The fourth trimester

It's amazing how little things and different views can alter our states of mind. Especially with babies. It's amazing how much we can learn from these tiny people who have no concept of the world around them yet.
Madison has taught me so much already- to ignore the clock and just enjoy the moment, not to make plans because things can change at any given time, that we can't live our lives on a tight schedule, but need to have fun instead. And mostly she taught me how to let go of my ego and love selflessly without inhibitions. It's amazing how much we can learn about ourselves from babies.
A book that has been sitting on my shelf for a while now taught me how to to make her happy. "The happiest baby on the block" is a book about the fourth trimester and how to activate the baby's calming reflex. Just like everything else these days i started to read it and never finished it. Just like everything else i do i believed some of the stuff, some i dismissed as nonsense. Until my doula demonstrated how incredibly well this stuff works.
she brought me a video from the same guy who wrote the book and she herself calms Madison and puts her to sleep in no time. So i had no choice but to believe everything the book teaches. The premise is that because babies are born prematurely compared to all other mammals ( they have to be since a head any bigger is not fitting through birth canal without ripping the mother in two) the first three months are the last trimester they were supposed to spend in the womb. so to calm them down all you need to do is make them feel at home, the womb that is.
Wrap them up real tight, no worries they are used to be squeezed. Turn on the hair dryer, or the fan or whatever other appliances is handy and makes a lot of noise. Turn them on their side and jiggle them like you mean it. so simple. I had tried these things separately and they sort of worked. Last night i had no more patience and tried them all together. She didn't move from 11:30 till 4:30. And mommy got the longest strech of sleep since Madison was born. Yes, i woke up because my boobs were bursting and i had to pump but there was no crying baby to deal with.
Can't wait to show this stuff to my husband- it works like a charm. Yeah, he'll be sceptical at first but who cares.
she is asleep now and the hair dryer is blowing away next to me. But i remember when i was little i wanted my mom to point the hairdryer to my feet and i would drift off blissfully- it's the small things that makes us happy.

E