Fall is here!

I am in denial that fall has arrived. I feel like I've been outside of time since Linnaea's was born, like the rest of the world should just stop while I soak up every minute with her. I was still writing July as the date at the end of August and I think I've continued to be about a month behind reality ever since. Linnaea will be two months old later this week and I don't know how that much time has passed! I want her to stay little and at the same time I'm excited by every new thing she does. I guess I can't have it both ways. She is making more and more sounds and I think she's on the verge of laughing. She's still sticking mostly with coos and aahs for now but she also does this funny in and out breath that sounds like a little chuckle. She is interested in toys sometimes too. She was completely fascinated by this black and white rattle the other day. She looked at it as though she had discovered the meaning of life.

I can't avoid fall any longer now that the weather has gotten colder. We are planning for our first big trip this next weekend and need to break out the winter clothes. We are going to the U.P. (Upper Penninsula) to Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore to go camping and hiking. Yes, we are camping with a two month old, but I will have the address of a backup hotel just in case things don't work out. Here is a picture of Linnaea modeling her Cal Poly hat in preparation. Don't worry about her being cold, Linnaea will be wrapped in many layers of pink fleece.

Thanks for the hat Nancy! I'm a Cal Poly Girl!

Another sure sign of fall is the annual trip to the apple orchard. Jenna, Ben, Linnaea, and  I went last weekend. It turned out to be Ben's first apple orchard visit in Michigan too!  We got lots of yummy apples which have already been baked with butter, rum, and sugar and also turned into apple sauce. Maybe next year Linnaea will be awake for part of our visit to the apple orchard, she slept the whole time this year.

Wasem's Fruit Farm is the best!

Linnaea can sleep just about anywhere. In fact she is sleeping as I type this entry!

Typing, sleeping, and looking for squirrels

My Baby the Parakeet

Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who's the cutest of them all...

Linnaea is reminding me of a parakeet lately because she has discovered her reflection in the mirror. Just like the budgie we had growing up, Tweety Mcgee, she is enthralled by that other beautiful baby in the mirror. It's lots of fun to watch her coo and smile at her own face. Although eventually she usually ends up watching that other baby grimace and cry when she gets tired or her paci falls out.It's also great because she can keep herself entertained for longer stretches of time.  I rigged up a mirror on her bouncy seat yesterday and got a very peaceful shower out of the deal! Ben says it finally shows that she's smarter than our dog Julie, because Julie can't recognize her reflection at all. We have high hopes that Linnaea will continue to out-do the dog as she develops...sorry Julie, we still love you!

Having some tummy time with her friend in the mirror

Baby Care 101

How to recognize a hungry baby: clenched fists waving, red face squished up, gummy mouth screaming, and crying like a goat.

How to recognize a full baby: squeaks and coos, sleeps through loud noises, snuggles against you, and is very, very cute!

Thankfully, Linnaea is moving beyond this growth spurt I think, and getting back to a normal eating schedule. We are getting some more happy-awake time instead of just alternating between sleeping and screaming. Her favorite spot for happy awake-time is her changing table. I pretty much make a fool of myself making faces, singing, and talking in a high pitched voice just for the joy of getting a reaction out of her. I'm sure you are disappointed that I only have a picture of Linnaea looking cute and none of me acting like a goof ball!

An example of happy-awake time on the changing table.

She is enjoying her pacifier again, as well as jamming her entire hand into her mouth. It's actually quite impressive! She always looks like she concentrating really hard on it forcing as much of her hand as possible in at the same time.  She hasn't mastered sucking on the thumb yet. It usually ends up between her gums and upper lip which doesn't look very satisfying. Keep trying kid!

Hmmm...how does this go again?

Feeding Frenzy

Eat hard, sleep hard: the motto of a baby in a growth spurt.

It feels like a shark attack around here lately, but Linnaea is the shark and I am the food! She seems to be hungry almost the entire time she is awake and the pacifier, which was my best friend last week, has now turned against me and does not live up to its name. At no time is is safe to say, "Well, I just fed her so she can't be crying because she's hungry..." because she is ALWAYS hungry! 

On the positive side, she is still sleeping a ton. So, in her case, sleeping like a baby really is a good thing. Just like her daddy, Linnaea loves to sleep. She is sleeping in her crib at night all swaddled up like a baby burrito.  We had to kick her out of our room earlier than expected because she is such a noise sleeper. I had no idea that newborns made so many grunts, squeaks, and moans in their sleep! As I write this she is cozied up in her Ergo carrier on my chest chirping away in her sleep. I could listen to this all day.