Five Weeks.

5 weeks for the Big Lady. There is one word that defines this week: patience. My patience has been tested so many times this week. Brooke hit the infamous 6-week growth spurt a few weeks early (because she thinks she's that old) and has been a handful. She decided to spend an abnormal amount of time awake in a 48-hour period. On top of a lack of sleep, she got hungry more frequently than usual but would only eat a little bit at a time. Oh yeah, and the Poop Monster (the nickname our poor child has received from both of her parents and will more than likely send her to therapy in the future) has been ruining outfits left and right. 4 a.m. explosions are my favorite - nothing like stripping a half-asleep, half-pissed infant in the middle of the night, trying to calm the starving child while dealing with the poop that is just everywhere. Let's just say we're down 1 onesie as I decided at 4 a.m. it wasn't worth my time or sanity to clean it and so into the trash can it went.

Today was the (knock on wood) turning point for us. We had a pretty good night, going 7 hours between feedings. This morning, I woke up to find that my little one, still fast asleep, had fallen from her side-sleep position onto her belly. That's right, her belly. Call the SIDS-police now, folks, because I *gasp!* left her that way. I took a shower, got ready, and even ate my breakfast, and all the while my baby girl was sleeping on her belly. And I don't feel bad about it, nor did I worry about her - she's freakishly strong. Plus, I felt like a human being again! Not only that, but not having to depend on someone else to help with her so I could do all of these things left me in an incredibly good mood. Bonus!

Speaking of freakish strength...the pediatrician told us to increase Tummy Time from now on to improve Brooke's already incredible upper body strength. So, we worked some in today. Here's the step-by-step process in pictures: first, figure out what's going on; next, rest up for what is going to be a tough couple of minutes; then, it's go time - lift, lift, lift!