Grabbing the ring

Madeline's hand movements are getting so deliberate and common that this item feels a little unremarkable. Since Madeline was born we've had a little pink papa-san-type chair for her. When she was an infant we would bounce her to sleep for hours in this chair, and its battery-powered vibrations were sometimes the only thing that would soothe her.

The chair came with an arch from which hang two stuffed dragonflies and a blue ring that, when pulled, plays a short melody. When Madeline was tiny I marveled at the fact that one day she would be reaching for those dangling objects. And today was that day. Well, she's reached for them before, but today she finally grabbed and pulled the ring. And two minutes later, as I was hearing the tinny electronic tune for the fifth time in a row, I wondered if this was really something to be excited about!

She also rolled over today during afternoon playtime.

Her smile

Looking back through the pictures I've posted on this site, I've noticed that there aren't very many photos of Madeline with a full, radiant smile. There are many in which she looks happy, but the last all-out smile I posted was about five weeks ago (the first one was in mid-April).

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This isn't because Madeline doesn't smile often - on the contrary, she smiles quite frequently. I just haven't had the camera around when she does it. Maybe that's because she smiles more when I'm engaged with her than when I'm behind a camera. But this week I wanted to make a point of capturing a few of those heart-melting grins on camera. After all, it's not too much longer that her smiles will be toothless!

Taking notes

We've put Madeline in her high chair a few times over the last week - she'll sit with us during meal time and stare at our plates and watch intently as we bring food to our mouths. We also give her a baby spoon to hold and experiment with.

I guess you could say she's starting to learn how to eat like a grown-up by watching us, but it's hard for me to believe she actually knows what's going on (she also stares at the ceiling fan, after all). We'll find out soon when we introduce Madeline to her first solid foods.

The nineteenth week

As I recall, it's been about a month since Madeline last rolled over. This week she rolled again - on Thursday she did it three times in a row, seemingly with much less effort than before. And she rolled in both directions. She's moving so much when we put her on her belly that more rollovers are inevitable.

I didn't catch yesterday's rollovers on video, and that was intentional. Many times when I sit down to play with Madeline I have the video camera or the still camera at hand in case she does something interesting or cute. But I also want to make sure I am enjoying her as much as I can while not on the other side of a lens. Pictures and video are great for reliving moments later, but I also need to remember to live some moments as they happen, and that means putting the camera down!

On the other hand, I had the video camera handy earlier this week when Madeline was in a talkative mood, and when she saw the camera she got even more excited. We laid on the floor together for a long time, talking and laughing and getting the footage I've posted above.

Otherwise, this has been a pretty good week. Madeline and I have had fun during the day and she's been pretty good for Lacey in the evenings, too. Lacey has started letting her stay up a few minutes later at night to make sure she's good and tired before putting her to bed, after a couple instances of Madeline crying for a long time because she wasn't quite ready. It's been successful the last few nights. Tonight she went to bed at about 7:15, about 15 minutes later than before.

Shades of gray

I am beginning to realize that major developmental milestones rarely happen suddenly. It's not as if Madeline will be sitting one day and then suddenly rise up and walk across the room. "Baby steps," they say. These things take place gradually, with barely perceptible improvements each day, and we patiently wait, watch and encourage.

So when does Madeline officially crawl? Is it when her tummy rises up and her knees are under her body? Is it when she drags her body across the floor with her arms, or pushes with her feet, when her tummy is still touching the floor? The fundamental concept is mobility, after all.

Today Madeline rotated herself 90 degrees while laying on her stomach. It only took a minute or two - her legs are pushing off with purpose and her arms reach out in a repeated swimming motion. In other words, it's hardly accidental. If her feet didn't slide on the rug beneath her she would have moved herself in a forward line. Is that what crawling is - forward motion? Some books say babies find it easier to crawl backward at first.

I'm not ready to label today's activities as crawling - I'll wait until she moves herself backward or forward in a more linear fashion. But if today was any indication, that feat lies in the not-too-distant future.

Tummy training

It's so much fun to watch as Madeline gets more comfortable on her tummy and starts practicing those crawling motions. She gets a little better each day.

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.