You guys, i’m feeling so sentimental about Evelyn turning 5 months because that means we are one month away from her being 6 Months old!!! (enter crying emoji here). In some ways it feels like time has been flying by and in other ways it seems so normal now that Evelyn is a part of our family and the new life that we have. I feel like this is finally the month where having a baby and our new routine as a family seems normal. Everything doesn’t feel as new and overwhelming and I think my body has finally adjusted to sleeping in three hour intervals at night (more on that below though).
Her Stats:
Weight: 14lbs, 11 oz
Hight: 25 inches
Development – She’s starting to sit up with less support from us. She puts everything in her mouth. She is finally starting to roll front to back and back to front.
She’s started to outgrow and dislike all the baby items that were our saving grace since she’s been born – being laid down on a play mat, put in her swing, rock n play or bouncer; so we’ve had to adjust and find new things to keep her occupied. She likes her bumbo (we have a hand-me-down one but if I had to purchase I would have gotten one with the toy tray) and we just started putting her in a high chair and she loves it. She also finally likes her baby carrier. Basically, anything where she’s more on our level she’s into, anything near the floor she hates. I’ve tried an exersaucer but she just gets frustrated she can’t put the toys in her mouth and I think it’s still a little too busy and overwhelming for her.
I’ve also learned that purchasing baby toys is a waste of money. Despite her hoards of teething toys, stuffed animals, rattles, blocks, etc her favorite toys include – water bottles (both empty OR full), tissue packs, empty snack bags that crinkle, and tupperware that can be banged together.
Evelyn is teething hardcore. She’s been drool-y for a while but now we’re starting to also see fussiness due to teething pain. Night time gripe water is helping and her teething banana tooth brush.
She’s super social and loves to be the center of attention. She’s a super loud talker and loves to smile & laugh with people. So the good news is she does best when we are out and about.
Her skin is doing so much better and I’m so thankful. The biggest lesson I’ve learned, take them to the pediatrician early and don’t be afraid of the steroid cream. When her skin first started showing signs of eczema I went down a never ending tunnel of blogs and each one had different opinions and recommendations. Everything from bleach baths (yikes!) to being super anti steroid cream. After weeks of her suffering and me trying at home remedies on my own, we finally went to the pediatrician. In the end, using the cream to get her skin under control gave her so much relief from itching. We’ve only had to use it twice and now that i’m dairy free, we’re doing daily baths, I put in 2 drops melaleuca oil & 2 drops lavender into her bath water, we found a lotion that works for us (Cerave) that I apply religiously morning and night – we’re able to keep it under control. The big test was going back East when it was below freezing and she didn’t have an outbreak!
Solid Foods – We went on Friday to her doctor for a 5 month check up and a 1 month follow up for her skin. He agreed she’s doing much better and cleared Evelyn for solid foods! So far we’ve given her pureed peas (mixed with a little of my breastmilk) and she LOVES it.
We’re back to sleep training. At her doctor appt we told him she’s sleeping in 3 hour intervals at night and with her weight & skin now under control he recommended we start sleep training. We started on Friday night and I’m writing this on Sunday so it’s been 2 nights so far. We’ve been doing the gradual method where we let her cry but go in ever 5 minutes to reassure her but not pick her up. Both nights it’s taken her about 30 mins to fall asleep. These past two nights she’s slept so much better. Last night she woke up at 3am and I was able to calm her back to sleep without picking her up and without her crying. She woke up at 8am! It’s only been two days so we’ll see… I’ll probably post an update in a week or two. The hardest thing for me about sleep training is we are putting her down around 8pm but I usually don’t get home until 6:30-7PM. She usually is still sleeping while I get ready for work so this means I’ll only see her for an hour or two on weekdays. I’m still really struggling with that and feeling emotional about it. This week will be my first week on this new schedule. **Update, Evelyn took an hour+ morning and afternoon nap instead of her usual four 30 min naps and Tim put her down at 7:45 and she immediately fell asleep, no crying at all!!
My 5 Month Postpartum Update:
I’m adjusting well to going back to work. Evelyn is missing being able to nurse throughout the day. When I get home she just wants to non stop nurse and wakes up more frequently at night to nurse as well. I had read that could happen. It’s hard because I’m not able to get things done when I get home (laundry or picking up) because she just wants to nurse and be held. But i’m OK with being behind on some chores and being able to just relax with her because honestly i’m too tired anyway.
She also does this super cute thing where she’ll reach her arms out now and put her hands on my face. It’s super cute and I love when she does that when I get home.
I’m still dairy free. And despite my love of cheese, I’m actually happy with the change. I feel like i’ve been getting less headaches, have more energy and I think it’s been helping me lose weight. I’m down 21lbs since Evelyn was born. I have about 5 more pounds to go until I’ve lost all my pregnancy weight. I would ideally like to lose an additional 15 after that… we shall see..
I’m no longer wearing maternity pants and while I have invested in stretchy jeans & work pants with elastic waists (lol) they still technically aren’t maternity pants so i’m chalking that up to a win. I fit in 1 pair of button jeans. The next goal is fitting into my high waist Madewell jeans that I wore pre-pregnancy.
What I miss the most now that I’m a mom: binge watching. I thought i’d miss sleep – being able to sleep in, or getting 8 hours of consecutive sleep but actually I miss watching TV and movies more. You’d think you’d have plenty of time to watch some shows staying in on weekend nights with baby. But instead we find ourselves pressing pause every 15 minutes because a diaper change is needed, or it’s bath time, or she just spit up and needs to be changed, or she’s getting fussy… and before you know it took you 3 hours to watch a 1.5 hour movie. That’s what I miss the most, being able to vegge out. I’ve been wanting to read more as well but again, I can only read about 2 pages at a time.
It’s 8PM on a Sunday, Tim and I took turns watching her while the other got a nap in. I spent 3 hours with her cluster feeding tonight. I’ve been trying to sneak in cleaning all day in 5 -10 min intervals as she’ll allow. I’m finally getting to finish this post. My first moment for myself all day. I’ve tried to be present with her today as I head into the work week but Mommas, I’m tired.
Xo,
M