April 7: I started this post a week ago, but I must have been inturrupted by a fussy baby!
Sylvia is a lot like her brother. I don’t know what babies are like in general, but the two that I’ve been lucky enough to raise are pretty similar. And they both have had kind of a rough time around the 5-8 week time period. Looking back at home videos and pictures, I remember that Andrew spent a lot of time crying about this time. I don’t think either one is a particular fussy baby. Just normal. And mixed in with some unhappy times are so many sweet smiles (and Sylvia has dimples to boot!). She’s getting increasingly aware of the world, and I think she wants to explore it constantly. Just know that if you call between 5/5:30 and whenever she falls asleep (sometimes 8:30, sometimes 10), she may well be crying!
Advice about this time:
Most babies have at least one fussy spell per day. Normal newborn fussiness begins at about one to three weeks of age, peaks at about six to eight weeks, and is gone by about three to four months. That daily spell usually lasts around two to four hours. During this time, your baby may want to breastfeed very frequently. We call this a cluster feeding.
Your baby may also want to be held without being put down and may seem generally unhappy no matter what you do. Don’t let it bother you. This normal fussiness isn’t a sign that anything is wrong with your milk, the baby or the way you are mothering. A lot of research has been done to learn why babies fuss at times, and theories abound. Yet no one seems to have a clear reason why this occurs. We just know that most babies do it and thrive anyway. It’s probably just a normal developmental stage of the infant.
http://parenting.ivillage.com/newborn/nbreastfeed/0,,8znwfldp-1,00.html