Dear Gracie, Part 3

Gracie, you are 4 months old today. I can't believe a third of a year has passed. I feel like you've always been here.

You are such a sweet, happy baby. The colic has passed and underneath it all was this smiling, squealing little girl. You are a quiet baby, for now you let your sister make all the noise. You coo and squeal when she takes a breath. But you always let your needs be known. You have the most annoying whine in all the land.

You seem to just want to get up and run off. I have a feeling you will be the child quietly scaling the furniture. You love to sit up and stand up, and love bouncing in your Jumperoo.

You have bright, sparkly eyes, and strangers stop me to comment on your hair. Your hair is one of my favorite things in life. It just sticks straight up from your head in all directions, except in the back where it's getting quite long and you have a bald spot on the back of your head.

I hit a wall about a month ago where I just could not physically handle rocking you to sleep 10 times a day. You were only napping at 45 minute stretches and you weren't (aren't) sleeping through the night, so I felt like I was spending my whole day bouncing and rocking you. I took you to the doctor who told me it was time to let you cry-it-out. I hadn't planned to do that so young (we didn't with Mia until she was 6 months old), but we both needed it. You are now napping better, although the nighttimes are still the same as they ever were. At this point I don't even know what it's like to sleep through the whole night anymore. But at least you put yourself back to sleep. I know it's a good thing, but it also makes me sad not to have a sleeping baby in my lap. I often rocked Mia to sleep until she was almost 2, but I guess that's the breaks of being the second child, I don't have all day to sit with a sleeping baby anymore.

You are a tall, skinny baby, but finally getting some meat on you. I love a fat baby, so it's delightful to see your chubby legs and rounding belly.

I worked hard to get Mia on a schedule early, but you are resistant to a schedule. Some days you wake at 5am ready for the day, some days you sleep until 8:30. It makes getting out of the house hard. I always wondered if I was too strict with Mia's schedule, but now I realize that it wasn't just me, I think she needed/wanted a schedule and I could sense that, whereas you don't seem to need that structure just yet.

Oh Gracie, you are just such a sweet little girl, nuzzling into my shoulder when I pick you up out of your crib. I just love watching you try to figure the world out around you. I spend lengths of time studying your hands and grabbing at toys. You are inquisitive and happy and such a sweetheart. You fill some space in our family I didn't even realize was missing.