It's been so long without an update!

And this isn't even a real update. It's basically some bullet points.

Today, Gabe said three of the greatest things he's ever said, and I'm mostly writing this update just to document them. Here they are:

1. Gabe's current favorite activity is jumping on the bed (so much that he has actually broken our 1. bed, for real). This afternoon we were all sitting on the couch together, and Gabe said, "I want to go on the bed!" Matt said, "Hey dude, why don't you jump on the couch instead?" Gabe turned to him, a look of total incredulity on his face, and said, "No! That's too safe!" Then he stormed from the room, presumably in the direction of the bed.
2. Later today, we were discussing mommies and daddies. Specifically, Matt and I were explaining how his grandparents were our parents. He seemed to struggle with this, and said, "Grammy is my mommy?" When I explained that no, Grammy is actually my mommy, and Grandbob is my daddy, he grinned and said, "Oh! That's FAB-YOU-LESS!"
3. This evening I bathed Tessa, dressed her in her jammies, and brought her over to say good night to her brother and her dad. They were in the bathroom brushing Gabe's hair after his bath. I held Tessa up for a kiss, and Gabe, totally unprompted, leaned in, stroked her head, and whispered, "I love you, Tessa." Then he looked at himself in the mirror and grinned, clearly pleased and admiring himself. "What a politician," commented Matt. This from the man who was nicknamed "The Senator" by his law school class.

In Tessa news, I am sort of surprised to announce that Tessa is a wonderful eater. Whereas Gabe used to cry and gag and wrench his head away from the spoon, she opens her mouth as wide as she can and smiles and slurps. She finished an entire two-ounce serving of pureed apples tonight. It's amazing. It's much more in line with how I always imagined feeding a baby should be. Solids have been great fun so far, and enjoyed by all. And she has the delicious baby thighs to show for it.

I would write more but we sold the condo (THANK YOU REAL ESTATE GODS) and so I must go pack a box, then stress out for a while about how I haven't packed enough, then maybe have some wine, and go to sleep so I can have some moving stress dreams.

So long without an update

Two

Gabe Is Two! from Erin Matzkin on Vimeo.

Sleeping Beauty Update

Nap time this afternoon: five minutes of whining before falling asleep. Not even real crying, just some fussing and complaining and whatnot.

Bedtime this evening: five minutes, thirty seconds of whining before falling asleep. (That last thirty seconds almost broke me, if I'm being honest. Just as I was walking in to get her I realized she'd gone silent.)

To sum up: total freak show easy-going-to-bed-style baby. Let's just see if it lasts.

Oh, oh, and I totally forgot to mention, she rolled over for the first time ever today! I clapped for her, I was so excited! (I am lame.)

In other news, Gabe turns two tomorrow. I will probably cry because my little baby boy is not a baby anymore! He's officially a big guy now! And I will blame the crying on postpartum hormones. So there.

Sleeping Beauty

I think I'm being tricked.

For three nights in a row now the baby has easily, cheerfully gone to sleep at night like it's no big deal. I feed her, wrap her in her swaddle blanket, give her half a dozen or so kisses and tuck her into her cradle.

And then she just...falls asleep.

Tonight she sort of fussed around for under four minutes before dozing off. I put her down at 7:24 and at 7:28 I went back to take this picture:

Amazing! Or a clever trick?

Oh, the acrobatics we went through to get Gabe to go to bed when he was this age! I distinctly remember rocking him for hours and hours, walking him in endless circles across the floor, shushing him gently, singing lullabies, frantically re-reading sections of Happiest Baby On the Block on the off chance that I had missed some important clue in infant sleep... one time I even crawled out of his room on hands and knees after finally getting him to sleep after several previous failed attempts.

And this one just...goes to sleep. Has someone stolen my real baby and replaced her with a fake? Perhaps it is some sort of reality television show of which I am an unwitting participant, Candid Camera-style. I am going to check the bedroom for hidden cameras tonight, just in case.

Status Update

Tessa statistics, three-month check-up:
Height: 23 inches (40th percentile)
Weight: 11 pounds, 6.5 ounces (25th percentile)
Head: 15 centimeters (5th percentile, pea head)
Favorite saying: "Ahh-goo!"
Best new trick: Big, big grins and a noise that might be laughter.
Other notes: Residual cough/congestion from RSV is continuing to abate, thank goodness.



Gabe statistics (no check-up until next month):
Height: Unknown, but growing out of current pants size. Longer pants needed.
Weight: 25 pounds exactly, according to my bathroom scale.
Head: Unknown, but probably pea head.
Favorite saying: This one is a tie between "I want my want." and "I want no jacket, Mommy." (Stated decisively, on his way out the front door on a cold day.)
Best new trick: Singing all of "Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed," complete with hand gestures.
Other notes: Refused to eat a vanilla sprinkle cupcake from Susie Cakes the other day. Had I not been there when he came into this world, I would not believe he is actually my genetic child.



To sum up, all is well this week.

Baby Joy

Tess just had a dirty diaper so enormous that it required an outfit change for her, an outfit change for me, and a bath for her including a hair wash. Seriously.

It's a good thing for her that she is so darling. Also, she slept for a full six-hour stretch last night. When I woke up and saw that it was 6:00 a.m., I was so excited I almost cried. I suppose this unprecedented amount of sleep entitles her to a horrifying blowout diaper.

Twelve weeks old today! I can hardly believe it. I am relieved the toughest newborn days are behind us, and yet almost weepy that they are passing by so quickly. How did we get to twelve weeks already??