3 months

Elise is 3 months old now! She is over 15 lbs already and 24 in long. She has grown so much that I now have lots of extra small diapers to figure out something to do with. 

She is such a good baby now that I don't have milk and ice cream. Other dairy products don't seem to affect her the same as those two do so I am grateful I can at least enjoy some things again :) 

Our typical nighttime routine. After bath I feed and rock her a bit before laying her down in the port a crib next to my bed. She typically sleeps 4-5 hours before wanting to eat again and then stays with me the remainder of the night. I have debated putting her in with Bailee within the next few months but I love waking up to her sweet little body next to me with a big smile on her face. 

Sitting up

I knew that once I put her in, there was no going back. That is, going back to the floor. She LOVES being up and watching all that goes on. Elise is so happy sitting and her happiness is infectious! Bailee sits in it too and fits well. She hated it at Elise's age but thinks it is the coolest chair in the house now :)

Dishes, teething, and bedtime stories

Bailee washed off all of the dishes and put them up on a towel to dry! I was so proud of her enjoying cleaning. It is times like this that remind me of the importance of being an example. She watches me cleaning and desires to help an it becomes a positive thing instead of a dreaded chore. I waited until she napped to do a more thorough cleaning and when Dave came home she proudly showed him all of the dishes she cleaned. 

Elise is teething and fell asleep gnawing on the side of my thumb during dinner. I hate having my hand in her mouth but it worked so much better than the teething toys or a pacifier. I then had to get Bailee ready for bed holding her this way. It was quite the task! For once I truly felt like I was super mom :) haha. Wiping a bottom, washing my hands, brushing teeth, putting on Jammie's, all while holding a baby who awkwardly has her mouth clenched to my finger... I am sure many moms can relate on some level. 

Ending the night all reading together. Bailee had Elise in her lap for the first book before Dave got home and I didn't want that time to end. I loved being able to read to both girls cuddled up on Bailee's little toddler bed :)

My Bailee.

This little girl gives me so much joy! She is growing up so fast and catches on to things she learns so quickly. She is sick today and as much as I hate to see her discomfort, ever since she was little, I have found a bit of delight in her being sick. She is such an active girl that when she is sick, I can finally soak up extra cuddles and love from her that is typically hard to get :) Elise was sleeping in her bed so I was able to lay with Bailee and rub her back singing songs at her request. It felt so wonderful to cuddle and hold my big baby girl and provide her with the comfort she needed. 

Sweet Bailee

I have been thinking about my blog title "Enjoying our Journey" and how that came from a talk by President Monson years ago to make the most of life whatever stage you are in. I typically post the most positive and "fluffy" side of our journey, but decided today that I should be including the blessings through the "not-so fluffy" side of our journey as well. 

Bailee loves her little sister and it makes me so happy to see her just want to be close to her and love her. 

Elise is having some serious trouble with her tummy as I have mentioned before and I am now on a strict "no dairy" diet to hopefully help. So far it hasn't made a difference, but we will see how the next week goes. Elise only slept on me last night which made for an extremely restless night for me. She would scrunch up her body with discomfort regularly and wake unsettled. I definitely had zero motivation to get up and work out this morning.

With all of that, I have very little patience and energy but want to share that Bailee has been my angel today. First she came and layed next to Elise as I changed her diaper and just started singing to her. She started with a primary song that quickly became made up words and a conglomeration of movie lines and primary songs that she knows. Her little voice calmed her sister and gave me peace as well. Later, after I had been trying all sorts of ways to get Elise asleep, Bailee came running into my room to try helping once again. She jumped on my bed, put in the paci, and started to sing what she knows of "I am a child of God". Although her comfort didn't last long, it was enough to remind me that these are The Lord's children and they need my care and love. 

Once I finally got her to sleep, holding her, I listened to a talk by Elder Holland that I needed to hear. I was reminded to "remember the Savior’s own anguished example: if the bitter cup does not pass, drink it and be strong, trusting in happier days ahead." (Like a Broken Vessel). Although my bitter cup is small in this example and I have so much to be grateful for, it reminded me that these times will pass. In moments of struggle and feeling inadequate as a mother, I know I can always find strength in The Lord to make it to the happier days. 

2 months

Today Elise is 2 months old! I discovered a solution to her fussy hours in the evening! Strap her in snug to the "hug a bub", turn on just dance and start moving :) 

February

It has been a little while since my last post for a few reasons. I feel like with the little bit of down time I have, it is spent catching up on house chores or spending a little time with Dave. I also was really sick with mastitis which any nursing mother who has ever experienced that knows it is miserable and you can do very little during that time. I was so grateful for my friend Courtney who took Bailee, came and held Elise so I could sleep, then kept both girls when Dave finally had to take me to emergency care and then another day to my OB. I couldn't have done it without her! 

This was during me being sick and camping out in the living room. Yes I surprisingly fit between them (on my side of course). 

Elise is wonderful most of the time. From about 5 or 6 to 8 pm she has a bout of fussiness. It is odd because it seems a lot like colic but we are able to soothe her as we try every technique we know to calm a baby. She loves the bath and once she is in there all is well. As soon as she is out, she is like a ticking time bomb and we try to get her comfortable in our rocking arms to prevent as much of the discomfort and fussiness possible. To us it seems as if she builds up too much gas in her tummy throughout the day, even with regular burping, that by the evening time it turns to too much pressure causing pain. 

She is such a happy baby otherwise that it makes it more bearable to get through the off and on fussiness at night. 

Bailee constantly requests pictures when babies are involved :)

We finally got out on a warm day! Poor Elise doesn't know what to do about the sun. Poor winter baby. We only had her face it for the brief seconds to take this picture. 

Bailee is giving Elise a check up :)

Our girls :)