Let's see you do this

That's right - she's got all five fingers in her mouth at once!

July Fourth

There is a lot of significance attached to the Fourth of July. For most Americans that significance is obvious, but for our little family the day has a new meaning. On this day last year we found out Lacey was pregnant.

It's amazing how a piece of information can change everything. I was thinking recently about how I had never really stopped to appreciate the fact that Lacey has given birth - not in the specific sense, of course, but the idea that she experienced such a life-changing (and body-changing) metamorphosis. She's now among the legion of women who are mothers, who have given over everything about themselves to create another human. Everything she was had to be reconsidered; the person she had been all her life had to be set aside. It's truly something to inspire awe.

But the reason I never stopped to consider this is that this whole thing hasn't ended. It's not an event that happened and now can be reflected upon. In fact, it's been a non-stop adrenaline rush since July 4, 2007 - the day our lives changed forever. For the last year we have been completely immersed - in the pregnancy, in the nervous weeks leading up to the birth and, since February 29, in the gargantuan, unending task of caring for an infant. We haven't had a chance to stop and catch our breath and think about what we've been through.

Our joke last year was that, rather than Independence Day, on July Fourth we would celebrate our "dependent's" day - the day we ceased being two carefree kids running giddily through the amusement park of life; the day we took on a greater, more solemn role as parents. The odd truth is that was the day we truly mounted the roller coaster - parenting has whisked us to dizzying heights and, just as quickly, brought us screaming to gut-twisting lows. And the ride is still just beginning.

So on this July Fourth we'll miss the friends and fireworks for the first time as our baby sleeps quietly upstairs. But we'll raise a heartfelt toast to the Jeremy and Lacey of July 3, 2007, and think of the adventure they have before them.

The eighteenth week

Madeline continues to impress us with her increasing mobility and engagement. This week we've noticed that she'll turn her head in the direction of specific sounds, such as our voices. She'll also watch objects by moving her entire head rather than just following them with her eyes. It's fun to get near her without drawing notice, and then say her name and watch her turn quickly toward me and smile.

She's also pushing up more when she's on her tummy. She can get her entire chest off the ground now, and looks around with purpose rather than in the random manner of someone unable to fully control their head. (Compare the photo above to this one from a few months ago.)

As for her sleeping, we had to discount several days this week. She received some immunizations on Monday and she was pretty grumpy for a couple days afterward. She was out of sorts during the day and reverted to crying for long periods at bedtime. But in the last couple days she's been much better - she's more cheerful during the day, she's taking better naps and she's going to sleep more quickly at night. She's also slept until after 6 a.m. on several occasions, making for 8-plus hour nights.

Gaining a new perspective

She still needs a little extra support, but Madeline really likes sitting up these days. There's just too much for her to look at to spend the day on her back, staring at the ceiling.

A new distraction

Tonight Lacey prepared a delicious dinner of herb-encrusted salmon, mushroom couscous and vegetables. And at the same time we put Madeline in her new bouncy seat for the very first time. Unfortunately, it's hard to focus on enjoying a meal - no matter how delicious - when your laughing baby is bobbing and spinning just feet away.

Four-month check-in

We visited the pediatrician today for Madeline's four-month appointment. She got a second round of immunizations - four shots (see band-aids at left) and one oral vaccine. She cried during the shots but has been doing well in the hours since - we even enjoyed playtime on the floor. When she was last immunized two months ago she was drowsy in the afternoon but the pain from the shots made her cry much of the evening.

Madeline continues her strong growth. Today she weighed in at 15 pounds, 1 ounce. That means she's put on 1 pound, 5 ounces since her three-month check-in, or 21 ounces over the last 28 days. She's slowed down from her ounce-a-day weight gains, but that's normal for a 4-6 month-old. She's in the 85th percentile in weight.

She also has grown a full inch since her appointment four weeks ago, and now measures 24.5 inches. We noticed she was eating a lot about two weeks ago, indicating a growth spurt. She's still right at the 50th percentile in height - there's been no change from last month.

The seventeenth week

This week: The Experiment.

In recent weeks Madeline had a little difficulty getting to sleep in the evening. She often needed to be rocked and then would become restless and fussy when we put her down. So we decided to Ferberize her.

Named after Dr. Richard Ferber, the method consists of letting the child cry for lengthening periods of time to teach her to fall alseep on her own. At predetermined intervals, if the child is still crying, a parent calms and comforts her, but doesn't pick her up. On the first night the intervals are 3 minutes, 5 minutes and then every 10 minutes until she falls asleep. The second night is 5, 10 and 12. We didn't need to time the third night.

The first night was terrible. We felt like such horrible parents. As our baby wailed upstairs all we could do was sit on the couch, unable to concentrate on anything but the clock, counting down the minutes until we could visit Madeline and calm her. It was gut-wrenching, but we tried to tell ourselves that everyone was going to benefit from this (if it actually worked).

The second night was better, but still not great. She only cried half as long as the first night. But every other night has been a success - she has fallen asleep quickly and without lots of assistance from her parents. And as she's learned to sooth herself, she's also sleeping longer through the night - more than 8 hours straight in some cases.

Here's a rundown of the experiment this week:

Sunday: 38 minutes of crying, slept until 3:30 a.m. (the time she's been getting up for the past several weeks)

Monday: 18 minutes of crying, slept until 4 a.m.

Tuesday: no crying, slept until 6 a.m.

Wednesday: 5 minutes of crying, slept until 5:45 a.m.

Thursday: no crying, slept until 5:30 a.m.

The first days were hard on these new parents, but the payoff has been high. After a couple more weeks I think we'll be in a better position to determine if our experiment has worked.

Fingers and toes IV

Here's another installment in my series of photos capturing Madeline's smaller details.

Here's the first one.

Here's the second one.

Here's the third one.

The high chair

Today I assembled Madeline's high chair, which we actually received as a Christmas gift last year. At four months old, Madeline is nearing the age when she'll take her first tastes of solid foods, and I wanted her to have a chance to get used to the high chair in advance, so she's not trying to figure out eating and sitting at the same time!

Grasping at toucans

Madeline is moving from intent observer to determined manipulator - she's using her hands as a means of discovery more than ever. I mentioned a couple months ago that she was beginning to notice her surroundings, including the lights on her jungle adventure mat. Now, she's using her hands to explore any dangling object within reach. She still hasn't mastered the art of grasping, but she's slowly and surely finding her way.