Happy 3 Month Day!

It's hard to believe 3 months has passed since Alexiss joined our family! She's keeping me busier than ever but now I get smiles and laughs between cries. She's still as impatient as ever for food and fights sleep til she can't fight anymore. There's usually a few loud cries amid her droopy eyes in protest, the daytime naps are a little easier to ease her into but I can't put her down and have to hold her the whole nap or she wakes up stunned and shocked that I would do such a thing. I'm going to start transitioning to her swing for naps and am expecting a few rough days with little napping and lots of cranky crying. It's become this game at night:

Game set-up
Players are responsible for supplying a well fed newly diapered baby (referred to as The Baby). The better prepared the Mamma player is (referred to as The Mamma) the quicker she will progress through the game. Suggestions for set up are to ensure tripping hazards are dealt with before the game starts, failure to do this could result in having to repeat the phases more times than necessary.

Phases
All Phases are actions done by The Mamma player unless otherwise stated.

Phase 1. Hold The Baby juuuust right.
Phase 2. Shhh through the cries until The Baby settles or you run out of breath. (No cheating, if you are a little out of breath keep shhhing. The result of not doing this phase correctly could mean having to start at phase 1 again.)
Phase 3. Try gently to put The Baby in the crib and wrap blankets.
Phase 4. The Baby at this time may choose to rouse enough to either
a) Make the Mamma do a mini version of this game in the dark with The Baby
positioned in the crib and The Mamma hovering above.
b) Make the Mamma go back to Phase 1

Rules
Rule 1. The Baby will choose a new "juuuuust right" position every night. It is allowable to change mid-game.
Rule 2. The Mamma is permitted to ignore cries only if she is positive The Baby is fed, diapered, not too hot..etc. Following this rule can halt and postpone playing the game. Failure to follow this rule could extend gameplay.
Rule 3. The Mamma is permitted to scoop The baby and all blankets into her arms, making a tight little package. This usually happens if the Phases restart after finishing Phase 3.
Rule 4. The Baby is allowed to add rules and not tell The Mamma at anytime.
Rule 5. The Mamma is permitted to call in The Daddy to stand in for a few minutes if gameplay is longer than 3 hours or The Mamma isn't enjoying playing the game.

Winning and Gameplay
The Mamma wins when The Baby is sleeping peacefully in the crib for longer than 45 minutes. Upon winning The Mamma can play a fast solitaire version of this game. Gameplay can be anywhere from 15 minutes to 3 hours. Extreme games can go on longer. There is no time limit or ability to call a tie or forfeit the game.


mmm..What can I tell you.... I guess we are settling in and finding a routine. Alexiss's big accomplishment and milestone since laughing is rolling over on her side using her legs this weekend but it hasn't happened since. I righted her and turned for one second only to see her "shoomph" back on her side.

We braved our first power outage this morning, Alexiss was kind enough to sleep through it and not have me stumbling around in the dark. My mind was already going through the motions as I sat in bed half asleep. Mark was prepared enough to think ahead last month when the called for the snow storm so I knew I had everything I needed, that doesn't mean it's an easy feat though. Big jugs of water, a coleman stove (or side BBQ element) and propane are the things we need the most. The furnace is gas (the fan electric) and the fireplace is gas. I always call the electric company when the power is out now. It's been out twice (once in Ontario and once here) and we found out hours later, when someone finally called, that the electric company didn't know.