Thursday, October 23, 2008

I Blame Myself, Really

It is 10:39 pm. Tallu is usually deep asleep by now, but tonight we're having a little trouble. I set her down in her bassinet after snoozing in my lap for awhile, and she woke up. My husband just took her for a walk, put her back in the bassinet, but she's not having it. I bet if I had just laid her on the bed she'd still be out, and my husband and I would be in the kitchen savoring triple chocolate ice cream pops.

There are many parents out there who would probably stick their tongues out at me and say: "Well, this is what you get for spoiling your child and letting her sleep in your bed, you lazy, co-sleeping wench!" Damn right I'm lazy! She's sleeping in our room because I am too lazy to get up in the middle of the night to walk down the hall to feed her. You think I wanna go to the foot of the bed to feed her at 3am? Side nursing was the best skill I've mastered thus far. I'm so good, I can now feed her from either boob without having to move her.

Eh, at least she's not screaming. And her dad gets to hold her for a while. That's really why I did it, I knew he wanted some daddy-daughter time.

Thursday, October 2, 2008

A Distraction from the Debate

I'm writing this blog as I watch the Biden-Palin debate. I need to keep half my attention on something other than listening to the guvnah. Now she's talking again, so I can keep writing. Her voice strikes the same chord in me that GWBush's does....

but I digress....

Tallulah had her six month check-up with the pediatrician. Five immunizations: one drink, four shots. She's growing steadily, weighing at 13 lbs, 8.5 oz. Her doctor says we can start her on solid foods, something Tallu did earlier this week.

People say the sign is that a child is very interested in what is on your plate. Tallu's been watching us eat, grabbing at our plates, and grabbing at my cup. So this week I decided to give her some banana, while I ate an apple. She didn't eat much fruit- about a quarter of a teaspoon (I ate my apple, and the rest of her banana). I wasn't sure any banana got into her mouth, since she refused to take it from the spoon. The proof was in her diaper the next day. I won't post it here, but yes, we did photograph it. We were going to take it to the doctor because I wasn't sure what the hell those specks were at first.

On the flip side, I have not really shared all the bad stuff I've done. I think it's important, so that all of you know that none of us are perfect, and new mothers know that you are not alone. So here's a short list of missteps. I'm in the runnings for mother of the year!

-Tallu's got a cold (for a week), diaper rash (two weeks), and a low grade fever (nurse said that's no big deal).
-It's 10:30pm, and she's still awake. (sorry, husband mentioned she's awake again.)
-I breastfeed on demand, so I have to make up an answer when Tallu's pediatrician asks how many times she breastfeeds a day.
-Tallu sleeps in the bed with us at some point during the night, because we've learned how to nurse in our sleep.
-Tallu's fallen out the bed while I was out of the room. (In my defense, I put a pillow on the bed as a barrier. Thankfully, she pushed the pillow on the floor, and fell on the pillow.)
-My house is completely un-childproof. How do I know? I turned my back for five seconds, and Tallu had a plastic shopping bag in her hand. (I have no idea where it came from, I swear!)

And through all of this, she's managed to live to 6 months, three days. She's a happy, calm, healthy baby. Her dad just said she's coming along in her sitting up and talking. She's using her hands, she's laughing, teething, eating, peeing, pooping, and sleeping. We love her, I love her, and I think she loves us.