Gemma at 3 months

Weight: Just over 14 pounds

Height: 25-26 inches

 
Clothing Size: 3-6 month clothes.

Daily Schedule: Gemma continues to sleep through the night for the most part. She goes to bed between 8 and 9 and sometimes wakes up around 6/6:30. She'll go back down after eating and then sleep until 8-9am. Normally, she takes 45 minute naps (just like the other two) after being awake for about an hour and a half. Every now and then, she'll go longer. She's a fairly predictable baby.

Total diapers we change daily: For cloth diapers, about 7-10.

Total outfits we go through daily: One. She spits up on them but I don't care enough to change her. Just wipe it off.

Special Outings: Spent the day at the beach and she's taken lots of trips to house hunt with us. Thankfully that's over since we found a house.

Firsts: Swimming! We took her swimming a few times this month and at first, she was a little upset. We went last weekend and she loved it.


Eating: Continuing to nurse wonderfully but she has started spitting up more. It peaks around 4 months so I'm hopeful we're almost to the worst and then it will get better.

Heart Update: We had our second appointment with the pediatric cardiologist two weeks ago. The news wasn't the best. Gemma's heart defect appears to have worsened over the past eight weeks. In April, the defect was barely moderate. Last week, it was definitely in the moderate level. I forgot to ask the percentage at the last appointment for comparison. The cardiologist is still hopeful Gemma will plateau now and the defect will stay the same. We go back in September and we'll find out more then. The issue with the Echos at a young age is Gemma is pretty fidget-y. That makes it hard to get an accurate measurement. The doctor is hopeful at six months that Gemma could be a little more cooperative in her stillness. I am skeptical of that but we'll try. It is reassuring to know that we're moving ten minutes away from this doctor. And if Gemma does need surgery, we know our insurance is great (after Tanner's surgery) and that it doesn't require open heart procedures.

Sibling love: The kids love to say, "Good morning, Gemma" in a high, squeaky voice every morning. They both love to hold her and Tanner gets mad if we "help" in holding her. Overall, they have quickly grown accustomed to her.

Overall, Gemma is a perfect baby. She rarely fusses or cries. She goes with the flow and is very calm. She goes to sleep quickly and eats well. She's a perfect little third child with two very opinionated siblings. 

Monthly Pictures:

Tanner had to get a picture too.

 

Month of May

We had a busy May due to several changes in our family.

Joseph applied and interviewed for a job right after having Gemma. It was a crazy time to think about the possibility of moving but we discussed that we had to take the chance if the right job came along. We found out towards the end of April that he got the job. We could finally announce it later in May and start packing. He starts the new position in early August and we'll move once we find the right house. Thankfully, we qualify for relocation benefits so many of the expenses are reimbursable and  paid by the company. We're very close to listing our house finally. It seems impossible to sell a house with three small children but I know others have done it and we will too.

One trip to look at houses included a stop at a jumping place.

Amidst all of this, I was offered a promotion at BYU-Idaho. I was asked to continue teaching as well as be a "middle-man" between the online instructors and the on-campus department. I will work to make changes and updates to the online course and make it more inline with the campus courses. This will start in the fall but I am doing a little work this semester to prepare for that. It wasn't the best timing with a newborn and moving but I couldn't pass up the opportunity.

Our church callings also changed in May. Joseph was released as the Young Men's president in the Spanish Branch back when Gemma was born. Then, he was asked to serve as the second counselor in Young Men's in our ward. That same week, I was released as the Young Women's president. It's been quite the adjustment for me to not have a calling right now.

We watched our caterpillars become butterflies this month. It was a fun experience for Ashton and Tanner.

My parents came to visit and meet Gemma. We had a great time with them and spent a lot of time working on house projects. Ashton went to their hotel for a sleepover again and had a blast. We also visited the NASA Space Center and drove around the neighborhoods where we may move to.

Chutes and Ladders with Papa

For Memorial Day, we went to the beach. We had a blast and I completely forgot about sunscreen. Ashton burned so bad that she ended up with a quarter size blister on her shoulder. Poor girl was so red. I thought she couldn't burn but I guess she does. 

Every trip to the beach ends with vacuuming the van. Lots of sand everywhere.

School ended the week my parents came. The last day of school is a Red, White, and Blue Parade. The kids loved it!

Shucking the corn from our garden. We had to pull everything and harvest it before listing the house.

We make almost daily trips to our local splash pad. We will miss this a lot next summer. Thankfully, every neighborhood in Clear Lake has a pool.