Clara: Three Months

I can't believe Clara is THREE months old! She's growing up so fast.

It’s been a while since I’ve had a baby update, so here are some things I should mention about Clara:

She practically lives in her swing or on a blanket on the floor, when she isn’t napping in the cradle.

She rolled over at 2 months old. Tummy to Back. She’s only done it twice, and doesn’t love to be put down on her tummy, so she hasn’t had a lot more practice. She’s really good at holding her head up when she’s on her tummy too.

She smiles on demand, meaning whenever any one of the other six people in the house pay any attention to her. Sadly, this doesn't happen often enough. And I try to throw out any guilt I have been bearing and tell myself that those huge smiles mean that she understands and that she forgives us. Either that or she's waiting until the teenage years to get her revenge.

Then there are the times when she has to run errands, like last week when Samantha and I went out to get the last 2 things on my Christmas list (yahoo!) and do a few other things. Clara went from our house to the bank, to the library to return some books, to the mall, to the grocery store, back to the mall and then home without a single peep. She started to cry a tiny bit on the way home because she was getting hungry, but when we turned the music up she decided to be happy until we got home.

She's getting cuter every day. Her eyes are still dark, and I'm not sure what colour they will end up. Her hair is growing in lighter, but is still quite dark too. It gets curly after her bath, but dries straight.

She isn't a big fan of her soother, but she's such a good natured baby that I've decided not to push it.

She has birthmark that covers most of her right knee. Our doctor thinks it's one of those baby birthmarks that will eventually fade away. It used to be dark purple (in fact when she was first born, the nurses and doctors at the hospital didn't know if it was bruise or a birthmark), and now it looks more like a strawberry-pink colour, so she may be right. Apparently, if it's still around when she turns two, it's going to be there for life.

She usually sleeps 8 hours at night! She stays up super late (anywhere between 11:00 PM and 12:30 AM) but then she sleeps all night until around 7:00 or sometimes closer to 8:00 in the morning.

Sometimes I wish she would go to bed earlier, as I need to get up by 6:45 AM to get the big kids off to school and a lot earlier than that if I want to look half-decent while doing so. I think the kids appreciate it when I shower and brush my teeth before taking them to the bus stop. If not, I’m sure the other parents do.

However, I know that such good sleeping habits are amazing for a 3 month old so I try not to complain. I am so grateful. Really. Besides, Scott takes our kids to the bus stop 90% of the time, making it too easy for me to still be in my pajamas as I kiss them out the door.

The only time she’s a tiny bit fussy or demanding is in the evening, for a couple of hours before bed. She doesn’t want to be put down, and she doesn’t want to sleep (until much later). So I usually end up spending lots of quality time with her late at night.

This is good, of course, because all kids need quality time with Mom. But it’s also difficult because this used to be my time to get stuff done while the rest of the kids are in bed. Stuff like tidying the house, folding laundry, blogging, doing Primary stuff, making phone calls, working on various projects, talking / hanging out with Scott, etc. Sometimes I find this really hard (not having enough time) but I know this phase will probably end in a few months.

Basically, Clara is the most adorable, precious, sweet, and lovable child ever. Okay, maybe not the number one, but definitely Top Five. And I should know, since I happen to be raising the other four.