Happy Five Months, Isla!

It is hard to believe that Isla is now five months old. When I post her new monthly pic to her album, I always like to look through and see the changes from her as a newborn. Adorable!


This months pics turned out really well- I managed to get a few smiles out of her, which I love. Isla has her two bottom teeth and so she can give this really cute, little toothy smile that is absolutely contagious. 


Here are a few of my faves:

She has become a pro at rolling both ways now. Every time I look at her she is in a different position. She has also started rolling a bit in her sleep. I am sad to say that I am now faced with having to begin the process of sleeping swaddle-free (yikes) and possibly a move to her crib. She seems to enjoy the extra space and when given the chance, will wiggle around in her bed. I think she has now outgrown the bassinet, and as soon as I work up the courage to go without sleep for a few nights, we will go swaddle-free in the crib. yikes. 


This past weekend we celebrated Isla's first Easter. I enjoyed many chocolate eggs and jellybeans on her behalf, and she celebrated by wearing a cute outfit. 

Another big milestone in month five is introducing food. I was thinking to hold off until 6 months, but I decided to go along with the cues that Isla is giving, and she is all about eating solid food. She watches every single thing that goes from our plates to our mouths. She literally steals food off of our plates and really wants to try everything. I started her with rice cereal (she was not a big fan) and have now moved onto oatmeal, which has been a bit more of a hit. She still isn't completely sold as I think she knows that I am holding out on her. She has tried avocado, and is still deciding if she likes it. 

So far, her most favourite food has been banana. Sean was eating a banana one day and she grabbed it and put it in her mouth- I figured, why not? It is one of the early foods that is ok to start, and she really enjoys being able to hold onto it and eat it herself. She spits out the big pieces, but really enjoys it. I decided to give her a banana mum mum today and I literally had to tear it out of her hands as she was trying to eat it so quickly. She loved it! 

We are taking it pretty slow and will likely stick with oatmeal and the odd banana thrown in here or there for a bit. She has awhile to go before I really need to think about giving her real meals. 

New shoes

Just this week, I remarked to Sean about how much Isla has grown up. It really just happened this week and it seems, overnight. 


All of a sudden, she has two bottom teeth (and is starting to work at one on top) and can roll front to back as well as back to front. She is staying awake for longer periods during the day, and is beginning to fall into pretty consistent sleep patterns. 


With Isla becoming easier I decided that I really needed to start doing something. I realized that the longest I have been away from her was for a couple hours to get my hair cut back in February. Other than that, I have literally spent every single minute with her. I definitely wouldn't have it any other way and I treasure every single moment I get to spend with my baby, but I also decided that perhaps it would be good for me to have a few moments of "me" time here or there. 


So today, Sean, Isla and I ventured to Caledon Hills Cycling, and Sean bought me some sweet Salomon trail running shoes. 

They are super cute and since we have a hiking trail pretty much in our backyard, I thought this would be the perfect solution for some "me" time. It definitely helps that perhaps I will be able to shed some of this leftover baby weight that is lingering! I enjoy running, although I am not blessed with running feet, and I found road running (anything over 5 km) absolutely destroyed my feet regardless of which shoes I wore. I am thinking trail running will be a little more interesting and hopefully, will affect my feet differently. 

Let's hope!

Isla's First Swimming Lesson

The highlight of this week was Isla's first swimming lesson at Making Waves in Brampton. I signed Isla up for the parent and tot class with the intention of alternating Sean and I to accompany her each week. As I was terrified of having to dunk her underwater, I made Sean go first. 


It turns out, they didn't have to dunk the babies at all. They just started teaching the cue: 1, 2, 3, under... so the baby will learn to close their eyes and hold their breath. Only their chin went under the first week :)


Isla started out with a few little tears at the beginning- unsure that she really wanted to be doing this. After some songs and games, she came around and did really well. We are going to keep going with Sean swimming with her each week, as it's something fun for them to do together... and let's face it, public pools are not my thing. It was pretty cute that there were 3 other dads in the class as well, with moms on the pool deck snapping pictures. They must all think like me!


I am super excited for her next class- Here are some pics:

First Teeth

We have a second tooth! Isla now has her two bottom teeth. They are ridiculously tiny and cute, and were a complete bugger to get in, but they have arrived. Apparently, I had my first tooth at four months, so it makes sense that she gets hers early. Unfortunately for her, both Sean and I had to have braces (among MANY other dental surgeries), so the poor thing has a long "tooth" road ahead of her. I would love to grab a picture of her first teeth, but she won't let anything or anyone near them :)


The weather here has been absolutely wonderful and a perfect start to spring. Isla and I enjoyed a little outside time yesterday. My mom gave Isla a Shady Baby umbrella which is upf 50 (we are a bit crazy about sun protection in this family), so we decided to try it out on our walk. It was absolutely amazing. Isla loved being able to look out and about as we walked (otherwise the car seat shade would have to be pulled down in front of her eyes.... and who wouldn't cry if you had to stare at a black shade for an hour), yet was fully protected from the warm sun. Here is a glimpse of Isla enjoying her walk:

So, Isla has started sleeping from about 7:30pm to 8am. Our main problem is that we have squeaky floors upstairs in the bedroom- I guess this comes with the territory of an old house. Around 6am, Sean needs to wake up for work, and I need to pump, so we both try and sneak out of the room quietly. impossible. Not only do floorboards squeak, we have two loud cats waiting right outside the door who think that they are entitled to meow VERY loudly for food. They then decide to run down the stairs (and if anyone has seen Miso, she is rather large and can not run quietly...) and try to trip you on your way down. 

Needless to say, by the time I make it to the kitchen, I can hear Isla on the monitor making noises. ugh. So, I am debating over switching her to her own room. My hesitation is that right now she can go from 7:30pm - 8am without feeding. She does stir a few times a night, but I am able to pop a soother in quickly and she just goes right back to sleep without a problem. If I move her to her own room, I wont make it to her as quickly in the night, and I am scared she will wake herself up and want to be fed. hmmm. Tough choice. 

In the meantime, here are a few pics from a hike that we did a few weeks ago. This trail is behind our house and it was a great day!

Four Months Old!

Yesterday, Isla turned four months old. That seems absolutely crazy in that I cannot believe that she is this old, yet I am now finding it hard to remember what things were like before she came into our lives. 


We have managed to get ourselves onto a decent "schedule". I guess you can call it that. Isla usually wakes up around 6 to eat. I will change her diaper and hand her over to Sean, who will feed her and then put her back to sleep. I go downstairs to pump and then get Sean's lunch and breakfast together. Then he heads off to work and I enjoy my "me" time. Shower, breakfast, clean up, get bottles ready for the day, and then sit and relax with some breakfast television. On a good day, Isla generally will sleep until 8:30 or 9:00. On a day like today, she will wake up for the day by 7:30am. It must have something to do with the weekend! 


After that we usually work in 1 1/2 to 2 hour blocks where she gets up, eats, plays and then goes back to sleep. Generally, our morning nap is in the bassinet, but after that it is fair game. We are usually out and about as I can't stand being inside the house all day. As soon as Sean comes home around 5 or so, Isla and I are waiting at the door for him ready to go for a long walk. I look forward to these walks all day. Isla falls asleep pretty quickly, so Sean and I are able to just talk about the day and enjoy being outside together. 


By 7 to 7:30, Isla is ready for a bath which Sean gives her as I clean bottles and get her bed ready for the night. I then give her a night feed and put her down to sleep. 


Then we start the cycle again. 


I don't think I ever give Isla enough credit for the good sleeper that she is. She has learned how to put herself to sleep (usually....) and is pretty good about it. We sometimes have to fight over daytime naps here and there, but the tears are pretty short-lived. My absolute favourite part is her waking up with a big smile on her face :)


Four months also meant the dreaded immunization day :( I feel absolutely horrible bringing her into the doctor's office. She is all smiley and cooing one second and then has this red, screaming face the next second. Thankfully she stops crying as soon as I pick her up, but I feel awful for her. I gave her some extra cuddles yesterday to make up for that! So at her check up she came in at 61cm long, and 12 lbs, 7 ounces. So her growing seems to have slowed down a little bit from the first few months. The doctor said that she is good to start rice cereal anytime, but I think we will hold off for a month or so. She is definitely showing an interest in food and follows you like a hawk when you are eating. She grabs everything and puts it in her mouth... although I am sure most babies do this! I bought her a high chair and she joins us at the dinner table now, which she really enjoys :)


This is the first day of March Break, so it will be fantastic to have Sean home for the week. We will go to CP and visit with family and friends, and then make our way back to Bolton later in the week. Isla starts swimming lessons the following week, which I am pretty excited about. I will post pics for sure! 


Here are our latest four month pictures:

CP Visit

Isla and I just returned to Bolton after a week long visit to Carleton Place. We had the chance to visit with Melody, Jon and Krista at Ronald McDonald House, as well as catch up with friends we hadn't seen in awhile! Melody is currently undergoing treatment for leukemia at CHEO, and Isla loves being able to hang with her cousin. 

We also enjoyed a little walk at the Mill of Kintail in Almonte. I wanted to show Isla where her Mom and Dad got married, and grab a little family photo in front of the outdoor chapel. Isla apparently found the sleigh ride a little too relaxing and fell asleep. I am not one to wake a sleeping baby, so we left her in her sled for the pics. We will have to go back when she is a bit older!

While at my parent's place in CP, Isla really perfected the wake-up smile. I absolutely LOVE going to get her in the morning and after naps (provided she actually slept for a decent amount of time), because I get to walk into her room and see this:

As you can see, I still have Isla swaddled tightly in her woombie. She is a sneaky little nugget, and sometimes is able to wiggle a hand out of the top, but for the most part, sleeps amazingly inside this thing. She is coming up to 4 months, and I am terrified of having to eventually part with this sleep sack. She sleeps really well, and as soon as she is zipped inside, her eyelids begin to droop and she gives a little yawn. I am going to stick with it as long as possible. She isn't rolling over while sleeping yet, so I think I am ok for a little bit. I did buy a larger size with arm holes so that I can transition her one arm at a time, but for now, I enjoy my fairly good sleeps!

Daily Activities

One of the most important things I have learned as a new mom, is the importance of getting out and about. I try to do something with Isla every single day- as I think we would both go insane if we stayed in the house for the entire time. 


We are pretty lucky, in that we have an Ontario Early Years Centre just up the street. Isla and I have been going to "You and Your Baby" for over a month now and have met a lot of other babies and moms. We just started going to "Infant Mother Goose", which is stories and songs, and it seems like it will be a great program. Isla wouldn't know as she slept through the majority of the first class. I just had to clap and sing along to a sleeping baby. I clapped very quietly. 


Starting after March break, I have enrolled Isla in her first set of swimming lessons. I am super excited for this, as the centre looks fantastic and if Isla has as much fun as she does in her little bathtub, it should be a great experience. The classes are in Brampton (not too far from Sean's school), so that means Sean has to leave work, drive home, pick us up, and drive right back. Not the best, but since it is for Isla, I am sure he is happy to do it! Plus, he will get to be part of the swim classes as well, and I know that he will absolutely love the chance to spend time with her in the water. 


Isla and I have also frequented many of the malls in the area. It is so handy that they all seem to have big family washrooms with good change tables and nursing rooms with comfy couches. When you look around at the people shopping on a weekday, it is 90% moms and their babies, so I guess this makes sense! Isla is a fantastic shopper in that she sleeps the entire time and allows me to make all of my purchases without worrying that she will begin screaming any minute. She even allows me to eat lunch while she snoozes, and often requires me jostling the stroller a little bit to wake her up and feed her before we leave. Can't get much better than that. 


When Isla was a few weeks old, I remember how scary it was to take her out in public on my own during the day. Of course, I managed to get her car seat stuck in the stroller that day while in the Shopper's Drug Mart parking lot, and began having a minor meltdown thinking I was going to have to walk around the drugstore for another hour until Sean was off work and could come and help us out. Luckily, I freed the car seat and got home without a baby meltdown, so the trip was a success. I guess we have come pretty far from that day, and now I can look back and laugh at myself and how much of a "newbie" I must have looked to passerbys. 


I have come to the point where I am completely relaxed taking her out, and actually enjoy the opportunity to show her new things out in her community. I am looking forward to when she is a bit older and can really benefit from playgroups and even going to the community library to read some stories. 


:)