This month baby is photographed on Rifle Paper Company's Rosa in Peach, in stock now at Bobbie Lou's Fabric Factory!

Oh, my, we are a full week late for our monthly post!  I've been backlogged a bit with new website doings, but I'm sure you don't mind.  She's worth the wait, isn't she?

Sweet baby Elora has a peachy complexion, favoring her father's fairer side.  I love how this bitty Rifle Paper print suits her.  I've had my eye on this fabric for awhile!  Just needed an excuse to bring it home, hehe.  It's going to make a gorgeous changing table pad sometime soon.

It took some time to show, but we've decided she has coppery brown hair and hazel blue/green eyes.  Remember how much trouble we had choosing a name?  It's funny that we considered "Penny", which would have matched her hair, as well as "Hazel", which would have matched her eyes.  But I'm glad she's my "Rora", a unique and yet very feminine name.

Memory Box {Four Months}

Milestones:  Toys!  What a blessing it is to watch her enjoy a toy.  I think all parents enjoy reaching this stage, but it likely means more to me because Eleni never once reacted positively to a toy.  There were some rare times that she noticed a toy, I believe, but nothing like playing or enjoying.  Nowadays we move Rora from her play gym to books to the kitchen to her mobile, all to keep her entertained.  I think she's easily bored because she has not learned to roll.  Once she can explore it'll all be different!

Pantone Colors is Rora's favorite book.  Each page has a collage of color swatches on the left, which shows many versions of a color (quite educational!), and an illustration on the right.  From the first Rora has preferred the yellow and pink pages.  She always grins at the yellow lion and lights up again when we get to the pink pig.  Here she is talking to her lion friend.  Since she clearly has strong color preferences, I'm so glad her room includes yellow and pink/peach.  Wink.

Biggest Challenge:  Last time I shared that Rora was having trouble connecting her sleep cycles during naps.  It turns out the underlying problem was hunger-related.  I had noticed as a newborn that she had trouble coordinating her suck and swallow.  This month I asked my speech-therapist friend to evaluate Rora, after I realized she was not drinking enough milk when being bottle fed at grandma's.  She was still taking just 3 ounces every 3 hours at 3 months old, when 4-6 ounces would be more typical.  We discovered that she benefits from a preemie nipple as she's more comfortable with a slow flow.  She'll drink more milk in less time with the preemie nipple.  So now it's easy to give her enough when bottle feeding.  Of course when I breastfeed her, I can't control the flow...  She tends to stop nursing once somewhat satiated.  Now I feed her twice as often, both as soon as she wakes and before she naps.  With these double feeds she is getting enough milk overall and taking 2 hour naps again.  Phew! 

Babies are such puzzles!  Now that she is night weaned and taking solid naps again, my next goal is to eliminate the pacifier so that she doesn't need our help at all to sleep through the night.  Then she'll be ready for her own room!

Biggest Surprise:  She's so different.  I have a lot of confidence as a fourth-time mom.  I've already covered a lot of ground through Aria, Liam and Eleni, and I don't have another little one to multitask, so caring for Rora is pretty easy.  But still, there's more to learn. 

Her breastfeeding and sleep needs are unique.  She's still not on a schedule; whereas, Aria and Liam were on one by about 2 months!   Very often my husband remarks that he doesn't think Aria and Liam were so constantly sunny, so social.   I wonder if that's true, or if it's hard for us to remember what Aria and Liam were really like.  And, sadly, Eleni's challenges made our experience with her an unfair comparison.  I do know that Aria and Liam had learned to roll by now.  Rora has a ways to go.  I wonder if she'll hit all of her motor skill milestones more typically, instead of early like my first two, who learned to walk at 10 months and 8 months. 

This month I am reminded that she is her own, special little person, that I may have a lot of experience and good parenting habits, but I've never raised Rora before.  This is a new adventure.

Best Memory:  This month Rora was gifted a paper flower mobile handmade by my friend Heather.  I hung it in my sewing room and placed a quilt underneath.  Little could I have imagined Elora's joy!  I never used mobiles with my other children, so I had no idea how captivating it might be.  She. Loves. It.  I mean, she adores it.  She absolutely glows as she gazes up at it!  We turn and turn it because she loves to watch it spin. And I don't blame her.  I think we've all tried it by now.  It's delightful.  When Rora is getting fussy, but is not quite ready to sleep, the mobile always, always, always works.  I shared an Instagram video of her happiness under the mobile earlier this month.  It's really just the littlest hint at how happy it makes her!

Thank you for sharing in the pleasure of her! 

xo,

Rachel Hauser