Nightime, Height & New Faces

So, a little fact about Kaia's Daddy and I.  We're both 5' 5" or, in other words, not very tall at all.  However, somewhere Kaia has managed to acquire tall genes.  I'm not sure if this is permanent or merely a faze.  Right now, Kaia is 16 weeks old and, at yesterday's measurement, she was roughly 26" long.  I wasn't really sure what that meant to us so I pulled out my handy dandy Your Baby's First Year - week by week and I'll be darned if it didn't say that the average height of a 23 to 24 week old baby is 26" long.  Whoa!

Kaia's also taken to sucking her bottom lip in.  I did not even realize how often she was doing it until her Daddy mentioned it yesterday while we talked to him on Skype.  Then, the rest of the night and all day today I noticed how often she's pulling it.  I also found I was self conscious because Todd also told me I do it.  Say what?!  I honestly never noticed myself doing it.  There was never a time where I said, oh, I'll pull my lower lip in.  Or, oh, hm, I'm pulling my lower lip in right now.  I thought he must be crazy.  He couldn't tell me when I've done it in the past either.  He just said I do sometimes.  So, the rest of the night and all day today I kept checking on myself to see if I was doing it.  Nope, wasn't catching myself in the act.  Until I did that is.  Apparently, mid vacuum, while my mind drifted off, I stopped and realized I was sucking my bottom lip in!  What the heck?!  I swear that's the first time I've ever done that!  Sigh, or maybe just the first time I've ever noticed.  In any case, I seriously hope Kaia doesn't pick up on any of my bad habits.  I do need to use better language though, I know that.  I'm not saying I'm a potty mouth but I have let the odd bad word out in her presence and I really don't want to be the Mommy who's daughter's first word is a$$h*le or something like that.

Now, since it's almost nighttime again here.  Or should I say it is nighttime here.  I will get into what a typical night here looks like.  It's 10PM now.  I would love to go to bed soonish.  However, Kaia HATES going to bed.  I'm trying to get a good routine going so I'll take her up shortly and she'll hang out with Mommy while I get ready for bed.  Then I turn out all but the nightlights, turn the classical music on, and walk/bounce/pat Kaia around the room until she falls asleep or gets hungry, eats, and falls asleep.  This is the only method that works for us.  Please don't judge.  The putting her to sleep before she's asleep method does NOT work for us.  (Yes, I have tried.)

Also, we do co-sleep.  I know that's a big no no for a lot of you out there.  To make you feel a little better about it.  I am not obese.  I don't smoke or take any kind of sleep inducing narcotics.  I also do not toss and turn.  There are no pillows or blankets for her to get suffocated in.  OK, I think that covers the big ones before someone asks.  Oh, wait, I have a queen sized bed that currently is just occuppied by Kaia and I and the dogs do not co-sleep with us.

Moving on, since Kaia was a newborn she has slept in an in-bed co-sleeper.  We had the brand new shiny (not cheap) bassinet.  She did not like it.  Well, the in-bed co-sleeper is now almost too small, see her long legs above, so Mommy wants her to be more comfortable.  I tried the bassinet again two nights ago.  No cigar folks.  It was awful.  Last night I tried putting the bassinet "mattress" in the bed and baby proofed around it.  Again, horrible.  This was even worse than the bassinet.  Kaia was not having it at all.  Both nights I ended up putting her back in her co-sleeper as she, obviously, was requesting.  Hey, I don't have help here and I couldn't stay awake all night without putting her in danger from a sleep deprived Mommy that was liable to literally fall over.

That's our current trial.  And now it's time for us to get our bedtime ritual on folks.  Sweet dreams!  Wish us luck tonight!  As always, thanks for stopping by!