I hear crying in my head.

Two weeks ago I wrote that I have more free time now that Grace is getting formula for half her feedings. Apparently that doesn't translate into regular posting on the blog!

The newest event in Grace's life over the last two weeks is "eating" vegetables. Actually, she's started doing pretty well at swallowing the food rather than just spitting it out everywhere, though I still imagine she's only ingesting about half a tablespoon when she eats.

First there were carrots:

On one hand, it looks like she hates them, but on the other hand, she keeps grabbing for the spoon and leaning forward for more bites. The nasty face has since disappeared, so I think it was the texture that was a turn-off while the taste was new and yummy. She must be getting accustomed to the texture of pureed veggies now.

This week we started peas:

I don't know if she likes peas more than carrots or has just gained some skill in eating, but the peas do not seem to end up everywhere like the carrots.

We took our first trip to the zoo where Grace pretty much noticed ceiling fans and fences, but as you can see from the picture she was happy about it!

(I'm sure she saw the chimps who were right up at the window playing with the little boy standing next to us. That might be the extent of her animal viewing this trip.) The OKC zoo is pretty great; I think there are many more trips in our future. It was a fun morning spent with a friend and her two kiddos.

My parents came for a visit, and Grace discovered Grandpa's beard.

The photo is blurry, but her reaction to the beard on her face was hilarious!

Daddy picked some sunflowers for Grace:

She loves them. And she wants to eat them. She pretty much wants to eat everything.

If I could sum up the last couple days, I would show you a picture of Grace lying in her crib crying. However, I do not wish to remember this period of time so have not documented the torture we're all going through. I am trying to a.) get Grace to nap for longer than 20-30-minutes at a time, b.) wean her from being rocked to sleep, and c.) teach her to calm herself down and get to sleep on her own. The girl needs to nap! Being crabby and tired all day is not an option. There are differing opinions on the appropriate ways to do this, but I am using a method that a couple people have told me works within a few days.

So far, for most naps (including the one she is supposed to be taking right this minute), I get to listen to Grace make various noises and squeals for up to half an hour before she decides to start crying. I then go through intervals of listening to her cry and then attempting to calm her down until it's about time for her to eat again! Thankfully yesterday and today she has gotten one nice hour and a half or two hour nap, so I'm taking that as progress.

Unfortunately, the other two naps in the day consist mostly of a lot of crying and fussing with very little actual sleep. This makes for a most unpleasant evening. Last night I handed her off to John because I just couldn't bear the crying and fussing any more. Even when it's quiet, I imagine her crying in my head.

Hopefully, all this torture will end in a child who gets adequate sleep during the day and is able to be put down for a nap (or sleep at night) by anyone, including a babysitter because we need to start utilizing one of those for the sake of our marriage.

And....cue the crying. This will pass. I just need to keep telling myself that!