naptime diaries

Ahh… the quiet calm of the house when two babies are sleeping simultaneously!  I’m on the couch savoring every second of the hands-free, sit-down silence.

How has your week been so far?  Somehow it’s already Wednesday.  It’s market day in our town, and today I decided to walk all the way to the market instead of just halfway to my favorite truck.  It was kinda brutal!  I had Gil in our Moby wrap and Lena in our stroller in hopes that Gil would sleep more than he does in his car seat.  (Fail.)  Lena had to stop to use the toilet (ie. some private corner along the way) not once but twice, Gil cried most of the time when he wasn’t lightly asleep, and I should have brought big bottle of water for myself.  But I came home with lots of goodies: fresh chicken and eggs, cured olives, three bags of fruits and vegetables, and caught-this-morning shrimp for scampi tonight.

As little update on our fussy baby… well, Gil is almost three months now, although I can hardly believe it!  He has changed and grown up so quickly; he really can’t be called a newborn anymore.  He recognizes us and coos now, but his smiles are few and far between.  Our theory on this is that he’s just more of a grouchy baby who has trouble sleeping deeply and peacefully, and thus his social smile may come later when he can learn to self-soothe and nap on a more regular schedule. Did any of you have a baby who was more reticent than smiley?

The times when he is awake and happy, though, are more frequent and last longer, and they are the most joyful moments of my day.  Even though he won’t slip into a full-facial grin more than once or twice a day, he does get so excited and so happy when he makes eye contact with me and hears my voice.  His whole face lights up, his eyes get bright and eager, and he kicks so excitedly as he puckers his mouth into a little “O” and coos back at me with all his might.  It melts my heart.

We’ve moved Gil into the guest room now than visitors have come and gone.  Honestly, that’s been a relief.  He still has trouble sleeping, but at least his grunting and snuffling aren’t keeping us up anymore.  Generally he sleeps the first shift of the night in his swing (he will not stay asleep in his bed, even if we lay him down when he is completely asleep… trust me, just last night I tried three times before I gave up) and then sleeps in his bed the rest of the night.  I get up to feed him at least three times — ouch — but lately that means he has slept in till 8am.  I do think a big part of his angst has been congestion (he got sick a couple of weeks after he was born) and reflux, and both of those issues appear to be dying a natural death as he’s growing up.

OK, that was probably more than you wanted to know!  For some of you I think it may bring back a lot of memories, whereas for others it might scare you away from ever having children.  (Sorry either way!)   We’ve been humbled by Gil, who has defied all our expectations as he mostly grumped and grouched his way through his first three months of life.  But the glimpses I get into the warm, sunny child blooming inside of him give me hope for the days to come.  I see the cute little boy underneath who loves his mama and enjoys his sister’s roughhousing and snuggles peacefully onto his daddy’s chest.  These early days will be over before we know it.

Like my friend said the other day, at this stage of life the days often seem like an eternity but the years flash by.  Isn’t that so true?

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Title for this post is inspired by a wonderful blog that I highly recommend!