Day 199

Gia's so silly.

Last night when I brought her upstairs for some quiet time before bed, all she wanted to do was bounce around and laugh...and eat her hands and blanket. She was definitely tired! She'd been yawning and rubbing her eyes before we went upstairs and was also clearly hungry, but that's what she does! I'm guessing the playfulness is a little bit because of tiredness, but it's pretty hilarious.

I keep reading that you should be boring at bedtime--make it a quiet, soothing experience--that you shouldn't engage in stimulating activity...and, for the most part, I don't. But when she's trying to jump up and down on my lap with her mouth wide open, or makes big eyes and opens her mouth, leaning toward me, to try to eat my face, or when she shoves her hand in her mouth, makes a big smile, and starts to make laughing sounds, I just can't help but engage! She's simply too funny.

Last night, she did all of this, of course...I had her standing up on my lap and I'd rock back and forth in the glider, bringing my face to hers every once in a while and saying things like "boo!" while she gave a single laugh for each one. At one point, she was sucking madly on her hand and smiling at me, so I'd stick my face right up to her and make noises or pretend to eat her hand as well...then she put both hands on either side of my face and I was just covered in slobber. It was so gross and cute at the same time.

She loves the dark. That's one problem with bedtime. We go upstairs to sit in the dark with some lullabies and just relax and try to finish eight ounces of milk before falling asleep. But what happens is that she just wants to make faces and laugh at you! The dark simply cracks her up. I love it, though, because then that cracks me up and I'm in a good mood. As long as my baby is happy, I guess I couldn't care less. And the play time doesn't go on for so long that it overtires her or eclipses bedtime. At some point, she'll scrunch her little face up and start rubbing her eyes, and then I know play time is officially over and she's probably ready to be rocked to sleep with a bottle in her mouth.

I wish I had a night vision camera to capture those nighttime play sessions, though :) Silly baby.