Gwen is FIVE Months!

I am FIVE months old!

 

I like: getting dressed & undressed (she LOVES having clothes put over her head and taken off and loves when we slide her arms through the sleeves...in any direction), when someone is on the ground with me during tummy time, when daddy "tickles me (we get some really good giggles when he grabs her torso lightly and says "tickle tickle"), when I get to sit with everyone in the high chair during dinner time, when I wake up from naps or in the morning (she's a BIG morning baby!), Mom (she really loves when I get home and tell my stories), and my toes :)




Trying bananas - yum!

 

I dislike: Being hungry, being stuck on my belly, being in another room when everyone else is talking (serious FOMO)
 



She woke up early this morning
So she "helped" me get ready haha

I am now: We forgot a weight check, but she is in size 3 diapers, 6 to almost 6-9 month clothes, and has rolls for days!



Best onesie ever (and oh so true!)

A Typical Day looks like:
7 AM to 7:30) Start waking up for the day (although we're lucky if we get to 7:30....she's an early riser apparently)
7:30 to 8) Breakfast time. I changed diapers, outfits and then make her bottle (usually about 5.5 oz of breastmilk and 1 of formula).
8 to 9:30) Gwen hangs out in the swing while I clean dishes, get finishing touches on the morning things (my lunch, the bottle makings for Larry, and getting my work stuff put together), and brush Cara's teeth. I leave for work at 8:15 and Larry stretches her to last as close to 9:30 for her nap.
9 to 11) Nap time. She usually wakes up between 10:30 and 11. He'll usually do some tummy time or swing/bumbo seat time so that he can avoid spit ups later.
11 to 12:15 ish) Diaper change, eat a 6 ounce bottle (usually 1.5 oz is formula, the rest is breast milk), get burped and more wiggle and giggle time.
12:15 to 2) Nap time. If she gets up early then she hangs out until her next feeding.
2 to 3:15) Diaper change, eat 6 oz bottle again, get burped, wiggle and giggle time and then she'll end up going down for another nap.
3:15-4:45) She naps while Larry and Cara go downstairs so he can work out and she hangs out in the play area. After his workout and he showers she is usually up and ready to hang out again.
5-5:45) Diaper change, eat 6 oz again, get burped, and usually hang out with Larry and Cara until I get home
5:45-6) Dinner time! I usually feed her one small container of baby food with a tablespoon of oatmeal in it. I think she really likes this time because she gets to be in the high chair and we all eat together so she's finally part of some family time haha.
6-7:30) Family time! We go outside if it's nice weather, if it's not we stay inside and just hang out (usually teaching Cara some flash cards and letting Gwen wiggle and giggle). Around 7 we start our nightly show. 7:20 she gets her last bottle of the night (usually 4-4.5 oz of formula).
7:30) Get ready for bed. She gets a diaper change, lotion, owlet, and put in pajamas. We do a bath on Sundays and Thursdays (switched from Wednesdays) and then we put her in the bassinet to fall asleep on her own.Now that we've cut out that last nap (around 5:30 ish) she seems to be very happy to go to bed and doesn't fuss very often once she's down. It's been hard with the time change that it's so bright, but she's still good at just falling asleep.



Sister sharing some of her applesauce

This Month I:Grew a ton! I started working on moving around a lot more and it's rare that I'll stay in one place when put on the ground to explore. I am very close to scooting and can go backwards a little bit. I turn and rotate a ton and you never know where you'll find me if you leave me in a room by myself.

I laugh a lot and love to smile...especially when mom gets home from work. I love eating and watching my sister and I'm sure I'll be walking next to her very soon. I got to feel the sand in my toes and see what outside is all about. I love watching my sister run around and it gets my legs wiggling because I get so antsy to join her. I am nice enough to my parents that I sleep all night, but boy do I love mornings!

I've loved all the teether toys my parents find for me, especially the banana one that brushes my gums! I've also gotten more used to being in my car seat...although it's still not my favorite place to be. I've found I love my thumb so much that I try and suck both at the same time....sure makes it convenient when I'm sleepy :)

Mom is always showering me in kisses and telling me she loves me so I think I'm here to stay :)



Cute smiles in the morning!

Parent's Notes: Gwen is easily the most happy baby! She loves smiling at people, doesn't have as much stranger danger as Cara had, and seems to adapt to different people really well. She definitely goes wide-eyed when first seeing new people, but gets over the "whoa" factor pretty quickly. She's also getting better at reaching out and grabbing toys and items she wants (mostly to bring to her mouth, but still). She is very drool-y, but I don't think it's teething related, I think it's just normal baby drool.  She's definitely a chunk and has rolls all over, which is so surprising to me as she is getting about 90% breast milk over formula, but I'm guessing because she does get an extra bottle over what Cara was getting that's what's contributing to it. I'm not complaining though, I know once she gets more mobile she'll most likely slim out a bit.

We transitioned Gwen into going to bed without a bottle and she's done really well. It's funny how I stress about these new things we're going to try and how we'll know when we need to do it (I don't feel I kept as helpful of notes with Cara to know what we did, so I'm hoping these notes will help with future babies), but that parenting instinct just kicks in and I realize I can tell when she's ready. I was actually the one to initiate this change too, normally I let Larry take it on since he doesn't get as much anxiety as I do with changes. I will say this is where treating the girls as more individuals has helped. Rather than say "Cara went without a bottle at this point, so we should probably start that with Gwen" I've learned to listen to her queues and how she's growing on her own. It's making me feel like a better parent to do it that way and I'm loving how things are going.

Now that Gwen is 5 months old this is our last month with having her in our room. I'm nervous to move her, as I was with Cara, but I think she's getting ready for that change. I have to majorly clean the nursery out, move Cara's stuff to her new room, move Gwen's stuff to the nursery and get Larry to raise the mattress, but I think it'll be such a relief when we do move her. I know I'll be sleeping better haha. Although I've actually loved having her sleep right next to me to check on every once in a while. Luckily we haven't had any false (or true really) alerts with the Owlet so she seems to be sleeping great and not having any issues for me to be worried about.



Such a wiggle worm during nap time

 

Update on last month's goals:

• Solid food introduction: Gwen has been loving getting her baby food during dinner time. She always makes funny faces, but she gets so excited when I have a new spoonful ready for her. She's getting better with opening her mouth and eating it, although she does have a bad habit of putting her fingers in her mouth right after so I wonder how much she's actually getting down.
• Rolling over both ways: She can roll over both ways, but she thinks she can't go from tummy to back. We've seen her do it a few times, but she still fusses like she's forgotten. Hopefully she'll figure it out this next month.
• Smiles & Laughs: this girlie LOVES  to smile. She gets so giggle-y (especially when she's tired). There's not shortage of smiles and laughter at our house!
• Individual treatment and attention: I think I'm doing better with this. I stopped comparing them as much (though I do like to see where Cara was at certain points just out of curiosity...also to remind myself a little about how far she's come), but I'm learning more and more how different they are. It's actually making it more fun!
• Getting outdoors: We've done so good at getting outdoors if the weather is nice. It's been really warming up lately and next month the pool opens up so we'll have many more opportunities with this one!

Goals for next month:

• Get her moved to her new room.
• Work on sitting up more on her own.
• Work on scooting.
• Keep trying new foods.
• Get her outside as much as possible.