I can't believe how quickly it happens, but we have gone from carefully cradling this fragile child into passing her off with barely a finger holding up her head. It is now so much easier to grab her under her arms so that you don't constantly have to slide your hands beneath her to pick her up. When you hold her upright and put her feet on a surface, she strongly presses down and tries to support her weight. Spencer has always been good with tummy time and loved to turn her head back and forth. She has gotten lazy and frustrated in the last few weeks, though, and she doesn't enjoy this like she once did. We need to work on more enjoyable and productive tummy times.
We were so taken when she first started making eye contact. I have already forgotten how different it was when she was looking off, anywhere, with no focus. She has been cooing and "talking" to us. Everyone loves to listen to Spencer tell stories. She has finally started smiling for real. This is the best development so far. She has a great smile that reaches all the way to her eyes. It is beautiful! When I picked her up in the church nursery yesterday, she smiled when I came to her and began talking to her. What a great feeling!
One of her first smiles while talking to her daddy...this is the best I could get Sleeping is finally better...MUCH better! Things began to fall into place in that area when she was six weeks old. Wes and I never thought that we could survive the exhaustion that long, and all of the sudden, she started sleeping at night. It makes all the difference in the world. Even though we have a very structured bedtime routine, it still takes her awhile to actually fall asleep. She could go to sleep anywhere from 10:00 to 11:30. This happens even when we begin the routine at 7:30. Many nights so far, she has slept through until 5:00, 6:00, or even 7:30 one morning. Other nights, she wakes up once and occasionally twice in the middle of the night. When she does wake up, though, she is much easier to soothe back to sleep after a feeding. God heard my specific prayers asking to help sweet Spencer to sleep through the night.
Spencer loves going places with us, and she usually behaves very well. The one place that she doesn't seem to like is church. Uh oh! For some reason, she always got riled up when we tried to take her into the sanctuary with us, so we had to finally take her to the nursery. She loves going to the nursery to see all of her church friends.
We have taken her to eat at Arizona, Chicora Alley, McAlister's, Monterrey, Chick-Fil-A, Cracker Barrel, Zaxby's, Pete's, Fuddruckers, and even the Pot Belly Deli in Clemson. She did very well almost every time. She has gone to Haywood Mall a couple of times, and she has been inside Target more than anywhere else. Spencer is a great shopping buddy. She has even gotten to go across the Liberty Bridge in her stroller.
Spencer about to cross the Liberty BridgeShe did so well in the car ride to and from Pawleys Island, where we stayed for four days. She enjoyed lying on the beach in the afternoon under an umbrella.
Bathtime has now become enjoyable! She screamed bloody murder in the beinning, but she now enjoys sitting in her tub, splashing while we wash her. Even if she is crying before we put her in, she calms down as soon as she feels the water. This bath lover truly is her mother's child.
Happy girl snuggling with Daddy after a bathI can't believe that Spencer has been in our lives for eight weeks. We are so excited about what else will happen in the next few months!
