Four months, one day

I missed Layla's four month birthday!  Well, it was only yesterday.  And there was a lot of drool and crying and flailing and fever and an absent Papa and on and on and on.  Slimer (as she will be known as from now on) is getting teeth.  How do we know?  

A) Her drool factor has quadrupled.  

2) She chews on her hands as if I never feed her.

iii) My typically happy midget is a ball of fuss.

Z) I am now afraid of nursing as she occasionally chomps things which should not be chomped.

The really big reason is at her four month appointment the other day her doctor said, 'Yup, I feel bumps on her gums.'  Slightly annoying since I had been trying to feel them for awhile.  I will chalk it up to the fact that it's my first kid and I don't have a medical degree.  But whatever.  The rest of her appointment was a dream. She is 25 1/8 inches long...meaning we only fit in six month clothes now.  She weighed 14.4 lbs...meaning she could still fit in three month clothes if she wasn't so freaking long.  Her head is some other measurement I can't remember and it was a little on the big side but nothing weird.  She chatted with the doc the whole time, tried to steal and eat her stethoscope, rolled dangerously close to the edge of the table, and had to have more shots.  

Shots are a real test of a parent.  Last time, I didn't know what to expect and the nurse essentially strapped her to the table (I held her arms, she held her legs) and Layla lost her mind.  No wonder people are traumatized by this stuff.  This time I held her, and the nurse was able to just hold each leg as necessary.  It was a little bit better aside from the fact she was getting stabbed three times.  It took everything in me not to shove my hand in between her leg and the needle.  However, I don't need these vaccinations.  She does.  But her little face turned purple, and she tried to plank to get away.  She sticks out her bottom lip when she is scared, and cries HUGE crocodile tears.  What a distressing morning.  We lived through it...barely.

The rest of the day and all of yesterday, she was just an angry little elf.  I don't blame her.  Her gums hurt, her legs hurt from the shots, she had a fever, and she can't eat ice cream to fix any of it.  Devastating. We laid low, snuggled a lot, took naps (which never happens unless she is sick), and basically had a day of misery. She perked up around dinner time when we went to visit family and meet some new people.  D got home, and met us there and she was very excited to see her Papa after a week. 

Unfortunately, we are in a 'Mama only' phase.  D can't do much.  He can change her or play with her but that's about it.  Comforting her while she is angry or feeding her or getting her to sleep...all me.  Same goes for my parents.  She loves them.  But she knows now when I leave the room, and she is NOT pleased.  In all honesty, to some extent I love it.  She is my little Zwerg (German for dwarf), and I love that she knows me and wants me.  At the other end of the spectrum, it's exhausting.  D had been gone all week so there wasn't even hope of him helping, and now that he is back it's still the same.  His feelings are hurt which is understandable.  But she is four months old, and I am with her 24/7.  It happens.  He knows that.  Doesn't mean it doesn't make him sad.  Although last night, he was able to give her a bottle as long as I sat right next to them and she could see me.  She will get over it.  Sooner than later, I hope.

Milestones!  She can sit up with just a little support.  We have a Bumbo-like thing and she loves to sit by herself, without anyone holding her or propped up on the couch so she can watch Olympics.  She rolls from her back to her tummy about 90%.  She has a pesky arm in the way, and she can't quite figure out what to do with it.  She finally will be on her tummy without exploding. It only lasts a few minutes, but it's better than nothing at all.  She grabs stuff and eats it.  She laughs.  It's the FUNNIEST sound.  It's essentially a hacking cough.  The first few times she did it, I thought something was wrong. Nope...she is laughing.  And she thinks she is HILARIOUS when she does it.  Freaking precious.  When she wants something she flaps her arms really hard.  It takes some time to figure out what it is, but it's communication nonetheless.  She loves to Skype with her Oma and Opa Grammatikos.  She just stares at the iPad, and talks to them and rolls around. She is learning to give kisses which basically just means it's an open mouth slime fest, but it's cute.  My favorite?  She loves my hair.  LOVES IT.  When we are at home all day, I have it up.  She yanks it and it gets in the way so it's just easier.  But whenever it is down she STARES, and starts flapping her arms.  So at night her bedtime treat is that she gets to play with it.  She doesn't pull it then. She just holds it, and looks at it, and pets it.  And then she does her cough/laugh and flaps her arms.

Once again, there are a ton of photos still on the camera.  Or maybe they are on my laptop but I don't know where.  D and I will find them this weekend, and get some up here.  For now, here is the Kleine Zwerg.

Happy happy four months to my Slimer!  You are the best thing in the world, and we love you so much!