I've been having a rough couple of weeks lately. Jared's work transferred him to a different office in September. He has been working off and on at the new office for months but starting this month he has been there Monday-Friday and we just see him on the weekend. I'm staying in Lex until we sell our house or for as long as I can take it. (On top of that, my neighbor and dear friend Alyssa moved across the country about the same time).
It actually hasn't been as bad as I thought it would be but I still can't answer more tolerably than "I'm okay" to inquiries about how I'm doing. I miss my husband. It's hard being a 'single mom.' I had thought I would be blogging a ton as therapy or as distraction but I haven't felt like it.
Partially because Aurora has been a handful at times which is reasonable since she's always a heartfull. Her first tooth may have come in with no problems or pain but not so for her second tooth that followed directly. The poor thing was soooo grumpy! I tried to keep her supplied with medicine (which helped sometimes but sometimes not) without keeping her in a constant drugged state.
In celebration of this teething period being finished, I actually did get a pic of her two new pearly whites!
(Okay, so still not a very good pic but the best I could get.)
Aurora has also entered a new development stage: mobility. No, she doesn't crawl yet, although it will be any day now, but she is always moving now. When you hold her, she squirms and arches her back. When you feed her, she flails her arms and constantly moves her head. When she is playing on the floor, she is rolling or scooting backwards. When she is sleeping, she tosses and turns and gets herself wedged into the corner of the crib every night and for every nap.
Scooting in reverse & getting up on her knees and rocking.
Sleeping with her bum in the air.
Even though it is exciting that she is doing and learning new things...it is turning out to be a painful transition for her and for her parents because she keeps getting hurt. Last week she got hurt 4 times which is 3 times more than she has gotten hurt in her whole life.
The first time occurred because she loves to stand up now. She was standing up holding onto Sheila's coffee table. I was giving her some support from behind when she toppled a direction I wasn't expecting and hit her head on the table. It left a small welt on the side of her face near her eye. :(
She loves to have help standing in her crib after a nap.
(She can't get to this position on her own yet but we will be moving the mattress down a level very soon!)
The next day when I placed her in the swing I snapped the tray/bar into place which is all she's ever needed to keep her safely in before. But now since she moves so much the tray came unsnapped and she fell out hitting her head on the legs of the swing. She had a little goose egg that turned into a small bruise. :( Needless to say we use the seat belt straps from now on.
The next day Jared was home for an hour on his way to a jobsite. He was holding her while sitting on the bed and as we were talking Aurora pretty much flings herself out of his arms. She does a twist mid-air and Jared almost catches her but she does another twist away from him and -you can probably guess what happens next- hits her head on an end table. :( No marks this time...I think Jared buffered the blow.
Lastly she scooted underneath our coffee table and then tried to get to her knees and rock but she banged her head on the table. She proceeds to bang her head two more times, crying all the while, before I can get her out. :(
This is painful to watch and experience and it's hard not to feel like a bad parent. I know a lot of it is just the stage and age she is at. Fortunately, this week she hasn't hurt herself...yet. I like to believe I have adjusted more appropriately to my cute newly locomative darling. Hopefully it's not that she is just lulling me into a sense of security before she strikes again...most likely on her head. I have been taking extra precautions. Not only is my house for sale but so is my coffee table and end tables and the baby swing and well...all my furniture.
Is it the weekend yet?
Oh Esther! I'm so sorry you are having such a rough time. Any time you want to hang out let me know, seriously, I miss you! And I am not THAT far away. I love to play games and read books too.
ReplyDeleteI remember when Caylor was that age. It really was very hard for me. Everyone always tells you it is hard when they start to walk, but I don't agree at all. Because by the time he learned to walk, he was almost stable enough to not get hurt so much. When he was rolling/crawling, he would get into predicaments and then not know how to get out of them. It was also the time I had to take a crash course in baby proofing. I thought we were good, but he taught me otherwise. But I know you will tough it out. Once she and you get used to her new mobility, you are in for so much fun!
Oh you poor thing, I know how hard it is to be a single mom for a time, with Eric gone last year I just wanted to rip my hair out some days! Don't feel like a bad mom like you said it happens to all of us. Lance fell out of his crib when he was a baby I cried for weeks and he was perfectly fine, but you are just so mad at yourself, you can't help but feel bad. Good luck selling your house, I hope the coming week goes more smoothly for you! Have I mentioned how much I love Aurora's hair, she is so precious.
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