The sweetest, calmest, easiest baby there ever was.
She weighs 14 pounds & 5 ounces, is 25.5″ tall, and is in the 86th percentile for her head (taking after big sis who is currently topping the charts with a 99th percentile head).
At Elena’s two month appointment, we found out she had torticollis which in turn caused her to have plagiocephaly and she needed to start physical therapy to improve it. For those of you who aren’t familiar with what that all means (I wasn’t either), torticollis basically is a fancy term for tight muscles in one side of the neck. It typically is a condition that develops while they are in the womb or from birth. Plagiocephaly is referring to a flat spot on one side of an infant’s head. Elena had tight muscles in the left side of her neck so it was most comfortable for her to turn her head to the left causing her to develop a flat spot on the left side of her head. (Notice in her 3 month picture above her head tilted to the left). Jaime and I laugh that her 86th percentile head isn’t doing her any favors having a weak neck.
I haven’t shared much about our journey through this because even though I know it’s not my fault, it still feels like it was. As her Mom, it’s my job to protect her but at the end of the day (especially with how life is now with COVID-19) she is perfectly healthy and I could not be more grateful for that.
Elena had her first physical therapy appointment on the day she turned two months and it was determined that her head was 10mm off on the left side. (0 would be a perfectly round head). In order for us to avoid Elena needing a helmet to correct her plagiocephaly her head needed to improve to 5mm or less. I want to apologize in advance to any PT’s out there reading this and shaking your head at my attempt at explaining all of this, I’m trying my best! After one month of weekly PT and a lot of at home exercises, her head went from 10mm to 7mm! It has now been 3 weeks since we have been able to go to PT due to COVID-19 but we are still working everyday to improve it.
Elena had her four month check up with our pediatrician yesterday and her torticollis is now completely corrected and her doctor is fairly confident she will not be needing a helmet to correct the shape of her head. We will be continuing to do at home exercises until we are able to meet with her PT again to check on the measurement progress. We are just so grateful that we continue to receive positive feedback from her doctors. This has all been a big learning experience for us and if sharing our story helps even one parent out there feel like they aren’t alone or responsible for it, it’s worth it for me!
Okay, back to the fun stuff about our girl.
Elena giggled for the first time on March 23rd! I cried. Hearing and seeing your baby’s little personality grow is the sweetest thing in the world. Jaime caught her first giggles on video and in that moment I knew I made the right choice of marrying him 😉
Marina and Elena are equally obsessed with each other. Elena is still in her bassinet next to our bed and every morning when Marina wakes up, she immediately comes to our room and insists on us laying Elena on her so she can say “Good Morning Elena” and “I miss you” in her cute little high pitch voice. After Marina’s nap we bring Elena in and lay her in the crib with Marina and they are both in heaven. Marina always tells us to leave the room and shut the door so she can just have time with Elena. We are convinced no sisters have ever loved each other more than our girls do.
Elena goes to bed around 7pm, wakes 1-2 times per night to nurse, and wakes up for the day around 7am. She then stays awake for 1 hour and naps for 2 hours for the remainder of the day. She is our little scheduled baby and strives on it.
She is starting to love playing with her toys, she falls asleep instantly in the car & on walks, and loves to be swaddled up tight. I’m sure I said the same thing about Marina as a baby (and Marina really was a good baby), but Elena is truly the most content baby and makes having 2 under 2 easy (for now ha).
We love you Elena Belle <3
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