Baby CDS: 5 Months

So many sweet photos of our happy baby girl this month! Baby CDS continues to be the happiest baby. I love these baby smiles where it looks like her whole body is smiling. I just can't get enough!

Baby girl is an absolute joy! She smiles as soon as she sees us, and we all love it. Lady C still is amazed and excited every morning when she wakes up and sees that our baby is still here. It is adorable! If only Lady C would stop sitting on baby. When Baby CDS isn't busy giving big, gummy smiles she has started laughing. Little J is especially good at getting Baby CDS laughing. She seems to be ticklish, though maybe it's the silly faces her sisters make that make her laugh. Either way, super cute!

Baby CDS still doesn't cry too much, but she does cry sometimes if we all leave the room without her. She returns to her smiley self as soon as someone comes back and looks at her. She will sometimes cry a little if she gets overstimulated and needs a little nap. Most of the time I can tuck her arms down by her side or swaddle her and calm her down pretty quickly.

A big change in Baby CDS this month is that she's starting to be mobile. She rolls from her back to her tummy really well, and sometimes from her tummy to her back. When she stays on her back she kicks her feet and slides around the room. It's still a little weird to look over in the living room and not see her where I left her. She holds her head up really well when she's on her tummy, and when we're helping her sit up. I'm sure it won't be too long until she's crawling around and chasing her big sisters!

Sleep and eating haven't changed much. She's still up just once most nights, though some nights more, some not at all. We're waiting a little longer before we add in baby food. Baby CDS is still in 6 month size clothes and size 2 diapers.

Baby CDS: 4 Months

Sweet, smiley Baby CDS is 4 months old! She really, truly is a sweet, sweet, smiley baby! She is the star of the family right now, and by far the easiest of my four girls... at least for now. 

We're continuing to get many, many gummy baby smiles, along with some squeals and baby babbling. She (mostly) wakes up happy and talking to herself. She very rarely cries, pretty much only if she is hungry or really needs her diaper changed. She is starting to get a little upset if we leave her alone for too long, but if she can see the family, she's happy.

Baby girl has had an exciting month. In the past month we visited E's family in Southwest Minnesota with a side trip to rural South Dakota, spent a long weekend with my family at a cabin in Wisconsin, a short weekend at a cabin with friends in Minnesota and made a quick trip to Duluth. The only weekend we were home this month we celebrated Baby CDS's baptism and Lady C's birthday. It's been a fun filled month!

Baby CDS continues to grow and grow. She officially weighed in at 16 pounds, 10 ounces and is 26.5 inches long. I switched her clothes to 6 month size, with a few 3-6 month items left that still fit. I wasn't expecting to feel so emotional about getting new clothes out, but wow! A lot of the outfits haven't been worn since Little A was a baby 6 years ago. It was crazy to think of her being so little. Packing all the tiny clothes away was pretty hard too.

Eating and sleeping is still going well. Baby CDS nurses about every three to four hours during the day, but goes longer stretches at night. Her nights don't really have a pattern right now, but hasn't been up more than twice a night. Most nights she's just up once, and there are a few wonderful nights when she doesn't wake up at all. Her pediatrician gave us the ok to start baby food now, but I don't think we'll start that any time soon.

Baby CDS: Months 2 & 3

Baby CDS continues to be the sweetest baby you could imagine. She's so easy going I can hardly believe it. Months two and three with our littlest girl were great!

At 2 months old Baby CDS started smiling. My very favorite! I love looking at my sweet girl and seeing a big smile fill her face.

Baby CDS is still a big girl. We went in for her well child check up and she was 14 pounds, 6.5 ounces (99th percentile) and 25 inches long (100th percentile). She's very long and lean, much like Miss A was as a baby. The doctor suggested we make sure she's looking both directions when she's laying on her back because she has a bit of a flat spot on the back of her head, but that it's not too bad right now.

She's a chill baby during the day, going along with our adventures with very little crying and she sleeps well at night too. She's not consistently sleeping through the night, but she occasionally makes it through the night and when she doesn't, she sleeps long stretches and goes right back to sleep after I feed her.

Baby CDS started going to Kid Stuff at the Y a few times a week just after she hit the six week mark, and so far she's doing really well. She mostly sleeps while I'm gone, or hangs out with a teacher or in a swing watching what Lady C is up to.

Three months brought even more, aid even bigger smiles from Baby CDS. I love how her smiles light up her whole face. It's amazing! She will give anyone a smile, but she's especially smiley for family. Miss A and Little J both love when they can make her smile! Lady C continues to love her most of all. Baby CDS is the one person who Lady C never gets mad at, and Baby CDS is sure to make Lady C smile (and say, "Hi Baby, Hi Baby, Hi Baby" on repeat). Baby CDS also gets lots and lots of hugs and kisses from all three big sisters. Baby CDS has also started babbling a little, and she makes laughing sounds when we give her the pacifier.

She is happy to take the pacifier when offered to her, but if there is no pacifier around, she supplements with her thumb. I am trying to keep her using the pacifier, but we'll see who wins that one.

Baby CDS is still in 3 month and 3-6 month clothes, but they are getting really tight. I'll be switching out clothes to 6 month sizes soon. We also had to retire the newborn swaddles for bigger sizes.

So far there's no real routine to Baby CDS's days, but she's a great sleeper so far. I know that can (and probably will) change any time, but Baby CDS rarely wakes up more than once a night and sometimes sleeps through the night. In fact, there has been more than one morning when I've had to wake her up in the morning after 7 because she's been sleeping for 12 hours. It's amazing what a full night of sleep can do for a tired mama!

Baby CDS: 1 Month

I'm so behind on blogging... again. Oops! But, we have a new sweet girl! And she's already a month old (actually 6 weeks as I write this, but I'm trying to give details from her first month!). This seriously felt like the fastest month of my life.

Baby CDS is just about the sweetest little thing I could imagine. We're all soaking in as much newborn baby time as we can. I'm in love, Daddy's in love and big sisters are in love, especially Lady C. Seriously, Lady C's face just lights up every time she sees her baby. It is absolutely adorable. We were worried that there would be some jealousy from Lady C, but there hasn't been any toward baby at all (she does sometimes get upset if Miss A or Little J is snuggling with me).

Baby CDS took to nursing really well right from the start, such a relief. She was/is a big baby. She started at 10 pounds, 11 ounces and by her checkup at 3 weeks she was up to 11 pounds, 11 ounces. So eating is not a problem. Although I did end up with mastitis at 3 weeks, which was awful. I'm hoping to avoid that going forward! She's also sleeping about as well as you can expect for a newborn. Most nights she's only up once or twice, and she goes back to sleep right away after I feed her.

 We used the newborn size diapers that we got from the hospital, then moved to size 1 right away. It was about the same with clothes. I had all of newborn clothes ready, so Baby CDS started in newborn size clothes, but after a little over a week I moved her up to 3 month clothes, and some of those are getting a little tight. 

Of course E had to stick with his tradition of getting Baby CDS a cake for her 1 month birthday. E picked an ice cream cake up from Dairy Queen and it was quite tasty. We all enjoyed baby's cake! And that night Baby CDS got to join E and I for her first party, a work event for E. Baby CDS slept through most of the party, but she definitely the cutest one there! 

Baby #4: 39 Weeks

As I type this, I just got home from the doctor, and it looks like we're going to have a baby tomorrow! Wow! It feels really crazy that we're about to have FOUR kids!

37 Weeks

We're as ready as we can be for baby girl's arrival. Her room is ready, her clothes are ready, we have many (many) diapers and her sisters (at least the big two) are very ready! We just need a name (ha!) and a baby!

I've been feeling about the same as my last post. Still tired, lower back pain that gets really bad at times and some swelling, especially my right leg. It's hard to get comfortable to sleep and to stay asleep once I get to sleep which can be frustrating. I also have heartburn starting in the afternoon most days, and that gets really bad when I lay down. Tums and lots of pillows help most of the time. 

I have been able to stay pretty active through this last month, and I met my goal of going to the gym through 39 weeks. I even made it to the new release of Body Pump on Monday where I got many, many comments from fellow pumpers about how I could still be there. It didn't feel great, and I had to take a few tracks off, but I made it. And made the decision that would be the last day no matter when baby girl came.

39 Weeks, 5 days

My sister is staying with us this week to help out with the girls, which is amazing. I had her quick snap a picture of my belly since it seems this will be the last day of my giant pregnant belly. Now to repack my hospital bag, get a hair cut (yes, I scheduled an appointment for this week) and continue freaking out about having a baby!

Spring 2016 DITL

I missed the last two Day In The Life posts, but I'm happy to be linking up with Julia for the Spring 2016 DITL roundup. I recorded Friday, April 1st for our family. Today I am 34  years old and 38 weeks pregnant with baby girl #4, E is 35, Miss A just turned 6, Little J is 4 and Lady C is almost 20 months. 

6:57am: I wake up and look at the time, but I have no interest in actually getting out of bed. I haven't been sleeping well due to my giant belly, so laying in bed sounds just about perfect. 

7:15am: Lady C is up. E is already up getting ready for work so he gets her and brings her to me. I'm hoping for some morning snuggle time, but she is wild when she wakes up. 

7:25am: Lady C has her first breakfast of the day, Honey Nut Cheerios and milk. I sneak a donut, check my phone and watch a bit of the news. 

Love this one from Timehop... more than 8 years ago, but still a great memory!

8:00am: I wake Miss A up for the first time. I start getting ready; change, wash face, brush teeth. Lady C digs through the drawers in my bathroom, finding lots of nail polish. Little J wakes up and comes to hang out. She loves to hang out in our bath tub. I have to go in to check on Miss A every five minutes until she finally got up. 

8:30am: Miss A is finally up and dressed. She has an interesting fashion sense right now. She started with a blue long sleeved shirt, but adds a black long sleeve shirt over the top when I remind her that it's school colors day. It looks a little strange and uncomfortable to me, but I'm going to choose my battles today, and this is not one I really want to fight. We head downstairs for breakfast. We have donuts on half birthdays, and today is my half birthday, so we have chocolate donuts. When Lady C sees Miss A and Little J have donuts, she insists on having one as well. All three are very happy with today's breakfast. I unload the dishwasher and make lunch for Miss A while they eat. Miss A  has some vanilla yogurt, which she ends up spilling all over the floor. I clean up the yogurt and send her to change.

8:45am: Miss A and I head out to the bus stop.

8:50am: I'm back from the bus stop. I do some cleaning around the house, get the little girls dressed, then do a jungle puzzle with Little J. Little J chooses a very bright outfit today!

9:40am: Get ready to leave for the Y. I grab snacks, water, my Target list, mail and take the trash out after getting Little J and Lady C in the car. Little J is really in to nature right now, especially the oceans and dolphins (she loves nature shows on Netflix right now), so she brings a dolphin book along.

10:10am: Get to gym (a little late) and after chatting with our favorite front desk friend, I get the girls checked in at Kid Stuff. Lady C stays in the little kid room, and I take Little J to the big kid room. I quickly head in to Body Pump and find a spot. I'm a little late, but find a spot and get started. I've lightened my weights and take extra breaks to allow me to get through the class and not end up with too much back pain the rest of the day. Today I skip lunges.

11;10am: Class is done. I chat with some gym friends and relax for a bit before picking up the girls.

11:40am: I pick up the girls from Kid Stuff and we head out.

12:00pm: We go to Target and while trying to keep Lady C occupied and in the cart, I don't take any pictures. Today I'm trying to stock up on essentials just in case baby girl decides to make her appearance early. My dad and stepmom are also planning to visit tomorrow so I pick up some groceries for dinner.

1:00pm: We're leaving Target. There is construction on the road home and it takes forever to get home. Lady C falls asleep on the drive, grrr!

1:25pm: Finally home! I quickly get lunch started. Nachos with leftover taco meat. Doritos are one of my favorites, and being really hungry makes them extra tasty today. Little J is pretty happy with this lunch too.

1:45pm: I clean up from lunch and unload the car. Little J picks a treat from her Easter basket, and starts coloring. I pick too many treats from Lady C's basket.

2:20pm: I get Lady C ready for a nap. On our way upstairs we check for Mr. and Mrs. duck in our front drainage area (they have been hanging out there a lot lately and my nature loving Little J loves to check on them). We moved Lady C into her room with Miss A a few weeks ago, and while she's doing pretty well staying in bed at night, I don't trust her for naps so I'm using the pack-n-play. After Lady C is in bed, I start The Magic School Bus for Little J in my room and start a bath. The bath tub is the greatest thing right now. I relax in the tub for quite awhile, then move to the shower to rinse off and wash my hair. Then I do my hair, a little makeup and get dressed. I'm down to the same three or four outfits now. I'm really ready to not be pregnant!

3:30pm: I start some laundry and hear that Lady C is awake. Her car nap seems to have messed with her real nap today. Not cool. I talk to E on the phone for a bit as I get Lady C.

3:55pm: The bus drops of Miss A. The kids from the bus chase the ducks and Miss A picks up the mail on her way home (across the street). I do some work on the computer, mostly bills and still trying to figure out how to change our address with a few companies. Miss A and Little J do their "homework." Miss A has a little assignment from her teacher and Little J works on writing her name. Little J does well with her long name, but has trouble with the letter S sometimes. Lady C builds with duplo blocks and plays with other toys in the living room.

4:30pm: Little J and Miss A go outside. Little J rides her bike. She loves that she can ride without training wheels now. They both dig around in the yard to and pretend to make food for a restaurant. Lady C decides to "help" with my computer work. Miss A and Little J come inside looking for a snack.

My pregnancy drink of choice this time around.

She hates to wear her own shoes, yet loves to wear other people's shoes. So silly!

5:40pm: E calls to let me know he's on his way home. I start dinner, and again Lady C decides to help. She has figured out the knobs on our doors, and loves to raid the pantry. There is very little I can leave on the bottom shelf now, and I frequently find boxes of mac and cheese and cheerios strewn around the house.

6:00pm: E is home! There's always a race to get the first hug from Daddy and today Lady C gets the first hug. She's really loving Daddy lately! When the big girls realize Daddy is home, everyone has to pile on.

6:20pm: Dinner is ready. We have spaghetti, a meal nobody complains about. Big win! We talk about the rules for playing outside (ask before you go outside, always wear your helmet on your bike... pretty basic stuff). Also, our yard is dirt and the girls end up covered in mud, so we talked about only wearing older, outside clothes to play in the yard rather than fancy dresses. Hopefully they actually follow that one!

6:50pm: I clean up from dinner and E takes the big girls outside to clean up the yard and have a fire. We just found out the builder is sending people to work on the yard Monday, so we want to get some work done in advance. I snuggle and play with Lady C, who is not very happy to be staying inside.

8:00pm: E and the girls come inside and I start getting all three ready for bed. Pajamas, teeth, diapers, books.

8:30pm: Girls are finally in bed. Lady C is in the bottom bunk, with Miss A on the top now, and while she's doing pretty well with her big girl bed, she likes to mess around for awhile before staying in bed and going to sleep. Tonight is not too bad. I clean the floors (love this Norwex mop!). I also love the look of our dark hard wood floors, but they show everything. Not my favorite. When the floors are clean, I get ice cream.

10ish pm: Start getting ready for bed and go to sleep. Goodnight!