Apparently there is a bit of a baby boom here in the UK the moment. (Well, we’re just slaves to fashion aren’t we…?) Something that’s especially different compared to the past is that lot of new mums are in their late 30s or early 40s. I’ve felt like an old first-time mum at 34, but I guess I’m not then… Will be interesting to seee what happens with schools, for example, when Jessica’s generation grows up: will there be enough resources…?
Jessica and Mummy:
Had our second baby massage session in Merstham yesterday. Jessica arrived soundly asleep again and had to be woken up for the massage, but she didn’t seem to mind at all – she was just thrilled about the other babies, mums and tutors. And once again she did me proud by being so alert, happy and chatty – it got commented on. She was craning her neck so much to see what was going on behind her that she rolled up on her right hand side and was lying there for a while. (I was hoping to see her actually roll but, alas, not just yet…) She wasn’t really taking any notice of what I was doing, apart from wriggling a bit extra when I massaged her feet (ticklish…?). Baby massage is meant to be an opportunity for bonding between Mummy/Daddy and baby, but I guess Jessica and I do a lot of bonding otherwise anyway and it’ll be easier to get her full attention when we’re on our own at home without too many fun distractions.
After the massage I put her on her front for a bit, at which she started to making lots of creaking noises in sheer delight. Then after a while she started to tip sideways and then falling on to her side, but that got her a bit frustrated – I guess because she seemed to be out of control of her limbs – so I fished her up. Her energy reserves were getting depleted at that point, and as the other babies started to cry, Jessica remembered that she should be hungry right about now and started to do the same…
For the last two nights, Jessica has been going to sleep around 7.30pm but then woken up for an additional feed around 3/3.15am. I guess she won’t be properly sleeping through the night until she has something more ‘substantial’ than breastmilk to keep her going. It’s made me feel a bit drained daytime – I guess I’ve been spoilt with her not waking up until 6/6.30 for a few weeks…!
The night before last, by the way, Jessica was wide awake and aware when I put her in her cot, but just lay there for a while, without a sound, looking at the ceiling and running her left hand down the bumper guard on the side of her cot, and even lifting the bumper guard slightly to peer behind it. And then, about ten minutes later, she was fast asleep… I’ve been a bit worried about her being able to fall asleep by herself at night, as for quite a while now I’ve kept her sitting upright for about 20 minutes after her feed, to help her keep her food down, and she usually falls asleep in my arms. For obvious reasons I don’t want her to become dependant on falling asleep that way – it would limit the options for both of us quite severely. At least now we know she can fall asleep on her own.
Gabriella