M turned five months old today! Unbelievable!
Important events
Last month has been quite busy. During the beginning of the month, I tried to work during her naps (about 20 h a week), but that turned out to be quite of a challenge. Two weeks ago, M's grandparents arrived to take care of her for three months so that we could avoid the daycare so far.
Just a couple of days after their arrival, I continued my medical daily life a.k.a. studies/internship/work. This time it will be parttime, four days a week. I'm really happy with this choice because these days are already quite heavy. As I'm based 40 km away for this block, I need to get up at latest at 6:30, wake M up at 6:45, followed by hygenic procedures, feeding and then I already need to rush to catch my train. I get home at 18 or even later. Two days a week, I teach a practical to second-year students. Therefore, my Friday off is a good way to catch a breath and spend some time with M and do other necessary things.
The first week when I needed to be away from M, was very-very difficult, the next one already somewhat easier, but I still don't think that this situation is ideal.
Sleep
We're still busy trying to improve M's sleep. It looks like she is going through the fourth-month sleep regression at the moment, but I hope that it won't last much longer. We've started using tight fit linen and a sleeping bag from Fedde&Kees that keep her arms under control. M still has three naps during the daytime and eats one time at night. I've written about our daily rhythm here.
Feeding
Feeding has become more complicated because her attention is diverting very easily. Three weeks ago, I managed to wean the second breastfeed, so I give her the breast four times a day. As because of this, there is an 11-hour break between the morning and evening breastfeed, I won't have enough milk for much longer. But I'm still very proud of both of us - M has received some breast milk for five months now! I've written about our journey of breastfeeding here.
Although solids are introduced early, at four months in the Netherlands, we haven't done that yet. We're going to wait until the six-month mark and most likely use the Rapley method.
During the last week, she has started to be interested in the food we're eating. Once her father was eating a granola bar, she looked at it, he put it closer to her and she grabbed it and brought it towards her mouth. What a big surprise!
New skills
Yesterday, M rolled over from her back to her belly for the first time. We are very proud! She had practised this for the last five weeks. For about three weeks, she has been working on her grabbing skills as well. You can really see the difference from how wobbly her movements were then and how much smoother they have become. She certainly prefers her right hand.
Favourite activities
M still likes to look at trees and the sky. Last weeks, she has discovered our two cats. She could look at them for an hour! But they are, indeed, quite strange animals. Her favourite toys are the Oball, circle-shaped rattle, The Crocodile and a new dinosaur stuffy from Canada.
Numbers and statics
As monthly doctor visits are not a standard in the Netherlands, we don't know her weight and height, but she wears clothes size 62/68.