now that my daughter was laughing in utero!

See for yourself:

Clair at 28 weeks, apparently the only one in on the joke.

Bizarre, huh? And also kinda cool! My daughter is just a happy baby!! Do you know how happy that makes me?

Anyway, back to the update: I don't think I've mentioned her sleeping habits lately (mostly because I have learned that as soon as you declare something to be so on the blog, your kids decide to make it absolutely NOT so). But ...(I know I'm going to regret this) ...Clair has been doing a lot better with the sleeping thing. About a week ago, she started drinking her last bottle at around 8-ish, usually conks out around 9 or 9:30 and hadn't been waking up to eat again until 3 or so. Two nights ago, I forced myself to risk this lovely sleeping she was doing and put her in her own crib, in her own room, once she fell asleep. And lo and behold, for two nights, she has slept in her own crib, in her own room. And hasn't gotten up to eat another bottle until 4:30 or 4:45!!

I thought she was going to sleep worse in her own crib, in her own room. Turns out, she sleeps better!

Hallllllllleeeeeeeluuuuuiah.

(Of course, she got shots today at the doctor, so watch her be up all night long fussing. Sigh.)

Either way, that's one thing on the maternity leave checklist to cross off. I said I would start trying to get her in her own bed, and I am doing it! Let's pray I can keep it up.

I also went today and got blood drawn so my doctor can look at my blood sugars. So I can cross that off the checklist, too. Now I just have to wait for the results. I'm not optimistic; I've been eating terribly since having Clair (I say as I shove the remnant of a Panera pumpkin muffie in my mouth). But I plan to get back on the wagon when I have to go back to work. I seem to have more discipline when I'm in my office, for some reason.

Speaking of Panera, here's my chunky monkey all tuckered out, as I scarf some post-bloodwork lunch:

Clair! Clair! Hello...I was talking to you! RUDE!

In other checklist-related news, I finished my basement project (!!!) and earned my husband's high praise. I also earned myself an achy back, neck, shoulders and knees. Methinks a hot bath is in order tonight, so please pray my child sleeps tonight. I really need to sit and soak and read my bookclub book.

(Also, shout-outs for Craig's List and Freecycle. After my basement clean out project, I posted all our cloth diapers and accessories on Craig's List, and posted a bunch of other stuff on Freecycle. Someone drove from DELAWARE last night to pick up the diapers (three hours after I posted them, they were gone and I was $200 richer!) and two people are picking up the rest of my trash...er...unneeded items tonight. Hooray!!!)

37 weeks daydreams

I'm 37 weeks today. And I can sorta see the light at the end of the tunnel but it is faint, folks. Like, that tiny little pinlight that the eye doctor shines on a wall a million miles away and asks if you can see it.

I just told a friend this morning in an email that the biggest thing is that I am SOOO, SOO, SOOO, SOOO tired. I'm too uncomfortable to sleep at night, and then when I do drift off, I have to pee 10 seconds later. And I'm starting to get emotional because I'm so tired. This morning I wanted to cry because I couldn't find the small containers to go with the matching Tupperware tops. And Lester said, totally benignly, "Maybe you left them at work?" which -- for some reason -- made tears well up in my eyes. Like, "Don't ACCUSE me of losing the Tupperware! I am doing the best I can here!"
Isn't that crazy? Seriously, I am a tired, uncomfortable, cranky, tired, tired, tired mess.

I frequently have daydreams about sleeping. Last night, I had an actual dream about sleeping.

And yes, I know that sleeping is going to be a mere memory once Curve Ball is actually here. But let's cross that bridge when we come to it.

Other than sleeping, here's what else I daydream about:

• Walking up the stairs without feeling like I'm climbing a mountain
• Getting out of the bed without rocking or rolling or needing assistance
• Warm brownies with vanilla ice cream
• Being able to wear my regular clothes
• Being able to sit my boys on my lap again
• Pillsbury slice 'n bake cookies, hot out of the oven
• Putting my shoes on in less than 5 minutes (and without grunting and groaning)
• Seeing less of my bathroom
• Not being mad at my co-workers when they go to our single office bathroom without asking me if I have to go first, because, HELLLO! Of course I have to go.
• Friday night Chinese take-out
• Salt 'n vinegar potato chips
• S-E-X (well, OK, not really. But I do daydream about the day when I will daydream about that again.)
• Middle of the day napping with my peacefully sleeping baby
• Seeing her face for the very first time

But mostly, if I am honest, I daydream about sleep. And I can't wait until that dream becomes a reality again.

(A year from now. LOL.)