More Visitors from Michigan & Jane's Five Weeks' Progress

This week, Jane's grandpa Galloway, aka "Poppa," Bijal, and Gabriel came to visit.   We are just on the verge of truly hot, unbearable weather, so we took advantage of the relative coolness and went to the zoo.  Gabriel enjoyed seeing an elephant up close but couldn't get close enough to the Galapagos tortoises--so he decided to climb into their habitat with them.  Thankfully they are so slow and immobile they could be mistaken for rocks in the mud, so I suppose they're not very dangerous.  Jane seemed to enjoy all her outings although she didn't sleep very soundly on them, possibly because of the heat.  The doctor says she has heat rash around her neck.  Jane also got to see Nana and Grandpa again as they came up for dinner on Sunday. Daddy grilled a delicious pork loin with a spice rub and Mommy even got a minute to make strawberry shortcake--it's so nice to have people around to help!  We haven't really cooked in a long time!

In other news, Michael passed his prospectus defense this week, which means he can start on his dissertation officially. He is very relieved. I found out that I passed my preliminary exams so I can enter the prospectus-writing phase now.  Michael is also finishing up with his teaching responsibilities for the semester this week and next.  We're looking forward to our summer vacations and family reunions, although I wish we could squeeze a trip to Michigan in there, specifically when my friend Beverly gets married on Mackinac Island, complete with a rehearsal dinner at the Grand Hotel!  Michigan is awesome, as Tim Allen reminds us on our TV.  South Carolina and New York are pretty cool, too.

Janie is doing great with sleeping this last couple of days. I am trying to help her learn to go to sleep on her own, and it is working great so far!  She is sleeping much more soundly and for longer. I'm trying to pinpoint that "sweet spot" where she is tired (two yawns) but not overtired.  Erin is my mentor.  I just hope it continues this well.  I get so confused and nervous from all the books, philosophies, controversies, and my own complete exhaustion.  Jane is not only napping well, she is also sleeping well at night--from about 10-5 the last few nights.  After the 5 am feeding, she grunts loudly until she wakes up at 7--not sure what that is (except gas) or why it only happens after her middle of the night feeding.  She sleeps through the grunting but it doesn't seem pleasant. We may have partially solved her spit up problem by keeping her still after feedings (hard to do sometimes) and making sure I don't overfeed her or overwhelm her with "forceful let-down," especially in the morning.  I have also started pumping more so Michael can feed our sweetie, and we have been giving her regular baths at night, which she loves, just as the Baby Whisperer promised.