Baby Spa Day

Ahhh... so relaxed.

Today, if you're spouse or significant other is so inclined, you may have received some sort of gift certificate to a spa - maybe you need a pedi/mani, maybe a facial, and most decadent, maybe a massage.

But, I'm here to tell you that if you really love your significant other, you should forgo said gift certificate and treat your new baby to the spa day... well, not a spa day... just a massage.

Yes, us modern families have all lost our minds.

Or have we?

You've all read my struggles with trying to get Archer to sleep through the night and so, when I saw some early indications that Isla may be just like her brother in more ways than just her big cheeks and adorable-ness (that's a word), I panicked and took action.

I had read a little about craniosacral therapy for babies who had colic. I'm not sure if Archer had colic, or if Isla has colic. The more I read about colic (and there is a *lot out there), the less I'm even sure what it is. But what I do know is that on many nights so far, Isla is clearly struggling with gas or intestinal discomfort. That struggle leads to crying, the crying leads to no sleep for her and then no sleep for any of us. It's not fun, people.

Today, on Valentine's Day, Isla had a craniosacral massage by the lovely Alison Black at Evolve Chiropractic on Roncesvalles (who also give the *best pregnancy massages btw). It was a relaxing short 15-minute session in which Alison gently massaged Isla's spine, neck and head (I can't emphasize how gentle this was - really more like touching).

Seconds before the snoozing started.

During the session, Alison also gave me some good tips about how to help Isla when her tummy is upset. She bought me how to do an "I Love You" tummy massage (I link to a video on how to do it here). And she also showed me some leg movements that I had read about but until you see it done, you're never quite sure if you're doing it right. Both treatments came with the word of warning that such massages can have immediate and shocking results - I'm not going to go into details - but the words "projectile" and "poop" were used in the same sentence. 'Nuff said.

Thankfully, Isla, in her lovely Valentine's Day outfit, had no such disasters. But results seemed somewhat instantaneous... she fell asleep in the middle of the treatment and stayed asleep for 3 hours.

Will the positive results last? Only time will tell. Alison told me she's had mixed results. But today's treatment lasted long enough for my hubby and I to have as romantic a Valentine's Day lunch at Terroni as one can have with a toddler and a new baby.

And that, in an of itself, made Isla's spa day, well worth it.