Sleep Woes

Roxanne had her 4 month check up yesterday. Everything was fantastic, especially Roxanne's size. She's almost 16 pounds and she's 25 inches tall. The shots weren't great, but she really got over it very quickly. Maybe because they went in her thighs, and as the nurse put it, "she needs butter for those rolls." She actually specified honey butter, but I think the metaphor still works.

The pediatrician said that at Roxanne's weight, she should really be able to go 8 hours a night without eating. She also pointed out that now that Roxanne can roll, she should probably be in her crib. I sort of don't want to do it though. I'm the kind of mom who sometimes takes the baby into the bathroom with me rather than set her down and listen to her cry. I mean seriously. It's going to be a tough transition.

ch-ch-ch-changes

Roxanne's eyes are changing color! It's so neat to see. They have been a very dark blue/grey color since she was born, but today I noticed that they are getting more green. Justin and I both have hazel eyes, so I assumed hers would end up the same color, and it definitely looks like that is what's coming. It's so incredible to watch how much she is changing. She makes new sounds every few days, and I think, "where did that come from?" and then it jettisons me back to my college courses in linguistics and language acquisition. I never really thought I'd be watching these things in my own baby. I watched these dry documentaries on things like Noam Chomsky's theory of Universal Grammar and the myth of "motherese" (the gibberish that babies supposedly learn from their moms) and while I was enthralled (I was a dork about linguistics, I admit), it's not the same as watching a baby experiment with sounds. Beautiful.

Constant adoration

Roxanne has started giggling a little bit. It's probably the cutest sound I've ever heard. Unfortunately, I can't seem to reliably make it happen. She's only giggled a handful of times now, and one of them was at the dog. She apparently giggles and talks all day long with Andrea, our day care provider. Andrea gives me little reports every day when I pick Roxanne up about how she kept the other babies awake by talking and screaming. She also told me that yesterday Roxanne was just talking in her swing, and two of the other babies, both little boys and closer to 12 months old, just sat in front of her and listened.

She definitely likes attention. When we go out and about, when someone talks to her, she usually smiles at them and then tucks her head into my shoulder, like a little coquette. She especially does this to her daddy. She seems averse to kisses though. When you start kissing her face she turns away and occasionally reaches up a chubby hand to swat you off. I'm going to encourage this behavior. Maybe we can keep it going until she's about 35 and I'm comfortable with the thought of her dating. But 40 would be OK, too.

I have to be perfectly honest, and admit that right now, one of my favorite things about baby is her little naked booty with cellulite on it. It just makes me laugh. Justin teases me that I like to give her baths just so I can see it. This is probably partially true. But I also like watching her try to eat her rubber ducky. She pulls it towards her mouth slowly, and then at the last minute, she crams it in there with lightning speed and fury, giving her head a triumphant little toss. Perhaps I like watching this because usually it is something that belongs to me headed into that mouth of hers, like my hair, my finger, my cheek, my chin, my arm... I could go on. For someone with no teeth, she's got a pretty firm bite.