making strides...and smores!

Let me start by saying...I AM EXHAUSTED! This baby is giving me a run for my money. Love her to pieces but I would give my right arm for a solid night's sleep right now. In many ways Cecilia has been improving. She is now more content during her wakeful periods and does not seem as uncomfortable in general. Now we need to work on sleep! Her sleeping skills still need a ton of work...and I need a nap!

I started back to work full time this past week. I was ready. After almost 12 weeks off it was time to get back into my regular routine and I think a break from Cecilia was going to be a good thing for both of us. I found the most amazing babysitter for Cece so I was not the least bit worried about leaving her. I knew she was in good hands with Holly and I felt very secure knowing that she was going to be very well taken care of. So far she is doing great over there and seems to sleep very well for Holly...go figure! After being away from my baby girl all day it makes seeing her at the end of the day that much more exciting.

As I mentioned we are still experiencing some sleep troubles. She tends to nap pretty well for the baby sitter but I still have trouble getting her to take solid naps at home. Her night time sleep is also very choppy and quite restless. She usually gives me a 4-5 hour stretch at first and in most cases the rest of the night is usually pretty shaky. She wakes up often and can sometimes be hard to get back to sleep. I am hoping that things improve soon. She and I both need to get a more solid night's sleep. Olivia was challenging at first in this area but she quickly improved and started sleeping well at night by 3 months. Olivia has always been a good sleeper and I am keeping my fingers crossed that Cecilia turns into one as well.

In other developments she is starting to show interest in her toys. She bats at things in front of her and will occasionally grasp them. I am not sure she grabs onto them intentionally but when she gets one of her rattles in her hands she holds on for dear life! There hasn't been any rolling over yet, but she does enjoy playing on the floor now. A month or so ago she would have cried the second I laid her down flat. She also seems to be doing better in the car. The crying seems to have subsided and at least she is not crying each time we go for a drive. The best thing of all is that she is smiling like crazy and chatting more each day.

Switching gears...Olivia has jumped into the school year head first. She has adjusted to full day school so well and loves it! She has been working on her reading and math skills lately and we have seen some major advancement. She has been making new friends and having a great time. As a treat for all of her hard work lately her Dad promised her they could camp out in the backyard. She has been asking him about camping for quite awhile now and we thought that a trial run in the backyard was a good place to start. First they set up the tent. Well, Todd set up the tent, but Olivia helped a little. All she wanted to do was get inside and roll around.

Once it got dark they headed back outside to make s'mores. It was a chilly night so I put Olivia in her footy jammies and a fleece jacket to stay warm. It really was the perfect night for a camp out. As it got later Olivia was begging to go to sleep. She was so excited to get into her sleeping bag. Now I thought there was no way she would sleep outdoors all night. I figured she would wake up in the middle of the night, not sure of where she was and want to come inside.

The next morning I was up bright and early with Cece and I peeked outside to see that the tent was still closed. She slept out there the entire night! She had the time of her life and she cannot wait to do it again!

The weather is starting to change and fall is officially here. We have a lot going on in the next few months. Halloween is our next big event, soon followed by Olivia's 5th birthday! Yes...she is going to be 5 this year! I can hardly believe it myself. I am sure I will be saying the same thing once Cecilia turns one. I know that time flies and your children grow up in a flash. I can't say that I feel that time is flying right now, but I am sure once Cece starts sleeping better at night I will change my tune!