Friday, July 20, 2012

9 Weeks Old Today


Cristina is smiling so much these days it's tough to leave her for even a second in case she happens to bless us with another one.  I just can't stand it.  I could post a whole slew of smiling photos but it's come down to these three as my absolute favorites.




She's still drinking just about 5 ounces or so per feeding. We are starting to cluster feed in the evening and she's gone almost 5 hours without waking up so we are happy with that. Bill and I are still working out the "does the babbling mean she's going to wake up and cry or is she going to go back to sleep?" issue.  I'm more comfortable with her being awake or sleep talking and then going back to sleep than Bill is...which is funny since I thought FOR SURE I'd be right there every time she seemed like she was waking up to make sure she doesn't cry. But it's still early and we are discussing how we are going to progress to longer stints of sleep.  And she IS still pretty young but I think not too young for some sleep training.  "Training" sounds so harsh for 9-week old baby but if dogs love structure so do babies, right???  :-)

Speaking of dogs, Chloe is still being just the most lovely sister ever.  I find it hard to believe I was ever worried about this sweet dog ever being aggressive with Cristina. Her diaper-sniffing is getting really good for seeking out the dirty diapers and every once in a while she goes in for a little kiss on the face (which I try to discourage), but she's been a sweetheart with her little sister.

Fetch anyone??

Maybe not.

Overall Cristina is, from what I'm gathering from conversations with other parents, a pretty mellow baby. She takes a pacifier if she wants it, but doesn't need it all the time, cries only when she needs something, and likes to chill out and watch us cook dinner at the end of the day.  Once she starts sleeping more (and she will, she will!), we'll be all set...

...and then she'll change it up on us! But it doesn't matter because she has us wrapped around her finger, anyway.

And finally, a huge congrats to all the babies being born out here on blogland...just awesome!

25 comments:

  1. LOVE the last photo of Cristina and Chloe, such a beautiful sight

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    1. We love to see them getting along so well. A beautiful sight, indeed!

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  2. we found the swaddle wraps and white noise has been the best thing to help our boys sleep through the night! it's only been a little over a week so far, so don't want to jinx it, but it's worth a shot. ;)

    and the smiles are enough to melt your heart, aren't they?! never thought i'd work so hard to get a boy to smile at me in my life! LOL

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    1. yes, swaddle and white noise, exactly! I think the boys and Cristina are going to be fast friends...!

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  3. Sooo CUTE!!! The smiles just melt your heart dont they? Wait till she is a bit older and sleeping throught the night and you go in to get her up in the morining - it's simply the very best thing in the world to see how excited they are with arms waving and huge smiles - true bliss xxx

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    1. She does do that a little now when she gets up...and I love her sleep-eyed smile...it DOES just melt my heart.

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  4. She is too cute! Oh, the things she will get away with by just giving that smile.

    Good luck with the sleep! We are 8 months in and still have babies waking...

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    1. That smile is going to be her biggest asset, I think...
      Fingers crossed that sleeping continues...it all could change in one day. Scary...

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  5. There is nothing sweeter than the first real smiles and giggles. Just wait for the giggles... it's awesome!

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    1. A gaggle of giggles would be fantastic right now. Can't wait!

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  6. Her smile is just amazing - and it's so cute to see her with Chloe! Here's hoping you all get more sleep soon!

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    1. more sleep on the horizon! we hope!
      congrats on the 10 week scan and the abe look-alike! :-)

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  7. Some of my favorite baby photos of my kids have somewhere between 1 and 4 of our boxers and/or lab-shepherds in them. :)

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  8. she is soooooo cute

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  9. Chloe is a amazing example of canine/baby love bug! Sahweet pic of the 2 cozying on the bed...love it!
    Ron

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    1. yes it's pretty fun to see them together snoozing...Chloe is a total ham like you, Sophie...

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  10. OMG - what a brilliant post! I loooove how Chloe has bonded with Cristina. Those pics are brilliant and Chloe looks quite protective of her sister. I hope our 2 dogs will be good with our little ones when they arrive. Can I ask you a practical question...our dogs currently sleep inside (and are very spoiled) ....did Chloe sleep inside before Cristina was born and/or did you have to change any routines with Chloe months in advance before Cristina was born? Sounds boring but we are starting to get practical about everything.

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    1. Thanks. Chloe is doing exactly what she always has...she is an inside dog and sleeps on our bed and is very good at making herself small. She's about 50 lbs but a bit shorter than our last dogs so she can make herself small. But no routines were changed for Chloe...she's just adapted really well. Hoping it continues but it's been looking good so far! Good luck with everything!!!

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  11. Christina is lovely and her smiles perfect. Also addictive in impact on daddies.
    My granddaughter's daddies found a video monitor answered the question of when to go in to check on noisy baby and when to let baby fuss and go back to sleep. Do not think of 'sleep training' so much as establishing and maintaining PATTERNS of wake and sleep and eat times and activities. Babies are all in favor of patterns and routines. They anticipate based on patterns. Even to the point of always using the same phrases around going to sleep or diaper changing. Sounds odd but does provide child with sense of predictability. Training always makes me think the army rather than a more flexible sounding, to me, patterning.
    THANK YOU FOR CONTINUING TO SHARE your adorable baby!

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    1. Thanks for the tips...and you're welcome! Thanks for reading!

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  12. I really love the picture of her and Chloe together! Reminds me of when my son was little and my Doberman loved him like he was hers.

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    1. it's funny...Chloe does have a very maternal approach with Cristina. Love that :-) as we need some maternal-ness in the home...

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    2. For naps my dog would beside his crib and then come get me when he woke up. She was a great helper.

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