4 Month Sleep Regression/19 Week Leap

I have been dreading the beloved 4 month sleep regression since day 1. I've heard is almost inevitable, and to be honest, our baby girl isn't the best sleeper during the day, so I was afraid of what would come if she didn't sleep at night, too.

 

A co-worker recommended "The Wonder Weeks" to me, explaining that it suggests babies go through "leaps" of rapid development that can often lead to changes in their behavior.

 

Much to our surprise, well, not really, Charlotte is currently in a leap. Long story short, she's super clingy, extremely cranky, and is crying more than usual.

 

 

She also needs me ALL.THE.TIME.

 

I love that she wants me to hold her, but to be honest, the need for constant stimulation is beyond exhausting. I can't do anything while she's like this. I hate bringing her in the kitchen with me because I think it's a major danger zone, and I don't like putting the TV on while she's in the room so we go through every toy in the room until she gets so mad that she starts to cry.

 

She also isn't happy playing with her toys. She's bored with her activity mat, and too little for her activity saucer. She can't reach all the toys with her little arms, and it turns her into one unhappy babe.

 

She also is a very oral baby. EVERYTHING must go in her mouth, and if it can't fit/hurts? She throws a fit.

 

Here are a couple of our 4 month favorites, but it's worth noting that some of these are hit or miss depending on her temper :)

 

 

 

 

 Sassy Grape Teether-Tommee Tippee Chewther

 

So I guess there wasn't really a major point to this post, aside from that I needed an outlet to vent. I hope to post an update SOON that things are back to normal in the Brine household, but I won't hold my breaht ;)

 

4 months!

Happy 4 months, little lady! I'm a little late to this post, but life's got the best of me, lately!

Your Daddy and I adore you more than words can say. You've been such a beautiful blessing in our life and we are so happy you're ours!

Things that are new in the life of Charlotte:

- Pushing up on her elbows while on her tummy. See the proof!

- Enjoying a lot of chewing and sucking and putting things in her mouth

- Touching EVERYTHING in sight! This includes items at the checkout line at the store. I didn't think 4 month olds did that!

- Loving bath time more and more!

 

- Sitting up assisted and using her arms to hold herself up

- Getting frustrated that her little arms can't reach all the toys on her activity saucer

- FINALLY fitting into her first pair of shoes! Size 1 are too big...

- Sitting in her high chair, booster seat and Mama's and Papa's chair.

- Outgrew her bouncer and Mamaroo, which have been packed up and sent to my sister's (who is due with a baby girl on Christmas!)

- Took her first flight to Boston and was an absolute champion on the subway and plane!

- Still fighting naps but we're working on a plan...

- Sleeping 10 hours at night, typically 8pm-6am

- Eating 7 times a day, typically 4 bottles and 3 nursing sessions

Oh and her stats! Miss Charlotte weighed 13 pounds, 1 oz (30th percentile) and was 24.75 inches long (70th percentile)!

Charlotte's 3 Month Photos

I think the images speak for themselves :) I love this little girl!! 

3 Month Photo Sneak Peak!

We were so blessed to find an amazing wedding photographer who captured our wedding day perfectly! We had contacted her when I was pregnant in the hopes of getting her to shoot newborn pictures of our baby girl, but life got quite hectic and we never had time. When Charlotte turned 3 months, I contacted her to see if she'd be able to shoot her 3 month pictures. We had an absolute blast, and Charlotte was so well behaved.

We can't wait to see the rest of her pictures, but for now here is a sneak peak:

This was taken in Charlotte's nursery, on her sheepskin rug. I just absolutely adore and love this little girl to pieces! 

We had quite an eventful weekend with Miss Charlotte. For the last 4 nights, she has been waking up after her "normal" bedtime whining and fussing. The only thing that calms her is nursing/a bottle, which has me thinking it's either a growth spurt or she's not getting enough food during the day. She's still nursing every 2-3 hours, but does seem distracted while nursing. I think she's realized that there is a lot more going on while she's busy nursing, and it makes her curious! 

Other new things in the world of Charlotte:

- We've increased her bottles from 4 oz to 6 oz each, hoping she'll sleep longer through the night. This is our new attempt at stopping her from waking an hour after bedtime. 

- She discovered her feet toes. Now all she wants to do it suck on them...

- Blowing bubbles. This was our wakeup call on Saturday morning! 

- Not interested in the pacifier, which is fine by me!

3 Month Must-Have's

I have to be honest and say that 3 months is really hard in terms of finding toys and activities that baby loves.

I've been finding that Charlotte wants to be able to chew on everything, but she doesn't quite have the hand-eye coordination that she needs to be able to bring her toys to her mouth. This makes for either a frustrated baby or a frustrated Mama (I mean you can only play "drop and pick up" so many times!). She's getting a lot better at grasping her toys, but some of them are either too big and awkward for her to hold or they don't have smaller extremities that she can put into her mouth.

We bought a couple new things that should hold her off until she has better coordination. Here are some things she's currently loving:

Sophie-O'Ball-Buzzing Bee-Dinosaur Ring-Laugh & Learn Dog

Sophie is great because Charlotte can fit her nose, ears, and legs in her mouth. She can easily grasp her legs and/or neck to chew on it. She is a little too long for her, though, especially when she's sitting in her bouncer or booster seat, so she looses control of her easily. 

The O'Ball is so easy for Charlotte to hold on to, but she obviously can't fit the ball in her mouth, like she wants it to! 

As annoying as the Laugh & Learn Dog can be, Charlotte LOVES it. The music, the light up heart and the giggling are really entertaining for her. We keep it in her pack-n-play and turn it on when she gets fussy during diaper changes. Once she figures out how to turn it on herself, it'll play non-stop! 

The Bee and Dinosaur teething toys are new, but she loves them! The dinosaur is so easy for her to grasp, plus the tail and spikes are perfect for her to chew on. Plus, it's a natural product, so that's always nice! The buzzing bee is really fun, since the wings are a soft plastic AND the entire thing vibrates when you push on the stinger. She seems to like this feeling on her gums. The bee's antennas place music, too, which she loves. 

3 Months Old!

It's hard to believe that Miss Charlotte is 3 months old today! She's been changing so much lately, and we couldn't be happier! I always thought I'd miss the baby stage, and while Charlotte is still very young, she's also very independent and active!

Here are some updates on our baby girl:

-She's been sleeping 10+ hours the last few nights. I'm waiting on the dreaded 3 month growth spurt and the 4 month sleep regression, but in the interim I'll take a good night sleep for myself! 

-Rolling over onto her belly. She did this in her sleep last night, and woke up in a panic this morning! 

- Nursing around 7 times a day, sometimes 8 depending on fussiness/hunger. She feeds every 2-3 hours. 

- Wearing size 0-3 and 3 month clothes. Some are getting too short on her (like her sleepers) since I believe she's quite long for her age. 

-Loves to "talk" and babble at us and her toys.

-Getting tired of her bouncer and MamaRoo...I think she needs more stimulating activities, but she's too small for her activity saucer at the moment. 

-Doesn't hate tummy time as much now that she can push her head and chest up.

Still isn't sure about bath time...

-Loves music and toys with lights, and loves when I sing to her (probably the only person in the world, but I'll take it...)

- Started teething (we think)...she has been gnawing on her hands fingers for the past few weeks. I don't see any buds, but I think we're getting there. She's been loving Sophie lately! 

-We caught the first baby giggles while on vacation a few weeks ago. It was hysterical and Hubs and I couldn't stop trying to keep her going. It was priceless and I'm so glad I got it on video!

-Charlotte is a major kicker. She loves kicking her feet in the car, in her bouncer, and most recently on the dining room table, so much so that we had to move her chair back so she didn't tip herself over! 

On Returning To Work Post-Charlotte

Today marks my second day back to work since Charlotte was born. I never imagined I'd work once I had children. Hubs and I decided that with my income and job flexibility, it was best that I go back to work after our baby girl was born. 

I have to say the transition has been harder than I imagined. It probably didn't help that I didn't even think about going back until the day before, essentially in denial that I had to go back. On Monday, I cried as I got Charlotte out of her crib in the morning, and at every other moment I'd be missing once I headed back to work. Bedtime was the hardest, probably because my baby looks so big in her crib now, and also because I didn't want to put her down. 

The past two nights she's gotten up to eat in the middle of the night, and I've been okay with that. It gives me a little extra time to enjoy her and hold her close. 

The hardest part of this transition is that I worry about not seeing her enough. Yesterday, I went straight to my sisters after work and nursed her around 4:30. By the time I got home and unpacked our bags, she was ready for a nap. I held her in her glider until Hubs got home so we could start dinner. She went to bed around 8, which meant we saw her for about 3.5 hours all day. I worry that I'll miss something in her development by not being with her. 

Coming back has also put things into perspective. While on leave, I felt like I was always on her time, and it's hard to be depended on so much, but once that's taken away from you, you want it back. I'd give anything to be at home with her. 

I didn't mean for this post to be so down, and I hope that this transition gets easier and better for us as a family. I'm just thankful that Hubs supports whatever decision I make as far as staying at work full-time.