Dr. Ferber vs. Dr. Sears

The battle rages. Before having a baby, I was completely opposed to the idea of a "family bed." Crazy talk. But, because Claire didn't sleep for the first 4 days she was home, we finally moved her into our bed to get some sleep. Then, she graduated into her cosleeper. We were waiting for her to sleep through the night before kicking her out of our room and into her crib in a separate room down the hall. But, she still doesn't sleep through the night at, at 6 months, she was getting ridiculously big for the cosleeper. In fact, we started worrying that we might be stunting her mobility by keeping her in it.

So, we gradually moved her into her crib. But, there has been a lot of drama. She kept getting her leg stuck between the slats, so we got a breatheable bumper. That didn't solve the problem so we used velcro strips to affix the bumper. Now, she's in the crib, more or less, but she wakes up all the time. Sometimes, with steely resolve, I rock her back to sleep during the night. Other times, I cry "uncle" early and put her into our bed with us. The magical thing: when she's in our bed, she sleeps like Rip Van Winkle. Seriously. For the last few nights, she's been miserable with a low-grade fever that we suspect is teething related. So, finally, last night, wanting her to get a good night sleep, I put her to bed in our bed right from the start. She slept from 8 to 7:30. What! Is this Bizarro Baby? Is it that easy? Or, am I getting completely bamboozled? The other thing: Claire is a bed hog and doesn't leave Bruce or me much room. I'm torn. She's such a mellow little baby that getting up a couple times during the night isn't a big deal (even, if yes, they are completely different issues). Plus, it takes 10 minutes to put her to bed at night and she sleeps until 7:30. Love it. But, when she's in the crib, man, it's rough. Who's going to win this fight? Who knows? Eeny, meeny, miny, mo . . . .

Crazy May

May was a crazy month. Bill and Jim Bolton were in town for a few days so we had a good time visiting with them both, debating politics and talking business. Tried new foods and attended birthday parties with ponies. Then, we flew to Chicago and drove up to Madison for Tim's and Angela's graduations. The whole family was there and it was a fun weekend with lots of silly antics. Hung out with Fletcher, drove around on Tim's scooter, met Scott Kleinhans, and generally enjoyed the quaint, stormy, beauty of Madison. Flying was a bit tricky this time because Claire wanted to grab everything -- the seat, the phone, the hair of the lady next to us. Oyvey. It was easier when the white noise worked it's magic and she fell asleep immediately after getting a full belly. Plus, we felt like professional sherpas with all the stuff we hauled around. All in all a good trip, but it's great to be home.

Mother's Day

Yay! My first Mother's Day. It was the perfect day. Went to brunch with Bruce and Claire . . . drank a few too many mimosas. Headed to Tattered Cover and bought two new books. Watched Raiders of the Lost Ark and had a BBQ on our back deck. A lovely day with my family.

6 Months!

Wow. Time has flown by. Is it possible that you're already 6 months old, our sweet little baby? My little Mini Me, due on my birthday -- it turns out that you look exactly like your Dad. You sleep exactly like him as well -- arms above your head and ankles crossed. You are such an amazing little baby. Mellow, adventurous, chatty. You get the hangries every once in awhile, but you certainly come by that naturally. You've started eating your toes, chewing your books, and best of all, eating real food. First we started with avocado and chicken (after the obligatory rice cereal) and then we relaxed a bit and gave you banana, squash, peas, carrots, mangoes, even non-organic (gasp!) applesauce that the waitress brought you the other day at breakfast. At first you seemed to like everything. Now, you seem to like nothing (I think that might be the teething). You are grabbing for everything now, but still not really rolling over much. You make raspberry noises all the time and are getting more used to strangers. Your 6-month statistics are funny . . . you are a long baby with a big head. And, you have chubby cheeks and big, blue eyes. I've posted a picture above that says it all (inspired by one of Maria's pictures of Sadie). Happy 6 months, lovey.