I know I’ve been going on and on about a general lack of sleep of late, but that’s because neither I nor Raelene have been getting any. Corinne is an incredible baby, a joy, but she’s also very intelligent (at least that’s what they’re telling us ~smiles~). Because she’s so alert and active, and because the world is so new and wonderful and she doesn’t want to miss anything, she’s only sleeping a handful of hours a day. She’s also in need of continuous stimulation and interaction from either myself or Raelene (mostly Raelene because she’s home with the baby during the day). Corinne is starting to be more interested in her toys and her activity mat, but only for short periods of time. She is definitley a high maintenance baby. Even the instructor of our childbirth classes, who is also a doula and has been around a lot of babies, commented as much when she met Corinne.
On the plus side, Corinne simply gets bored and fussy fairly quickly as the novelty of things wear off. I have several friends whose children had colic, and their babies would scream inconsolably for hours on end. Except during the witching hour, Corinne is alert, active, and ready to be stimulated and learn. It’s a good thing, but it also means she is taking a lot out of both of us, all day and all night. Now I really understand the statement that it takes a village to raise a child. A smart baby, any baby really, is difficult to raise alone.