Sophia Molly: Two Month Update

With two months with a baby under my belt now, I think it's probably time for a dose of realism. Yes, being a mummy continued to be the best thing that had ever happened to me this month, but whilst caring for our little Squeaks has brought me innumerable rewards and a huge amount of happiness every day, the second month of her life was simultaneously the best and one of the most difficult times of my life to date.

Here's a little run-down of the good, the bad, and the downright ugly experiences of being a mummy  this month:

- Sophia gave us her first proper smiles at the beginning of the month - and not just those little cheerful looks that she used to give us in the mornings when she woke up, but full on, open-mouthed beaming grins, usually accompanied by cute gurgles and squeals. Every time this happens, my heart still aches with happiness and love for her!

- She had her second round of vaccinations which she handled admirably (me, not so much!)

- On the same day, the doctor diagnosed her with colic and prescribed colic drops (which seem to do absolutely nothing by the way!). This came after two long weeks of her fussing, screaming and crying well into the night, including several painful nights where Mr Sunshine and I saw the sun rise before we managed to calm her to sleep. It broke my heart to see her so upset for such protracted periods, and when this was combined with frustration that there was very little I could do to help her, constant worrying about what the root cause of her discomfort could be and hardly any sleep, it wasn't a recipe for a very happy mama!

- She didn't seem to want to sleep much during the day either (and if she ever did, it was only clinging to me!), so I could never catch up on the hours of sleep I missed during the night. Most days, she wouldn't even let me put her down, so there was very little that I could do while Rich was at work. By the end of the month, I could count the number of times I'd eaten lunch on one hand, the laundry pile had turned into a mountain, I considered it a luxury if I had time to wash the soap suds out of my hair when I showered and my sleep deprivation was so extreme that I couldn't even remember what day of the week it was!

- And then suddenly, in the space of 24 hours, it all stopped. There was no more crying into the night; she suddenly seemed to want to sleep when we put her down; she even started to nap during the day -  she's doing so right now as I type (in fact, this is the first blog post I've written with two hands free since she was born)! I am not holding up any victory banners just yet because I know that with a baby every day is changeable, but I have a very strong suspicion that much like many other babies around the 5-8 week mark, she was just going through a huge developmental leap and it was all a bit much for her to cope with.

- Unfortunately the nighttime crying has been replaced by nighttime puking. Lots of it. But I'll take baby sick in the hair over no sleep any day!

- With the extra sleep she's now getting, she seems a lot more alert and interested in the world around her. You can almost see her little brain working away as she takes it all in. I love showing her new things and watching her reaction and sometimes I even get rewarded with a little coo of delight! She is also far more contented to be put down on her play mat or to be left to play with daddy for a bit while I do my own thing. I even managed to go out without her to celebrate my friend Donna's for an hour or so the other night (although I missed her lots and wanted to come home straight away!).

So yes, being a parent this month was hard, but every time I look at her I know it was worth it.

Please note that some of the photos in this post are courtesy of Karolina Bak.