Annabelle officially started daycare this week.  It was a bit of a crazy week getting her and me ready.  And so here is my daycare story.  I had totally psyched myself up for the first day.  I even started getting a little excited about all of the things I planned on accomplishing, including getting my syllabi and other class materials ready because classes started for us the following week.  The night before, I loaded up Annabelle’s diaper bag with all of the things she needed and got bottles ready in the refrigerator.  Many of the local schools around town were also starting back the next day.  It was supposed to be one of the coldest days recorded in a long time so there were announcements of schools were closing. But daycares wouldn’t close, would they?  Needless to say, a little after 9pm I got a phone call letting me know that daycare was closed.  Who would have thought daycares close due to cold weather too.  It was a huge letdown.  So, we tried it all again the next day. Officially, our first day of daycare was Tuesday.  Annabelle did great!  She seems to really like all of the interaction she gets with her teachers and the other children.

I had a lot of friends ask how it went as well as a lot of people who mentioned how difficult it can be at first for parents to take their kids to daycare.  I was very fortunate that Annabelle stayed at home for the past 4 1/2 months.  I went back to work after 8 weeks but I worked half of my workweek at school and the other half from home so I got plenty of time with Annabelle.  I was also lucky to have a friend who nannies watch Annabelle while I was at work.  And then I had the last three weeks off of work for winter break so I really felt Annabelle was ready to go to daycare.  And after a week at daycare I’m even happier about her going.  She’s surrounded by so many great caregivers and is meeting lots of new “friends”.

Daycare wasn’t the only thing that changed this week. A couple days before she went to daycare she started making new noises and talking to us a lot more!  It’s so great because she’ll start making these fun high-pitched noises that make no sense at all but you’d think she was telling the best story.  And if we respond with similar noises she’ll go right on telling her story.

Someday I’ll get more sleep but not right now.  She’s officially in her crib.  No more bassinet.  And I love our baby monitor.  It’s really nice to have since I don’t have her right next to me in the middle of the night.  Annabelle did have a couple of good nights of sleeping this week.  I attribute some of it to her busy days at daycare and being exhausted from all of the new stimulation.  I’m still hoping (and hoping) she’ll go back to waking up once to nurse in the middle of the night but no holding my breath.

It seems that Annabelle has naturally started falling asleep on her own this week (most of the time).  One late afternoon (I picked Annabelle up a bit early from daycare) I was trying to clean the bathroom and had put Annabelle in her crib to watch her mobile while I was doing the last bit of scrubbing when she started to fuss.  Five minutes later I walked in her room and she had fallen asleep.  Since then when it’s time for bed I nurse her and then  lay her in her crib, letting her watch her mobile until she falls asleep.  Most of the time she only fusses for a few minutes before closing those pretty little eyes.  It’s not perfect but it’s making bedtime just a little bit easier.

We welcomed the New Year this week.  I’m still catching up but getting closer.  Sometimes one outfit isn’t enough for our weekly pictures so we tried two!  Dusty got me a new camera for Christmas and I’m loving it!  I thought our last camera was wonderful but this one is so much faster and the lens is awesome!  I’m still trying to figure it all out though.

This week was difficult.  My stepbrother got very ill over the holidays and was rushed to the hospital.  We weren’t sure if he was going to make it but he’s a strong person and is pulling through.  Dusty, Annabelle and I made a trip to see him and my family.  He has a long recovery ahead of him and we keep him and our family in our thoughts constantly.  Things like this remind me how precious everything is and to cherish every moment we have.

When we got back to Omaha we celebrated New Year’s Eve at home.  We had a low-key evening.  It’s so interesting seeing how life changes once you have a child.  Last year we stayed home because I was pregnant and we weren’t telling people yet but almost every year before that we went out on the town and celebrated with friends.  At one time we even hosted an annual NYE gathering.  And this year it seemed so much nicer to stay home.  I won’t blame it all on our little lady but I think we’re just getting older and all the crazy shenanigans don’t seem as appealing.

Dusty and I made a nice dinner while Annabelle took a snooze.  Dusty actually left for a bit and met up with some friends in the Old Market.  And then he came home so we could kiss at midnight as the ball dropped.  It reminds me how we met (for the second time) at a New Year’s Eve party and started dating shortly after.  We’ve officially been together for 10 years!  We’re in the double-digits now!

Annabelle’s still not sleeping at night.  She’s waking up every 3 to 4 hours.  We’ve transitioned her into her crib and she takes most of her naps in her there and starts each night in her crib.  When she wakes up Dusty or I usually bring her into our room to be fed and then we put her in the bassinet.

We didn’t try any new foods this week.  It was a bit crazy with us traveling to Oklahoma.  We’ve tried rice cereal, squash and sweet potato so far and she liked them all.

Annabelle is smiling and cooing more than ever.  She’s very inquisitive and wants to touch everything.  She still loves putting everything in her mouth and really likes looking at herself in the mirror.  We have a huge mirror in our bedroom and she really likes when we lay her in front of the mirror and she can take full advantage of the view.  We’re playing a lot of music and reading books to her too.  She’s soaking all of it and I can see her getting smarter by the minute.

This week Annabelle and I went to visit the daycare she’ll be starting next week.  I’m anxious yet excited at the same time.  I need to get ready for classes to begin and get a few other things done before the holidays end and I know it’s going to be great for Annabelle to meet some new friends.

And my final update is that Dusty and I signed up for the Lincoln half marathon.  Dusty’s been running regularly for a couple of months now but I haven’t so I need to get back into a routine.

Post-baby weight? I talked a lot about how much I was gaining all through my pregnancy but I haven’t mentioned it much since then.  I’ve lost all of the weight I had gained during my pregnancy.  I walked/jogged a lot while I was on maternity leave and really tried eating healthy (not only for me but also for Annabelle since I’m nursing) but once I started back to work things took a nose dive.  I’ve barely worked out and don’t feel like I’ve gotten a handle on when to workout.  I feel lucky that the weight came off but as everyone says, my body isn’t the same (not even close).  I hope training for the half marathon will help me get back into a workout routine.  Exercising with a 4 month old is a huge challenge and I’m working to find a schedule where Dusty and I can both run at some point each day.

Week 18 went way too fast.  It being Christmas I wanted the week to last at least a month.  We took a lot of great photos of her during the holidays but I’m saving those for a recap holiday post I’ll be writing soon.

A couple days before Christmas we went for Annabelle’s 4-month check up.  She’s officially 14 lbs, 11 oz and 25.75 inches long.  She’s in the 62nd percentile for weight and 93rd percentile for height.  And just as a reference she was 11 lbs, 15 oz and 24.5 inches long when she went to her two-month check up.

The doctor gave us the okay to start feeding Annabelle “real” food and cereal.  I had a squash at the house so I pureed that up and fed her a little.  She loved it.  She’s trying to figure out how the whole spoon in mouth works.  It’s fun to watch her discover this new food.  Can’t wait to try other foods.

Annabelle was a lucky little lady and received a lot of wonderful gifts for Christmas.  We had a great time with family and enjoyed the few days that all three of us were at home over the holiday.

A couple days after Christmas I watched my two nieces while they’re on winter break.  I was a little worried about having all three kids together but it was so much fun.  Emma (11) and Mia (9) absolutely love Annabelle and can’t get enough of trying to make her laugh and entertain her.  One girl would hold Annabelle while the other one would make funny faces or noises, trying to get Annabelle to smile or giggle and then they’d trade so the other one could do the same.

She’s still not sleeping all that well at night.  And since she’s pretty much over her cold I thought it might be something else.  I talked to some friends and I guess there’s a thing called the 4-month sleeping regression.  All I know is that if I’m lucky, waking up every three hours in the middle of the night will only last for a month or so and if I’m not lucky, it’ll be much longer.  She goes to bed between 7 and 8pm but waking up every three hours.