Let Me Sum Up: Mazie

Mazie is 15 weeks, almost 4 months old already!  Can you believe that?!  Me neither.  She's still growing like a weed and comes in at a little more than 13 lbs.  She reminds us a lot of Taryn in her body/head shape, but definitely has her own look about her.

She is smiley and happy, and has recently picked up giggling, though it hasn't "ripped" out of her body yet.  It's like its a little stuck.  I'm sure one of these days she'll give us a big laugh, which we're all looking forward to. 

She's very patient with her sisters' tough love.  Keara, of course, is the most experienced so she doesn't usually inflict harm on Mazie, though she has certainly lost some of her desire to be a caregiver to her baby sister.  Still, I've been able to "hire" her to babysit twice so I could take a nap, which was SO nice!  Taryn really, really, REALLY wants to be able to stand up and walk while holding Mazie, like Keara.  But Taryn's a bit more physical with Mazie so for now, we try (emphasis on try) to get her to just be still with her.  Not working.  Oh well, she loves her sister and Mazie loves her back.  Avery loves to kiss Mazie and give her hugs, but she also sits, stands, hits, smothers, and in all other dangerous ways shows her love for her baby sister. 
 
I'm still, of course, dairy free and chocolate free to help Mazie's fussiness, which is non-existent nowadays.  I long for the day when I can drink a glass of milk again, but until then, I'm just grateful for a happy baby!!  I also don't feed her anymore in the nighttime, which I haven't done since she was about 9 weeks old.  It's so nice to get a full night's sleep.

We still find blood in Mazie's diapers, which I can't explain.  She also wakes up completely congested and sometimes with a bloody nose, which I attribute to the dry air in the basement. 

She also has eczema on her legs and back, but we're battling that with none other than your good ol' fashioned olive oil.  It seems to help both her and Taryn a lot.  And finally, she also gets really nasty sores on her bottom whenever I put her in disposible diapers.  I guess that might be the reason I felt such a strong impression to cloth diaper her. 

We're going to Hawaii in a couple months and I will go a full 8 days without my baby.  I'm nervous!  So between now and then, I somehow have to pump enough to feed her while I'm gone PLUS teach her how to eat solids so she won't starve.  Wish me luck.

My sister challenged me to figure out a way to make a swimsuit for a newborn that would allow for growth so it would also fit a 12 month old.  After a lot of thought, I figured if I made an adjustable tankini, it would work.  I developed two designs and they both fit great on Mazie and also on Avery!  Success!