Baby Girl Emma: Month Four

  So super overdue, but have to share!  5 Month update coming soon, already!

What's new? Every month with Emma is more fun than the last.  She is so alert and interested in the world now.  She smiles huge when I pick her up from my Dad's house on Mondays and Wednesdays after work, which makes me so happy.  She has started grabbing for toys, and especially loves the star rings on her playmat that hang from the elephant.  She definitely knows who her Mommy and Daddy are, cause she is always staring at us when someone else holds her.

Stats: 15 lb, 9oz (75% percentile!  She was in the 5th when she was born!); 24 inches (27% percentile...Emma is short and round apparently, good thing she's cute!)

Hair: Getting more and more red, but still not as red as her Daddy's.

Eyes: They have lightened a little around the pupils, but still blue.

Clothes: She still fits in most of her 3-month clothes, but the onesies and pants are a little on the snug side.  6-month onesies fit great for the most part, pants and other outfits a little loose.  I anticipate she'll be in 6-months through the majority of the summer, because her growth has definitely slowed down a little bit, as expected at this age.  I have so many darling outfits for her in 6-month size, I'm excited to put her in them over the summer!

Sleep: This month was all over the place.  There were weeks she slept 2-hour stretches the entire night, and weeks she did a great long stretch at the beginning.  By the end of the month, she seems to be back to a 5 to 6-hour stretch at the beginning of the night, but we'll see what next week holds for us.

Feeding: Breastfeeding has changed so drastically.  I actually enjoy it now, as it is our time together to snuggle and it can calm her down easily sometimes.  Since I went back to work when Emma was 3 1/2 months old, I've been pumping so she can stay on exclusively breastmilk.  Currently pumping three times a day, and bringing home more than she needs, so stockpiling a little bit each day.

Likes: Watching TV (like mother, like daughter), being held in a sitting straight up position, holding on to blankets or her skirts (her holding on to the bottom hem of her skirts and dresses with both hands is maybe the cutest thing I've ever seen)

Dislikes: Being left alone, staying in one position for too long

Mama Update: Being back at work has proven to be both harder and better than I thought.  I really underestimated how much I missed my job, and I hate that it feels taboo to say that.  Like it means I don't love my daughter as much, if I also love my work?  I don't know, I am glad to be back because I enjoy it and it makes my time with Emma more special.  It also helps that Emma gets to spend time with family while I'm at work, instead of going to daycare.  I do miss my girl, though, and plan to take days off here and there just to spend time with her.

Milestones:

3.24.14: First giggle fit, laughing at Daddy playing with her in our bed.

3.26.14: Rolled, tummy-to-back, for the first time!

Looking Forward To: Going in the pool for the first time in a couple months, and some fun days I'm taking off to spend with my girl in May!

Nicknames: Chicken Girl, Little Love, Buns, Bunzo, Angel