3 months

Josie turned 3 months old on Monday and 13 weeks on Sunday. (It's weird how the months and weeks don't really match up. When she was 12 weeks I never knew if I should say she was 3 months or 12 weeks. I know this is not a real problem but it gave me pause when I was asked how old she was. Which probably made me look like I didn't know how old my own child was. Awesome.)

Annnnyway. She is officially 3 months old and I can't believe how much she's changed just in a month. She's VERY into her hands right now and they can usually be found her mouth. See Exhibit A on the right. She now notices objects around her and will bat at the hanging toys on her playmat. When I drink my coffee when I nurse her she will stare at my coffee cup and today she reached for it. (almost spilling it. this practice may end shortly if this continues) She smiles a lot, especially at Mommy and Daddy. She also talks and coos a bunch. I love hearing her talk to herself- it's so adorable (and way better than crying). She can now sit up while supported and hold her head up while doing so- no more slumping forward or wild bobble head baby.

Her eyes are still blue and don't seem to be changing much. Charlie loves this as apparently he has a thing for blue eyes. (Mine are hazel in case you're wondering). Her hair is a tad longer but most people wouldn't notice this- it's still soft peach fuzz and she's still quite the baldy compared to a lot of other babies her age. She's definitely outgrown all her newborn clothes and can only barely squeeze into a few 0-3 month items (depending on how big they are). She's almost exclusively in 3 month clothes and some 3-6 month items, although many of these are still big on her. She's a little textbook baby so far when it comes to clothing size! I went to a local consignment sale a few weeks ago and got some adorable clothes for the winter for her. It was so much fun- all the waiting to buy baby clothes finally paid off and I got to go a little nuts (for cheap!) getting things for her.

We had a doctor's appointment today just for two shots and I asked to have her weighed. She is 11 lbs, 14 ozs. I can tell she's getting heavier when I carry her around, it's getting a little harder. This month we also discovered she has reflux. I took her to the doctor a couple weeks ago because she had this weird goopy eye thing going on and when I called and described it to the nurse she told me I should bring her in. Of course the goopy eye stuff was gone when we actually got to the doctor's office but I talked to the doctor about her sleep or rather, her lack thereof. The doctor discussed the possibly of reflux with me and let me know that reflux can affect sleep because it's uncomfortable for babies to lie on their back if they have it. She wrote a prescription for Zantac for Josie and said to try it and if it didn't work, to discontinue it. I filled the prescription that day but decided to wait to give it to her because I wasn't thrilled with the idea of medicating her. We had a horrible day sleep-wise on Wednesday so Thursday morning I gave her the Zantac. I could immediately tell a difference- she was less cranky and didn't has a many inconsolable screaming moments. She still spits up a lot but she doesn't seem to be bothered by her reflux as much. I still wonder if it's bothering her sometimes- I wish she could tell me! The medicine is weight-based, (which is why I asked for a weight check) so she needs to have more as she grows. 

Her sleep is still all over the place. She had a stretch where she was sleeping 9-10 hours at night but the past few nights it's been 5 hours, 8 hours, 7 hours (for her long stretch). Her naps are consistently 30-45 minutes. Unless Charlie is home with her and I'm out. Then she'll sleep for 1-2 hours. Seriously. I have no idea why this is but it's slightly maddening. I've read many sleep books and am about to pick up another one recommended by Anna. I'm coming to the conclusion that the short naps are something she may just have to grow out of. It's not that she's necessarily a short napper because she wakes up crying and yawning so she obviously needs more sleep- she just has trouble getting through the first sleep cycle transition- it almost always wakes her up. Here's hoping and praying she grows out of it soon and/or I find a way to consistently help her get more sleep.

On Saturday we left her for the longest amount of time to date- we had  wedding to attend during the day and we were gone for about 6 hours. Aunt Megan was kind enough to come and spend the day with Josie and was a great babysitter despite the fact that Jos was a bit cranky. I'm still debating if/when I might be ready to leave her overnight. She's not a difficult baby but she's isn't exactly what I'd describe as "easy" either. My biggest concern is that she'd be cranky for Meg. She'll take a bottle just fine but she seems to prefer to nurse and will sometimes want to eat sooner after having a bottle, almost like she misses nursing. 

Despite the struggles and challenges, Josie is such a blessing. I love having her and the gigantic smile she gives me when I get her each morning makes up for the fussy hours and sleepless nights.

3 months

Milestones: Finding her hands, holding her head steady, talking and cooing

New Developments: realized she has reflux

Longest sleep stretch: 10 hours (once) followed closely by 9 hours (a handful of times)

Nicknames: Josie, Jos, Baby boo (mine), Josie boo, Josiecakes (Aunt Megan's), Sweet baby (Charlie's), Baby bird (this is because of how she looks when she's being burped)