Avalon at Five Months

I must admit that writing these updates is always daunting, and is the reason its been so long since I've done a blog update. Trying to remember what I did 2 minutes ago is hard, so trying to remember all of the things that Avalon has done in the last month is nearly impossible. She turned 5 months on May 21 and a lot happened during that 5th month!

On May 6 Avalon started daycare, on May 7 I went back to work, and within about 2 weeks we hired a nanny. Lets just say that daddy (and mommy) had a hard time dropping a four-month-old off at daycare. It was the same school Waylon goes to, and I like the teachers and administrators, but its really different having a baby there vs. a toddler, and getting out the door with two kids was the hardest thing in the world. I am happy to report that she is sleeping much better since Nanny Megan started. Megan is a college student with a ton of baby and kid experience. She and I are working hard to get Avalon on a schedule, and as I write this on June 7 I think we're getting there.

As of her five month birthday, Avalon was eating 6 times a day. That means that mommy pumps twice at work and once in the car on the way home, in addition to nursing three times a day. As you can imagine, I am desperate to get her down to five feedings per day. You'll notice that this update is chalf-full of Avalon photos. That is because I need lots of "inspiration" while I am puming at work. Its hard to sit in the middle of several desks, working on cases, and pump milk. Looking at pictures of Avalon helps a lot, but it can also make me weepy because I miss my little girl. That said, going back to work has been good for me, and is frankly the easiest part of my day. Its the time before and after work that is 100% exhausting.

The other big change has been "de-swaddling" Avalon. She now sleeps with her arms free, meaning they are free to swing around, push out the pacifier, and wake her up. The first few weeks without the full-swaddle were tough, but things are impoving. Her naps are significantly shorter than they were, but getting better. She is still napping four times per day so its hard to get out of the house. This is another benefit to the nanny. Avalon never has to leave the house and gets lots of sleep all week so we can get out and about more on the weekends. As for getting her to sleep on her own, we did "cry it out" and she was doing well, but we back-slid a few times in the middle of the night when I just wanted to sleep and ended up rocking her back to sleep. Now she wants to be rocked most of the time so I see some very painful cry it out sessions in our future.

Avalon is rolling from her tummy to her back all of the time, making tummy time nearly impossible. Grandma Josephine saw a back to tummy roll, but no one else has seen it. I am sure she will be rolling a lot very, very soon. One thing I know, her teeth are coming soon. She is drooling non-stop. She gives us lots of drooly smiles, and Waylon LOVES to get baby sister to smile and laugh. Today at the mall he was pulling her pacifier out and when I told him "no," he responded "see baby smile." That's a hard one to resist.

Overall, life is incredibly hectic and I totally understand the saying, "not enough hours in the day," but I am loving life with two kids and feel very fulfilled, but also very tired.

Pictures taken at 4 1/2 Months:

Pictures taken at 5 months: