Shaelyn's 2 months old!

Yesterday Shaelyn had her 2-month-old birthday. She is growing by leaps and bounds. We go to the doctor on Friday to find out her exact height and weight, so I will keep you all posted. I have decided that 2 months old is where I want Shaelyn to stay. She is incredibly adorable - she is more interactive, she talks to us, she is awake more during the day, she's small and snugly, and she can't run away or get into things! Even though she's only been on the earth 2 months, I feel like she's been with us forever. Strangely, time does not feel like it's flying by, which I love. I'm finding it very easy to appreciate the time I have with her now, and not trying to rush through until she can talk, walk, eat solid foods - things I know a lot of parents look forward to. Maybe this is why it doesn't feel like the two months have flown by. Plus, I'm just amazed at how much things have changed just over a two month period. I feel like a different person than the person who came home from the hospital 7 weeks ago, completely overwhelmed and exhausted. It's amazing how quickly you learn how to be a parent. I learned very quickly how to celebrate the small accomplishments (yay, we got a shower today!) and relish the sweet moments. Plus, it doesn't hurt that Shaelyn is the best teacher of all. Can you tell how much I love being a mommy?

I wanted to update you on the latest milestones in Shaelyn's life. She has had a lot of "firsts" that we are very proud of:

*Shaelyn has learned how to SLEEP AT NIGHT! This is very thrilling for me. On Thursday night (2/8), Shaelyn slept for 7 hours straight, without waking up. She duplicated this again on Saturday night. Friday and Sunday nights involved a middle of the night feeding, but she still went 5 hours before waking up to be fed. I am currently keeping a "sleeping journal" where I document in 15-minute increments when Shaelyn is eating, sleeping, or awake. Obsessive, I know, but it allows me to identify patterns in Shaelyn's sleep habits so that I can start to consistently put her down for bed and naps. Hopefully soon we will have a routine! Right now, we are just trying to see where the pattern is.

*Shaelyn's tear duct obstruction has cleared up! Another great thing. Shaelyn's eyes weren't draining tears the way they were supposed to because her tear ducts had not yet opened up. Her doctor said it was a problem that would remedy itself, but that it can take up to 9 months to do so. We used to have to constantly wipe her eyes with a warm washcloth because they would get all "gunked up" from the excess tears. Sometimes after sleeping for an extended period of time, she wouldn't even be able to open her eyes because of all the gunk. Last week the problem just disappeared. She loves not having to have her eyes wiped anymore!

*Shaelyn scratched herself for the first time last Wednesday. Weird, I know, considering most babies have scratched themselves several times before turning 2 months. As must as Shaelyn likes to touch her face, I'm very surprised myself. But she somehow managed to always stay scratch-free. I have been trying to keep her nails trimmed, a task I have been failing at. Every time I try to cut her nails, she cries and I'm afraid I'm hurting her, so I stop. I've tried to cut her nails while she is sleeping and she wakes up and cries! So for now her nails are long. Hopefully soon I will figure out a way to trim them without the waterworks.

Sorry the picture is a little blurry. But you can see her scratch to the left of her eye (her right, our left). It runs vertically on her face.

*Shaelyn had her first babysitter on Thursday, February 8th! I had a hair appointment in Winston Salem and was not up for a 40-minute car ride alone with her just yet. So I asked a friend from the ward, Andrea, to watch her and she graciously accepted. She said that Shaelyn was very well behaved. I was apprehensive about leaving her (it was for a total of an hour - Michael came home from work and picked her up before I got home), but of course everything went well. And it was nice to have a few hours to myself without worrying of Shaelyn was hungry or where her pacifier was. In fact, I almost fell asleep in the chair getting my hair done I was so relaxed!

Andrea with her daughter Whitney. Isn't Andrea so photogenic? It makes me sick!

As you can see, we are doing well and enjoying life with a baby. I'm so glad (and lucky) that Shaelyn is a good baby. She is a joy to have in our family!