Cue the Corny Music

Ah yes, the two month mark has come and gone. Life has been a little different with a new found sweetie pie running the joint, but I must say, we think life is pretty marvelous. Here is a little (well big, actually) update...

I have been a dinner cooking, baby feeding, book reading, grocery shopping, craft making, dish washing machine. My new hobby has been cooking new meals that I would have avoided (and I can't stress enough the avoided part) before. My new personal favorites have been gnocchi, pierogi (favorite from our Eastern Europe trip), tortellini, and a bunch of new soups. I haven't repeated a meal for months which is a big step since we used to rotate three or so instant yucky meals while I was in school. I have felt quite domestic lately so I figured I would top it off with a bunch of new crafty projects. The latest have been bow and headband making (which I love and poor Brinley probably hates), a doorhanging and magnet board I made at friendly neighborhood craft group, and painting the letters of Brinley's name for her room. I have enjoyed borrowing the DVD's of various TV shows from the library (like good old Full House, all 7 seasons. I fully expect cheesy music to fade in when I have meaningful conversations now) and I read a lot while I nurse hungry baby, who still eats every two hours. Life is pretty chill.

Thomas has pretty much just been a studying, tooth drilling machine, with a little daddying on the side. Don't get me wrong, he is super wiling to help, he just has far more studying than he can juggle. He goes to classes all day and studies late into the night only taking short breaks to play with Brinley and eat. However, he says that he is still glad he chose dentisty even though it has been really difficult. He is so ready and excited for Christmas break in Utah!

Now for a lot of baby details that will probably bore you, since they are pretty normal developmentally. However, I must record them to lessen my own "terrible at journaling" mommy guilt. Feel free to skip...

Brinley is porkin it up at close to 13 pounds (about 80th percentile), is 23 1/2 inches long and is as happy as a lark to be a baby. Her chubby bum has graduated to size two diapers and she is wearing 3 month size clothes. She is laughing (melts my heart), smiling (melts my heart MORE), and is responding nicely to voices and noises. Her eyes can follow and she is a right wiggly little worm. She is especially FASCINATED by the TV (bad things to come, I know it!) and will struggle to turn her head to great lengths to watch. She is starting to bat at the dangly toys in her play gym and can grasp things like her rattle. The funniest is when she grasps her little shirts and pulls them up over her head to eat, exposing her chubbiness to the world.

She is a sleeping champion of the world and has slept through the night since she was about 6 weeks old. (I have learned to keep this detail from other new mommies whenever possible-PLEASE do not stone my house.) I consider myself VERY lucky and do not attribute this to my own actions. She is just a natural sleeper. The only problem is that she is wide awake until midnight (usually) no matter how long we try to get her to sleep. We usually start the bedtime routine at around 9:00 but can't get her to sleep until late no matter what we try. I can't complain too much because she usually sleeps until 10 am. Just turning her clock back a few hours would be perfect- we'll keep working on that. She is pretty awake and alert during the day with only a few short cat naps, mostly in the morning or when we go in the car.

The doctor is predicting brown eyes (way to go, my genes) and her hair has darkened to a light brown like mine was when I was little. Thomas is secretly (or not so secretly) disappointed- he thought his manly genes would power through. She was declared perfectly healthy and developing normally at her two month check-up despite the fact that she has had some reflux that has made her pretty miserable (which is better now thanks to modern medicine). Because of the reflux she likes to be held sitting up or over our shoulders (us standing and doing the parental cha cha bounce, of course, which really gets old). I finally gave up my cute sling (which lays her down) and bought a bjorn secondhand (good for sitting up, and frees up my hands).

Two things that Thomas wanted to remember about her right now: He loves coming home from school and holding her. She is always SUPER smiley and giggling when interacting with him. She is totally a daddy's girl already. He also loves holding her during church. He insists on keeping her during all three hours and I gladly give in to his pleading eyes. He is totally smitten by her and is always sad when he has to decend into the dungeon (his office downstairs) to study.

Things Brinley likes: sleeping on her daddy's chest, snuggling, eating (she loves to snack and sleep, and snack), her pink rattle, the silly purple giraffe on her play gym, the ever fascinating TV, being "buzzed" by her vibrating chair, swinging.

Things Brinley hates: getting in her car seat, taking her medicine or vitamins, feeling cramped or not free to wiggle.

I am surprised with how comfortable I feel being a mommy/homemaker. I thought I would HATE it and would get stir crazy and want to get a job, but I get out enough and interact with other moms around here enough to keep me sane. I am also FAR more busy than I thought I would be, in a good way. I am not a perfect mom, by any means, but it is amazing how motherly instincts kick in after the little sucker pops out. My next goal is to get in shape (thank you, YMCA) so I do not huff and puff after two minutes of running at basketball practice.

Here are some of my latest crafty endeavors (described above):