雨の日のお散歩

雨期でも小振りの時は、傘と長靴で近所をお散歩。

外出がない日でも、１日１回は外に出るようにしてる。ちょっと愚図ってても、庭に出るだけでも機嫌が良くなるのは不思議。

赤い傘も大好きで、外は色んな匂いと音、それから面白い物がたくさん。しじゅうキョロキョロしてる。

歌ったり、外のものを解説しながらのそぞろ歩き。

夕方、あやすネタ切れの時とか、停電の時には散歩。

働くママの生活

My work is getting a bit busier now. This week I was away from TR the longest time since he was born. I left home at 9 and did not get back until 5, which felt like a big deal. I literally ran home (when I was not in a taxi.) This means I missed two meal times. When I know that I will miss two feedings, I express breast-milk for the next day, so that TR will not get formula milk more than once a day. He has eaten formula only handful times so far, so I want to take it slow.

Our nanny can come only three times a week. Myself and M. FR try to coordinate schedules, so that we can cover the time when the nanny is not there. For example, I left TR for a few hours in M.FR's office (the photo) this week when I went to have a meeting. Luckily, his colleagues love having him (sometimes beg us to bring him over) there. We hardly see TR when we are in the office, since his colleagues take him away and pass him around. It's so cute to see M.FR work while TR is sitting on his lap.

When I rush home after work and see the baby smile to me, I feel having a job is already worth so much. I miss him when I am away, but it makes me appreciate the time I have with him. The life of working mother also forces me to be more organized and plan well. I need to do a simulation in my head a few times the day before if we have outings and errands. I am also trying to get my work ahead of time for any unexpected time needed with the baby later.

I am not ready to go back to work full time just yet, but this is good transition.

FR氏の事務所の床でまったりしているキューピーさん。FR氏のドライバーさんだけは声が大きいので、直に泣いちゃうけど、他のスタッフさんには大人しくだっこされてます。

会議等で家を空けていて、急いで帰ってただいまーと言うと息子がニコッと笑ってくれると、疲れも吹き飛ぶし、仕事を再開して良かったなと思う。これから、大変なことも色々出てくるだろうけど頑張ろう。

今週の初めて２

Every week little TR showed us new tricks. This week's new development:

• He protested when I took a toy away from him. Nice to know that he is developing different kinds of emotion. 
• Much better hand coordination. He likes to grab things now. He even held up a book (a very thin one) for a long time and brought it to his mouth. He can also manipulate toys a bit better to make sure he chews every corner of a same toy. 
• He has been enjoying splashing water in his tiny bathtub (still filled with drinking water...) with his feet. He started bashing water with his arms. 
• He appreciates texture and temperature now. I found him stroking things like a straw mat, desk, textiles and cold glass. 

Vaccination day

ちくっ、と４ヶ月健診で３本の注射を打ったキューピーさん。

ちょっと泣いたけど、すぐに泣きやんで偉い。

前の日から、チクッとするけど、病気にならないようにする為だからねーと言ってある。

太ももの絆創膏が痛い他しいけど、可愛い。

熱が出たら、イチゴ味のお薬を飲ませてもらえる。しんどい日は、一日中でもだっこしますよ。

Sleep Training

I was really dreading this. According to different theories, sleep conditioning is very important. If you get your baby to be used to always being rocked to bed or fed to sleep, he or she will always need that to fall asleep. Till recently our TR would not fall sleep unless being rocked to sleep and gently and carefully put down on the bed. It took particularly longer at night and he would wake up at least twice within 30 minutes and scream.

Our baby-rearing bible, a book called “Bringing Up Bebe: One American Mother Discovers Wisdom of French Parenting” written by American mother living in France, four months is a critical deadline for sleep training. In addition, TR weighs more than 6 kg now, and I was coming to my limit of walking back and forth holding him, which could take more than 30 mins at a time. However, I kept giving excuses not to start the training. I would say,  not tonight, next week, after the 3 months vaccination is finished, after we come back from Bangkok etc. As a parent, it is extremely hard to hear your baby cry and scream.

Just less than a week before TR turned four months old, we finally started. It is some kind of our own modified version of “cry it out”. M. FR, equipped with earplugs, would stay with the baby until he falls sleep but no picking up and rocking. First night he cried for 30 mins. I couldn’t take it, and I had to wear a headphone and listen to music…  We actually couldn’t believe that he could fall sleep without being held. The second night, it was 40 mins, third 10 mins, then 20 mins…  It seemed like it’s working to certain extent. It was still hard to hear him scream. Then, one night I was alone at home and experimented by not swaddling him. I followed our usual bedtime routine and ritual: bathing, feeding, reading a storybook and signing. Then, I put him down on the bed. TR rolled onto his stomach and started sucking his fingers. I tuned off the light, told him good night and left the room………………………………..then he fell sleep!!! I heard no cry whatsoever!!!! I held my breath and went to check up on him multiple times. I am still nervous about him sleeping face down, as it is not recommended to prevent SIDS. I observe him during his sleep and he adjusts his head many times to find a comfortable position. We need to be careful to clear his bed of any possible items that could choke him. However, now I am more confident that he is big enough to control his posture.        

There we go. Just like that. It was resolved. No more rocking, no more counting up and down bounces and running to rescue him when he wakes up after 10 minutes. 

He has learned the skill to fall sleep on his own, which apparently is a real skill that babies need to learn.

Since then, it has worked so far with minimum crying.