Motherly Things

So my little Shiloh is already over 4 1/2 months old. Very hard to believe. Sometimes when people ask how old she is I feel as though dates, times, months, days of the week start swirling around my head in some kind of crazy time vortex. It can't possibly have been that long, can it?

I know you are thinking, does this surprise you fifth time around? No, no, it doesn't. But what has surprised me this time around is how well nursing is going. I feel so hesitant to admit that out loud. When people ask I usually answer "Oh great" and promptly change the subject. I think this comes from some sort of deeply Irish superstitious belief of Murphy's law that is in my DNA. Even though I am not superstitious. But for those of you who have known my struggles with children 1, 2, 3, and 4... to make it to 4 1/2 months just cruisin' along happily with feedings.. this is noteworthy.

I attribute this to 3 things that I will share with you. #1 is - I have been sure to stop wearing watches. That gets rid the impulse to check each time she eats to see what time is it. Instead.. if she's fussy I just feed her. Sometimes it's long. Sometimes it's short. Sometimes I think I nurse all day. That way I have no reference, no thought to even refrain from nursing because "she's just tired." She just gets open bar all day and night. I had a family member holding her once say "Oh, Shiloh.. you just ate you can't possibly still be hungry" and tried to pacify her with their finger. Oh heavens, if you only know the issues I have with that but besides GERMS - I said "Oh, I'll take her. I'm the pacifier." Which probably shocked said family member since, well... open milk bar was not my style in the past.

And actually, I covered #'s 2 and 3 above. #2 being - no pacifier. I almost pulled all my hair out in the first 6 weeks being the human pacifier. But guess what - I have lived to tell about it! And it's going great! Did I mention that? And #3 - night time. I actually strove to teach Shiloh that she can eat at night if she wants. I have a friend who may purchase round trip airline tickets just to come here, ring my doorbell, smack me in the face and leave.... but in following suit of my other children she started sleeping for very long, long stretches at night. So..... I started waking her up. She now wakes herself for a late night feeding anywhere between 11:30 - 1 am and a mid-early AM feeding around 4ish. (this interrupted sleep probably contributes to the time vortex)

Actually, that's not the order in which I covered them above.. but that's the order in which you get them!

And what would prompt me to write of all this loveliness when I have a deep-seated fear of Murphy? Well... little miss Shiloh and I were sitting on the couch this afternoon for her snack when Giovanna comes up to chat. She said "I wonder why Shiloh likes milk so much. Maybe because it tastes like strawberries." My eyebrows went up "Strawberries? What makes you think that?" Giovanna tilted her head and said "No, not strawberries. Like chocolate. That's why she likes it. You eat a lot of that." If she only knew, people! (watch, this will be the one post my husband ever comments on to share the truth of that statement... which I'd attempt to refute a little except I'm drinking a cup of hot cocoa right now and if I do that.. well, you know.. Murphy might decide to play some sort of hoax on me)