Characteristics of Our Daughter

Giggle Time with Eliana and Me

Eliana is a little over 5 months old. Here are some things I know about her.

* She often sneezes in twos like her dad.

* Today is the first time I've tickled her belly, and she thought it was funny.

* An over tired Eliana makes for grumpy parents.

* She loves to gnaw on her hands.

* She can roll over from stomach to back, although she still doesn't like tummy time.

* Eliana can grip my finger and then pull herself from back to side. With a little tug on my part she'll go to her stomach.

* She gets lonely quickly if you're not paying attention to her. This is much more apparently in the afternoon and when she is getting ready for a nap.

* Bath time is still fun. I don't think she has figured out that moving her legs makes the water splash.

* She loves to sleep in her swing. I'm in the process of trying to train her to sleep without motion. This process isn't too much fun for her or me.

* Eliana loves to be rocked to sleep. If I catch the window of time just right, it only takes about a minute for her eyes to close. Normally it only takes a few minutes, but there have been times when we have rocked and walked for quite some time.

* Toys are suddenly quite important to Eliana.

* Kicking off her socks is a daily habit.

* She still enjoys being swaddled.

* The car isn't nearly the nightmare it was when she was younger. If she is just eaten, we often can go a whole car ride without hearing her scream.

* Eliana has a faint Mongolian spot like I did.

* She also has strawberry birth marks like I did.

* The longest she has slept was 6 hours straight. Sadly, that isn't the norm. Four hours is much more common.

* Eliana will spot Kyle or I and focus on us if she is visiting others. I'll be honest, it makes me feel pretty special.

* Today she started trying out this raspy whisper sound that I can't even duplicate. I tried to catch it on film, but apparently that sound wasn't available anymore.

* On occasion over the last week and a half, Eliana has tried out a really high pitch sound that reminds me of a cat. While some find it funny or even cute, it just hurts my ears.

* Eliana's nails grow really fast. I have to cut them at least once a week.

* Eliana hasn't figured out why pulling on the string connected to her pacifier causes it to pull out of her mouth. She often has a slightly surprised look on her face, or better yet, an offended one like I did it on purpose. :)

* Eliana still spits up at least a dozen times a day. And no, I am not exaggerating. Thankfully, it often isn't as much spit up. It really startles other people, but I am totally used to it. It doesn't faze me in the slightest.

* There are days when I am so frustrated that I think Eliana will be an only child. But there are other days when I think a sibling down the road would be okay. Sometimes I have both of those feelings in one day depending upon how things go.