A day in the life of a Maggie

A day in the life of our four month old princess:

7 a.m. wake with a smile, if no response, begin verbalizing that I'm awake until the parents come in to rescue me from this walled bed they put me in last night. Work on my "morning constitutional." If possible, make a big mess while doing it so that Mommy has something to do this morning besides drink her coffee. Nurse. Check. Flirt with Mommy while nursing. Check.

Darn it, they put me on my tummy again?! What is it with these people? I can't see a thing from the floor. If THEY had to be on their tummies all the time they would know why I'm putting up a big fuss about this. If I scream long enough I know that the bouncy seat has a better view, so I'm going to start winding up now...

8:30 I guess I am supposed to be tired because after Mommy tried to rock me to sleep with Christmas songs, I was put back into the swing while she kept saying "I love you...night night...have a good little nap." Why they think they have to talk baby-speak to me is beyond me; I have a better vocabulary than they do. After all, I'm not the one who is sleep deprived.

9:15 I slept for 45 minutes...what more can you ask? It's time for some attention. Ok, she's not responding to my sweet little coos. She probably can't hear them since she's in the other room checking her email on that computer. So let's turn up the volume. MOMMY!!!!!!!!!!! It's play time! After reading books, listening to Mommy play the piano, more despicable tummy time, looking at the Christmas tree lights, I'm pretty much tired again.

10:00 After a nice little morning snack I'm ready for another nap!

11:30 I'm awake again and ready to party. Let's do something active, Mom... so she takes me downstairs while she does laundry. I like looking inside the washer and dryer. Imagine all the toys I can put in there since they were smart enough to get a front loading machine -- it's right at my level, and after all this time I've spent watching her, I know exactly how to open the doors. Then I spend some time drooling on my toys and trying to roll over. I almost get rolled over but my stomach gets in the way and kind of props me up halfway in the air. It's really embarrassing. I'm only 4 months old and I already have "Dunlaps Disease." :) Then she must think I'm sleepy again because she put me back in the crib for a nap.

1 pm I'm awake again and really quite hungry, so please don't mind the howls of protest, they're really from my belly. Mom nurses me and I reward her with a little chuckle. It's a special kind of training, positive reinforcement, I heard about it once. You do something nice for them when they do something you want so that they will keep doing it. Some people might call this manipulation, but some people have obviously forgotten what it feels like to be a 4 month old.
We spend some "quality time" reading books and playing with toys, then I let her carry me around while she does chores around the house. I feel so bad for her, working all the time around the house, so I figured it would be best if I let her hold me so that she doesn't get lonely while she's working. I don't know why she fusses about how it's hard to sweep or fold laundry with one hand... she should be grateful for my company.

2:00 it's another naptime, and I'll stay asleep for maybe an hour this time.

3:30 I'm hungry again; I can't help it, so please just feed me already. Mommy decides to dance to music and drags me along with her. Someone should tell her that she has no rhythm but I'm afraid to offend the milk supply so it's not going to be me. After that she lets me recover in my bouncy seat. I love the little pull-toys... I can almost pull myself up and out of that chair with them!

4:30 I'm just really over this whole day so I think I need a little catnap.

5:00 Mom carries me around while she fixes dinner, we fold more laundry, look at Christmas tree lights, sing, and generally she tries to fill the time before it's my bedtime and keep me happy. I'm pretty tired by this part of the day so I think it's understandable that I'm a little fussy.

6:00 finally it's bathtime: I love the water, I love my rubber ducky, and I love splashing my feet and getting Mommy wet. Next is a nice quiet story time, nursing with Mom and cuddling with Daddy by the light of my little Christmas tree, and then I fall asleep in mommy's arms... the perfect ending to my day.