It's been a week since I last checked in but it seems like we have made our way to Dreamland... for the most part.
Isabella has been doing really well with our new routine. I did find that her natural bedtime was around 10pm so instead of letting her cry for 1 or 2 hours, we just started putting her to bed at 10pm and she would cry for maybe a couple of minutes before she was out. And lately, she has moved her bedtime up to 8:30/9pm so I actually get some alone time before going to bed.
For the most part, she is crying anywhere from 2 minutes to 15 minutes before falling asleep but there has been a night or 2 where it has been longer but nothing that we can't handle.
She is still waking up in the night for a feed but every night except for one the other night, she is right back to sleep until morning.
So, it seems like things are going well but I've learned nothing is ever certain so to just take it one night at a time and appreciate every hour of sleep I can get.
Thank you for supporting me in this journey and I will update as time and progress goes on :0)
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Sleep Sense Night 7
I can't believe that it has been a week already since we started sleep training Isabella.
It has been a crazy emotional week but we are making progress!
Last night for the 2nd night in a row, she only cried for a minute or so before falling asleep and she slept for almost 8 hours. She woke up at 5:45 and I was able to give her a quick feed and back to bed until 8:30am this morning.
I don't want to get my hopes up yet but it is sure nice not having to deal with a screaming baby for hours and hours.
So, I guess we can put another mark in the win column!
It has been a crazy emotional week but we are making progress!
Last night for the 2nd night in a row, she only cried for a minute or so before falling asleep and she slept for almost 8 hours. She woke up at 5:45 and I was able to give her a quick feed and back to bed until 8:30am this morning.
I don't want to get my hopes up yet but it is sure nice not having to deal with a screaming baby for hours and hours.
So, I guess we can put another mark in the win column!
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Sleep Sense Night 6
It is crazy how every single night is different from the night before. It's hard to stay consistent with times but I'm still keeping the routine the same even though she napping schedule is all over the place.
I tried putting her down for a early evening nap but she just cried so i got her up and just kept her up until bedtime.
We started out bedtime routine at 9:00pm and she was in bed by 9:15pm. I was prepared for 45 minutes of crying as her natural sleep time seems to be around 10pm but she cried for 30 seconds and was out.
I've learned to not do the happy dance cause you never know what tricks she has up her sleeve and I was totally prepared for her to wake up around 10;30pm but she didn't. She slept until 3:30am! I was able to do a quick feed and put her back down. In and out in 10 minutes! she did wake up a second time though at 5:45am but again, just a quick feed and back asleep and still sleeping at 8:30am.
So, I will mark this one in the win column!
But like I said, 2 nights are never the same so we will continue to see what goes on and hopefully she falls into a sleep routine quickly!
My goal is to be able to put her down with no or little crying around 9pm and stay asleep for the night by Saturday..... that's when Breaking Dawn comes out and I would like to be able to make a night of it :0)
I tried putting her down for a early evening nap but she just cried so i got her up and just kept her up until bedtime.
We started out bedtime routine at 9:00pm and she was in bed by 9:15pm. I was prepared for 45 minutes of crying as her natural sleep time seems to be around 10pm but she cried for 30 seconds and was out.
I've learned to not do the happy dance cause you never know what tricks she has up her sleeve and I was totally prepared for her to wake up around 10;30pm but she didn't. She slept until 3:30am! I was able to do a quick feed and put her back down. In and out in 10 minutes! she did wake up a second time though at 5:45am but again, just a quick feed and back asleep and still sleeping at 8:30am.
So, I will mark this one in the win column!
But like I said, 2 nights are never the same so we will continue to see what goes on and hopefully she falls into a sleep routine quickly!
My goal is to be able to put her down with no or little crying around 9pm and stay asleep for the night by Saturday..... that's when Breaking Dawn comes out and I would like to be able to make a night of it :0)
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Sleep Sense Night 5
So, after having a few really rough nights with trying to figure out what method works for us and trying to stick to my guns and making a few revelations about Isabella's sleep habits, I came up with a plan and stuck with it.
She seems to be a night owl and like a bedtime around 10pm. I put her down for a catnap around 6:45pm and like clockwork, she woke up 45 minutes later. I kept her up until 8:45 then started our bedtime routine. I put her down around 9:15pm seeing if she would go to sleep by of course she cried. After trying a few other methods, I have come to realize that she is going to cry and that is okay. After after 45 minutes of crying (going in to check on her and lay her back down as she keeps standing up) she fell asleep at 10pm.
After falling asleep, she slept for almost 8 hours and woke for a brief 10 minutes to eat and right back to sleep. She slept until 8:30am. That is 10 1/2 hours in a row for her!
Too bad I didn't get that much sleep as Lexi came crawling in at 3:30am with us. I guess if it's not one, it's another. Will I ever get a good night sleep again? lol
She seems to be a night owl and like a bedtime around 10pm. I put her down for a catnap around 6:45pm and like clockwork, she woke up 45 minutes later. I kept her up until 8:45 then started our bedtime routine. I put her down around 9:15pm seeing if she would go to sleep by of course she cried. After trying a few other methods, I have come to realize that she is going to cry and that is okay. After after 45 minutes of crying (going in to check on her and lay her back down as she keeps standing up) she fell asleep at 10pm.
After falling asleep, she slept for almost 8 hours and woke for a brief 10 minutes to eat and right back to sleep. She slept until 8:30am. That is 10 1/2 hours in a row for her!
Too bad I didn't get that much sleep as Lexi came crawling in at 3:30am with us. I guess if it's not one, it's another. Will I ever get a good night sleep again? lol
Sleep Sense Night 4
I have appreciated all the support that I have received from all of my friends and family about Miss Bella's sleep progress. It makes me feel like I am not alone in the journey and I do understand that everyone has an opinion on what works best but also understand that all babies are different.
I know i have been told (on more than one occasion) to pick a method and stick with it but it is hard to stick to your guns when you are not seeing any progress. You are always second guessing yourself while your baby is screaming away.
So last night, I decided to try something different to see if I would could make any new progress.
I decided to put her to bed like usual but just sit in her room so she knew I was there. I didn't talk to her or giver her any attention but just sat to reassure her that she wasn't alone.
She played for an hour then started to cry. I would lay her back down then sit back down. After an hour and a half, she was crying like I wasn't even in the room. While sitting there, I was going how Isabella used to sleep as a newborn because she used to sleep for 9 hours at night from 6 weeks until about 3 months old. I realized that she has always cried before going to sleep. Even when she was in her swing perfectly happy, she would always cry for about 5 minutes before falling asleep and she does it in the car as well. So I think crying is just an Isabella trait so I'm trying hard not to be scared of it or give in to it, but to just accept it.
I am also figuring out after logging her activity for the past few days that no matter what time I put her down for bed, she will cry until 10pm. I know that is late for a baby but that just seems to be her time.
Slowly but surely, I will figure this little girl out....
I know i have been told (on more than one occasion) to pick a method and stick with it but it is hard to stick to your guns when you are not seeing any progress. You are always second guessing yourself while your baby is screaming away.
So last night, I decided to try something different to see if I would could make any new progress.
I decided to put her to bed like usual but just sit in her room so she knew I was there. I didn't talk to her or giver her any attention but just sat to reassure her that she wasn't alone.
She played for an hour then started to cry. I would lay her back down then sit back down. After an hour and a half, she was crying like I wasn't even in the room. While sitting there, I was going how Isabella used to sleep as a newborn because she used to sleep for 9 hours at night from 6 weeks until about 3 months old. I realized that she has always cried before going to sleep. Even when she was in her swing perfectly happy, she would always cry for about 5 minutes before falling asleep and she does it in the car as well. So I think crying is just an Isabella trait so I'm trying hard not to be scared of it or give in to it, but to just accept it.
I am also figuring out after logging her activity for the past few days that no matter what time I put her down for bed, she will cry until 10pm. I know that is late for a baby but that just seems to be her time.
Slowly but surely, I will figure this little girl out....
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Sleep Sense Night 3
Considering Isabella took an hour the night before instead of the 2 hours of crying on night 1, I thought we were making some progress but I guess not.
She cried for another 2 hours last night. I feel like I'm at the end of my rope. I honestly do not know what to do. She only had 2 naps during the day. One being an hour and the other one being 30 minutes. I'm thinking this may have been what led to alot of the crying last night as well but every time I take her in her room (even just to get something) she is starting to cry.
I don't want her room to be a negative place for her but not quite sure what to do.
On a positive note, when she is waking up in the night, she has only been up for 15 minutes the past 2 nights.
I have a couple of ideas that I'm going to try tonight and we will see how they pan out. If not, I'm out of ideas.
She cried for another 2 hours last night. I feel like I'm at the end of my rope. I honestly do not know what to do. She only had 2 naps during the day. One being an hour and the other one being 30 minutes. I'm thinking this may have been what led to alot of the crying last night as well but every time I take her in her room (even just to get something) she is starting to cry.
I don't want her room to be a negative place for her but not quite sure what to do.
On a positive note, when she is waking up in the night, she has only been up for 15 minutes the past 2 nights.
I have a couple of ideas that I'm going to try tonight and we will see how they pan out. If not, I'm out of ideas.
Saturday, February 4, 2012
Sleep Sense Night 2
After the night before, I wasn't sure what we would be in for last night but we stuck with the routine (and our guns) and it seems to be getting better.
We started her bedtime routine at 7:20pm and she was in bed by 7:40pm. She cried for 10 minutes and was asleep. I thought I had hit the jackpot but of course, nothing is that easy around here. She woke up at 8:30pm and started to cry. I was starting to get the kids ready for bed and her crying was getting worse. After getting the kids in bed, i went in to find Don rocking her..... of course she was crying!
Once, I had her settled and routine done over again, I was able to put her down awake, she cried for 10 minutes and slept until 2:30am.
I waited 10 minutes to see if she would fall back asleep on her own but she didn't so after a quick feed and put back down awake, she wined once and was asleep until 7:30am when the kids got up and woke her up.
I'm still torn as to what to do in the middle of the night. Should I be giving her a quick feed or try to cut it out?
I know she doesn't "need" the feed and will continue to wake up for it if I let her but right now I'm just happy that she isn't up for 2 hours in the middle of the night, that i really don't mind if she is back out within 15 minutes.
I know I will have t cut it out at some time but just trying to focus on getting her to fall asleep on her own in general right now.
She is cranky this morning so I know she didn't get enough sleep last night. I'm going to move up her bedtime to 7pm tonight and see if she can get an extra hour or so in before the kids wake her up again tomorrow.
But all in all, it was a pretty good night.
We started her bedtime routine at 7:20pm and she was in bed by 7:40pm. She cried for 10 minutes and was asleep. I thought I had hit the jackpot but of course, nothing is that easy around here. She woke up at 8:30pm and started to cry. I was starting to get the kids ready for bed and her crying was getting worse. After getting the kids in bed, i went in to find Don rocking her..... of course she was crying!
Once, I had her settled and routine done over again, I was able to put her down awake, she cried for 10 minutes and slept until 2:30am.
I waited 10 minutes to see if she would fall back asleep on her own but she didn't so after a quick feed and put back down awake, she wined once and was asleep until 7:30am when the kids got up and woke her up.
I'm still torn as to what to do in the middle of the night. Should I be giving her a quick feed or try to cut it out?
I know she doesn't "need" the feed and will continue to wake up for it if I let her but right now I'm just happy that she isn't up for 2 hours in the middle of the night, that i really don't mind if she is back out within 15 minutes.
I know I will have t cut it out at some time but just trying to focus on getting her to fall asleep on her own in general right now.
She is cranky this morning so I know she didn't get enough sleep last night. I'm going to move up her bedtime to 7pm tonight and see if she can get an extra hour or so in before the kids wake her up again tomorrow.
But all in all, it was a pretty good night.
Friday, February 3, 2012
Sleep Sense Night 1
So, I have decided to try the Sleep Sense program. It is similar to what I have been already doing but eliminating the sleep props like nursing and rocking Isabella to sleep and teaching her to fall asleep on her own at bedtime and in the night.
I was in the middle of reading the program when it was her bedtime so I did a few of the tips that I had already read at bedtime to see how it would go.
Let's just say, it didn't go well at all.
In the end, she cried for 2 hours before she fell asleep. I do go in and check on her every 20 minutes as I can't fathom the thought of just leaving her until morning. I'm glad I did too cause she had 2 poopy diapers before she fell asleep. Lexi used to do the same thing, i swear she did it on purpose.
So once she was asleep, I did a big mommy no no and checked on her. Of course, she woke up and I wanted to die. I know I should have learned from last time but I wanted to make sure she wasn't cold. She is crawling all over and pulling herself up to standing so I can't put her in a sleep sack (although, now that I look back, maybe i should so she will stay down)
So, of course the crying started again and I caved. I nursed her and she was out.
She slept for 5 hours and was up at 3:30am. I went in, nursed her and put her down awake and the crying started again. Again, I went in every 20 minutes and I'm not sure how much longer she cried but I fell asleep at 5am. But she did fall asleep so that's a good thing.
I finished reading the program this morning so have some more info on what to do in the nights going forward.
I know she is not going to go quietly in this process but I am more then done.
I am going to make a few changes tonight and see how it goes.
I'm going to try putting her down earlier then I have been and doing a longer bedtime routine to settle her down instead of her playing then pow, it's bedtime. I'm going to nurse her but put her down awake and take it from there.
Please pray this doesn't take too long and that our sweet stubborn little girl gets the hint that Mommy can not do this anymore.
I was in the middle of reading the program when it was her bedtime so I did a few of the tips that I had already read at bedtime to see how it would go.
Let's just say, it didn't go well at all.
In the end, she cried for 2 hours before she fell asleep. I do go in and check on her every 20 minutes as I can't fathom the thought of just leaving her until morning. I'm glad I did too cause she had 2 poopy diapers before she fell asleep. Lexi used to do the same thing, i swear she did it on purpose.
So once she was asleep, I did a big mommy no no and checked on her. Of course, she woke up and I wanted to die. I know I should have learned from last time but I wanted to make sure she wasn't cold. She is crawling all over and pulling herself up to standing so I can't put her in a sleep sack (although, now that I look back, maybe i should so she will stay down)
So, of course the crying started again and I caved. I nursed her and she was out.
She slept for 5 hours and was up at 3:30am. I went in, nursed her and put her down awake and the crying started again. Again, I went in every 20 minutes and I'm not sure how much longer she cried but I fell asleep at 5am. But she did fall asleep so that's a good thing.
I finished reading the program this morning so have some more info on what to do in the nights going forward.
I know she is not going to go quietly in this process but I am more then done.
I am going to make a few changes tonight and see how it goes.
I'm going to try putting her down earlier then I have been and doing a longer bedtime routine to settle her down instead of her playing then pow, it's bedtime. I'm going to nurse her but put her down awake and take it from there.
Please pray this doesn't take too long and that our sweet stubborn little girl gets the hint that Mommy can not do this anymore.
Nights 20+
I have blogged lately cause there hasn't really been anything to blog about. Every night is the same.
I put her down, she wakes up, she cries, we are up for hours, she falls asleep, I put her down, I close the door, she wakes up and cries.
It's been the same thing every night and I'm at a total loss and totally exhausted. I can't even describe how tired I am.
I was reading an email last night from a sleep program that has been trying to get me to get their program but I thought if I just kept doing what I was doing, it would get better.
In the email, it talked about insanity.
Did you know that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over but expecting different results?
So it's official! I AM INSANE!
This was an uh-huh moment for me. This is exactly what I have been doing for the past 3 weeks.
So, I finally bought the Sleep Sense Program, read most of it last night and started our journey... again.
It is alot of what I have been already doing but with this I need to eliminate the sleep props that I use with her and teach her how to fall asleep on her own.
I know we are going to have some rough nights but honestly, we've had a rough 3 weeks already, I don't think another week or 2 weeks will kill me.... or maybe it will ;0)
I guess we will find out.......
I put her down, she wakes up, she cries, we are up for hours, she falls asleep, I put her down, I close the door, she wakes up and cries.
It's been the same thing every night and I'm at a total loss and totally exhausted. I can't even describe how tired I am.
I was reading an email last night from a sleep program that has been trying to get me to get their program but I thought if I just kept doing what I was doing, it would get better.
In the email, it talked about insanity.
Did you know that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over but expecting different results?
So it's official! I AM INSANE!
This was an uh-huh moment for me. This is exactly what I have been doing for the past 3 weeks.
So, I finally bought the Sleep Sense Program, read most of it last night and started our journey... again.
It is alot of what I have been already doing but with this I need to eliminate the sleep props that I use with her and teach her how to fall asleep on her own.
I know we are going to have some rough nights but honestly, we've had a rough 3 weeks already, I don't think another week or 2 weeks will kill me.... or maybe it will ;0)
I guess we will find out.......
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Nights Nineteen & Twenty
I think I need to stop telling people that Isabella had a good night cause it seems like every time I do, she feels the need to prove me wrong.
Night Nineteen was good. She went to bed at 10pm, woke up at 4am, went straight back to sleep and was out till morning. Thought we were definitely getting into a good routine.
A couple friends and my mom asked about her yesterday and I said hopefully we are seeing the light at the end of this dark sleepless tunnel after all!
Then last night she went down fine and slept till 4am again but then was up until 6am. I just kept doing our same routine over and over when I would put her down but she just kept screaming when I would leave the room.
I did finally try bringing her to bed with me but she didn't like that either. Finally, I did our routine again, gave her some homeopathic sleep juice and she was out.
Now if i could give her this stuff every night we would be golden but that is not teaching her anything so on we go trying to figure this out.
Night Nineteen was good. She went to bed at 10pm, woke up at 4am, went straight back to sleep and was out till morning. Thought we were definitely getting into a good routine.
A couple friends and my mom asked about her yesterday and I said hopefully we are seeing the light at the end of this dark sleepless tunnel after all!
Then last night she went down fine and slept till 4am again but then was up until 6am. I just kept doing our same routine over and over when I would put her down but she just kept screaming when I would leave the room.
I did finally try bringing her to bed with me but she didn't like that either. Finally, I did our routine again, gave her some homeopathic sleep juice and she was out.
Now if i could give her this stuff every night we would be golden but that is not teaching her anything so on we go trying to figure this out.
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Nights Sixteen, Seventeen & Eighteen
So, a bug has hit our house and we have all been feeling like poo poo. I will admit, it could really be alot worse but I just haven't been feeling up to blogging the past few days.
Night Sixteen was superly awful. I was just starting to feel sick so all I wanted to do was sleep. So of course, Isabella decided not too. It seems like whatever I want her to do, she does the opposite! Maybe I should start using reverse psychology and tell her to stay up with me... maybe then she would sleep!
But this night, she decided it would be a good idea to fall asleep at 9pm only to wake up at midnight and stay up until 5am. Let's just say, I was not the happiest mommy on the block that morning. She would fall asleep every once and awhile but would only stay asleep for 20 minutes at a time. I think she was coming down with a cold as well so I can't really blame her or be mad at her..... plus, she is too stinking cute to be mad at, but that was a rough rough night.
Tuesday morning is when I totally got sick and had a miserable day. Luckily, Bells was so exhausted for her all night marathon that she had 3 great naps that day. She had gone down for her last nap at 7pm thinking she would wake up around 8pm but she slept till 10pm... just as I was going to bed thinking maybe, just maybe she would sleep. I put her back down at 11pm as I could not keep my eyes open for another minute and she woke up at 2:30am. I tried our regular nightly routine that I have been doing constantly to get her back down but I think between teething and getting a cold, she was so cranky, I put her in the swing and she fell back asleep. We were all in dreamland until Zachary came in at 6am ready for the day.
Then again yesterday, she had 3 good naps and went down around 9pm. It took 4 attempts to get her to sleep but once she fell asleep about 10pm, she slept until 4:30am. I was able to get her back to sleep with no issues and she slept till 8 this morning.
When Don asked how she slept last night and I told him, he seemed optimistic that she is getting in the groove of things.... which I replied, you just jinx me lol
We will see how she continues to do but just waiting for the day she starts to sleep.... I know it will come one day but hoping this isn't one trait that she learns from Lexi as she didn't sleep through the night until this past summer (that is over 4 years!) There isn't enough make up in the world that will be able to help me if it comes to that!
Night Sixteen was superly awful. I was just starting to feel sick so all I wanted to do was sleep. So of course, Isabella decided not too. It seems like whatever I want her to do, she does the opposite! Maybe I should start using reverse psychology and tell her to stay up with me... maybe then she would sleep!
But this night, she decided it would be a good idea to fall asleep at 9pm only to wake up at midnight and stay up until 5am. Let's just say, I was not the happiest mommy on the block that morning. She would fall asleep every once and awhile but would only stay asleep for 20 minutes at a time. I think she was coming down with a cold as well so I can't really blame her or be mad at her..... plus, she is too stinking cute to be mad at, but that was a rough rough night.
Tuesday morning is when I totally got sick and had a miserable day. Luckily, Bells was so exhausted for her all night marathon that she had 3 great naps that day. She had gone down for her last nap at 7pm thinking she would wake up around 8pm but she slept till 10pm... just as I was going to bed thinking maybe, just maybe she would sleep. I put her back down at 11pm as I could not keep my eyes open for another minute and she woke up at 2:30am. I tried our regular nightly routine that I have been doing constantly to get her back down but I think between teething and getting a cold, she was so cranky, I put her in the swing and she fell back asleep. We were all in dreamland until Zachary came in at 6am ready for the day.
Then again yesterday, she had 3 good naps and went down around 9pm. It took 4 attempts to get her to sleep but once she fell asleep about 10pm, she slept until 4:30am. I was able to get her back to sleep with no issues and she slept till 8 this morning.
When Don asked how she slept last night and I told him, he seemed optimistic that she is getting in the groove of things.... which I replied, you just jinx me lol
We will see how she continues to do but just waiting for the day she starts to sleep.... I know it will come one day but hoping this isn't one trait that she learns from Lexi as she didn't sleep through the night until this past summer (that is over 4 years!) There isn't enough make up in the world that will be able to help me if it comes to that!
Monday, January 23, 2012
Night Fifteen
I think I have learned something about my sweet Isabella.... She is a night owl like her Daddy.
All the sleep experts and books keep telling me that her bedtime needs to be between 7 and 8pm so she can sleep a full 11-12 hours a night. So that's what I've been doing. I've been putting her down around 8:30pm after the big kids go to bed as there is no point putting her down before that cause my kids are so freakin' loud, even if she did fall asleep, she would wake up within 20 minutes.
So, again, she's been going down around 8:30pm but it has been taking her 2 hours to fall asleep. This has been going on for about a week now. So for the last 2 nights, I've been keeping track on what time she actually falls asleep for the night and both nights, she finally stops crying at 10:13pm.... see I told you I had a strange connection with the number 13.
So, she fell asleep around 10 and slept till 4am and I was able to put her right back down after her feeding.
So, I think I'm going to start saving myself 2 hours of crying and put her down an hour later and see if that helps. I guess all I can do is try...
All the sleep experts and books keep telling me that her bedtime needs to be between 7 and 8pm so she can sleep a full 11-12 hours a night. So that's what I've been doing. I've been putting her down around 8:30pm after the big kids go to bed as there is no point putting her down before that cause my kids are so freakin' loud, even if she did fall asleep, she would wake up within 20 minutes.
So, again, she's been going down around 8:30pm but it has been taking her 2 hours to fall asleep. This has been going on for about a week now. So for the last 2 nights, I've been keeping track on what time she actually falls asleep for the night and both nights, she finally stops crying at 10:13pm.... see I told you I had a strange connection with the number 13.
So, she fell asleep around 10 and slept till 4am and I was able to put her right back down after her feeding.
So, I think I'm going to start saving myself 2 hours of crying and put her down an hour later and see if that helps. I guess all I can do is try...
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Night Fourteen
Can't beleive it have been 2 weeks of this sleep craziness already.
Isabella had a hard time falling asleep last night. I'm not sure if I need to be tweaking our nightly routine cause the past few nights, she starts to cry during the routine as she now knows when it is bedtime.
It took her almost 2 hours to fall asleep again but once she was asleep (she fell asleep at 10:15pm) she slept till 5:30am! I was able to go in, feed her and put her back down and she slept until 9:30am!
Another plus from last night is that she likes to sleep in her baby papasan chair. I don't turn the vibrate on unless she is really cranky but I think she just likes to sleep propped up. I find if I lay her down, she is more fussy and sleeps less. Not sure if it is the fact that she is all cozy when she is in the chair and when she is laying down, it feels too big for her. But she is starting to grow out of the chair now and I've been trying to figure out what to do about this. So last night, I thought of a brilliant idea! I put the nursing pillow in the crib and laid her in it propped up. She didn't even wake! I was so happy. Then it came to me afterwards that I used to do that for Alexis for years!
I guess it is true that even the hardest moments being a mommy where you don't know what to do or how you will get through will soon become faded memories in the past.
As one of my favorite sayings goes "this to shall pass"
I'm hoping this is one of those moments....
Isabella had a hard time falling asleep last night. I'm not sure if I need to be tweaking our nightly routine cause the past few nights, she starts to cry during the routine as she now knows when it is bedtime.
It took her almost 2 hours to fall asleep again but once she was asleep (she fell asleep at 10:15pm) she slept till 5:30am! I was able to go in, feed her and put her back down and she slept until 9:30am!
Another plus from last night is that she likes to sleep in her baby papasan chair. I don't turn the vibrate on unless she is really cranky but I think she just likes to sleep propped up. I find if I lay her down, she is more fussy and sleeps less. Not sure if it is the fact that she is all cozy when she is in the chair and when she is laying down, it feels too big for her. But she is starting to grow out of the chair now and I've been trying to figure out what to do about this. So last night, I thought of a brilliant idea! I put the nursing pillow in the crib and laid her in it propped up. She didn't even wake! I was so happy. Then it came to me afterwards that I used to do that for Alexis for years!
I guess it is true that even the hardest moments being a mommy where you don't know what to do or how you will get through will soon become faded memories in the past.
As one of my favorite sayings goes "this to shall pass"
I'm hoping this is one of those moments....
Saturday, January 21, 2012
Night Thirteen
13 from what I have been told is suppose to me my power number. Whenever I see a 13, on that day or anything relating to it, I'm supermom and have the universe behind me.... well, that's what I was told anyways.
So, since it was night 13, I thought it would be a great night, all the stars would align and keep Baby Bella asleep for the whole night! Ya, thanks for nothing universe!
She got upset during our night time routine again and it took her almost 2 hours to fall asleep.
She did sleep to 3am though but when I tried to put her back down (she was asleep) the minute I closed the door, she woke up and started to cry. And I should just mention that I am not slamming her door or closing it normally like you would during the day, this is super quiet, turn the knob all the way open then all the way shut so you don't hear a thing.
I have been exhausted lately so after trying to get her back to sleep with no success, I brought her into bed with us. She tossed and turned but did fall asleep although it was a restless night for all of us. I feel sorry her future husband as it seems like Bells likes to sleep sideways in bed lol The poor guy is going to have to sleep on the couch... which will be just fine with me ;0)
I finally put her back in her own bed at 7:30am as the older kids were getting up and she is just waking up now at 9:30am.
Starting to feel a little lost again as I have been staying (mostly) consistent and still every night is a new adventure.... and adventure frankly, I'm ready to be over with.
We got a babysitter for the older kids today for the first time since the beginning of November! So Don and I (and Bella) are going on a date but even this I had to book around Isabella. I didn't want to mess with her routine so our babysitter is coming at 3:00 this afternoon lol Wahoo! Date afternoon for us! (Enter eye roll here lol)
I feel like this has taken on a life of it's own and is now running all of our lives. So ready to have a system in place!
So, since it was night 13, I thought it would be a great night, all the stars would align and keep Baby Bella asleep for the whole night! Ya, thanks for nothing universe!
She got upset during our night time routine again and it took her almost 2 hours to fall asleep.
She did sleep to 3am though but when I tried to put her back down (she was asleep) the minute I closed the door, she woke up and started to cry. And I should just mention that I am not slamming her door or closing it normally like you would during the day, this is super quiet, turn the knob all the way open then all the way shut so you don't hear a thing.
I have been exhausted lately so after trying to get her back to sleep with no success, I brought her into bed with us. She tossed and turned but did fall asleep although it was a restless night for all of us. I feel sorry her future husband as it seems like Bells likes to sleep sideways in bed lol The poor guy is going to have to sleep on the couch... which will be just fine with me ;0)
I finally put her back in her own bed at 7:30am as the older kids were getting up and she is just waking up now at 9:30am.
Starting to feel a little lost again as I have been staying (mostly) consistent and still every night is a new adventure.... and adventure frankly, I'm ready to be over with.
We got a babysitter for the older kids today for the first time since the beginning of November! So Don and I (and Bella) are going on a date but even this I had to book around Isabella. I didn't want to mess with her routine so our babysitter is coming at 3:00 this afternoon lol Wahoo! Date afternoon for us! (Enter eye roll here lol)
I feel like this has taken on a life of it's own and is now running all of our lives. So ready to have a system in place!
Friday, January 20, 2012
Night Twelve
So, the good new is that Isabella is starting to realize when it is bedtime.
I have been keeping the same bedtime routine for a week now so she clues in when I go into her room and turn on the sound machine and start our routine.....
Bad new is that she is starting to cry during the routine now, while I'm nursing her, when I put her down and after I leave the room. This is making for alot of crying and not enough sleeping.
It took me an hour to get her to sleep and then she was up at 1am, 4am and 8am.
Not sure what is going on. I think she might be teething again but when I am holding her or when she is playing she is fine so even if she is teething, I think it is more of a separation anxiety than anything else.
Her naps have been off which could have something to do with it as well. Earlier in the week, it was freakin' cold outside (-30/40's) and since I didn't have anywhere to be, we stayed in. This was good as I was able to put her down for 2 solid naps (sometimes 3) a day and I did see an improvement in her night time sleeping. But life goes on and later in the week I had to go out and I found she wasn't napping as well in the car as she did when she was younger. So I'm sure this is contributing to the night time craziness as well but what am I suppose to do? I have things I have to do, I just can't stay home all day everyday so she can nap. I am however going to start scheduling my time better so I only have to go out either in the morning or the afternoon. I'm not going to book both my mornings and afternoon like I have been so we are out twice in a day. She obviously can't handle that and this way she will have at least one good solid nap at home in her bed.
The things we do for our kids!
I have been keeping the same bedtime routine for a week now so she clues in when I go into her room and turn on the sound machine and start our routine.....
Bad new is that she is starting to cry during the routine now, while I'm nursing her, when I put her down and after I leave the room. This is making for alot of crying and not enough sleeping.
It took me an hour to get her to sleep and then she was up at 1am, 4am and 8am.
Not sure what is going on. I think she might be teething again but when I am holding her or when she is playing she is fine so even if she is teething, I think it is more of a separation anxiety than anything else.
Her naps have been off which could have something to do with it as well. Earlier in the week, it was freakin' cold outside (-30/40's) and since I didn't have anywhere to be, we stayed in. This was good as I was able to put her down for 2 solid naps (sometimes 3) a day and I did see an improvement in her night time sleeping. But life goes on and later in the week I had to go out and I found she wasn't napping as well in the car as she did when she was younger. So I'm sure this is contributing to the night time craziness as well but what am I suppose to do? I have things I have to do, I just can't stay home all day everyday so she can nap. I am however going to start scheduling my time better so I only have to go out either in the morning or the afternoon. I'm not going to book both my mornings and afternoon like I have been so we are out twice in a day. She obviously can't handle that and this way she will have at least one good solid nap at home in her bed.
The things we do for our kids!
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Night Eleven
Night Eleven... already? You would think I would have this under control already! But I guess that's what you get for being a frazzled train wreck from night one through eight lol
Isabella has been waking up an hour after I put her to bed for the past few nights and with the naps mostly under control, I felt like she was getting into a full blown napping routine.
I asked the sleep lady from Sleep Baby about this and she still thinks I need to be putting her down between 7 and 8pm for the night but this just isn't working for us.
So, last night I put her to bed at 8 and of course she woke up 45 minutes later. But this time instead of fighting her to go back to sleep, I got her up and brought her downstairs. She played till 9:30pm then I put her back to bed and she didn't even cry AND slept till 5am. When I got up at 5, I was able to feed her and put her back to bed. I was back in bed in 12 minutes.
So, that's the plan I'm going t try again tonight but see if I can mover her now evening nap back to around 7 so she can still go to bed at a decent time and I can still have some after the kids go to bed down time.
To be continued....
Isabella has been waking up an hour after I put her to bed for the past few nights and with the naps mostly under control, I felt like she was getting into a full blown napping routine.
I asked the sleep lady from Sleep Baby about this and she still thinks I need to be putting her down between 7 and 8pm for the night but this just isn't working for us.
So, last night I put her to bed at 8 and of course she woke up 45 minutes later. But this time instead of fighting her to go back to sleep, I got her up and brought her downstairs. She played till 9:30pm then I put her back to bed and she didn't even cry AND slept till 5am. When I got up at 5, I was able to feed her and put her back to bed. I was back in bed in 12 minutes.
So, that's the plan I'm going t try again tonight but see if I can mover her now evening nap back to around 7 so she can still go to bed at a decent time and I can still have some after the kids go to bed down time.
To be continued....
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Night Ten
If you could pick one thing a year to pass or fast forward in a child life, this would be it!
I feel like we are getting close but so many different issues keep coming up that I feel are holding us back.
I put Isabella to bed at 8pm last night and did our nightly routine of bum change, massage, nurse and putting her down awake. She cried for 30 seconds and was out.
BUT then she woke up an hour later so I tried the routine again (a lesson learned from the night before) but it didn't work. She was wide awake.
So instead of fighting it, I brought her down and let her play until I went to bed around 10pm. Again, same routine but she didn't fall asleep right away. She would semi cry, then stop, laugh, semi cry and repeat. I'm not sure how long she did this for as I fell asleep knowing she wasn't stressed but still awake. I woke up at 1:30am to hear the same routine. So not sure if she actually ever fell asleep or has just hanging out. I went in, did a quick nurse, put her down and she was out.
She slept until 7am and was up. I tried putting her back down but the other 2 kids were up and she could hear them so there was no point in trying to get her back down, plus I had to get Zachary ready for the bus.
She went back down at 8am and is still sleeping.
I had read on Sleep Baby that some kids need an extra little cat nap in the evening. So I'm thinking, maybe she should go down at 7pm for an hour then I could put her to bed at around 9pm.
That's the plan for tonight but we will see what happens as my plans don't seem to be going accordingly these days.
On a side note, I'm totally tossing the idea around of starting a blog about the things a sleep deprived mom thinks about when you are up for hours at a time trying to get your baby back to bed lol I have some goodies in there :0)
I feel like we are getting close but so many different issues keep coming up that I feel are holding us back.
I put Isabella to bed at 8pm last night and did our nightly routine of bum change, massage, nurse and putting her down awake. She cried for 30 seconds and was out.
BUT then she woke up an hour later so I tried the routine again (a lesson learned from the night before) but it didn't work. She was wide awake.
So instead of fighting it, I brought her down and let her play until I went to bed around 10pm. Again, same routine but she didn't fall asleep right away. She would semi cry, then stop, laugh, semi cry and repeat. I'm not sure how long she did this for as I fell asleep knowing she wasn't stressed but still awake. I woke up at 1:30am to hear the same routine. So not sure if she actually ever fell asleep or has just hanging out. I went in, did a quick nurse, put her down and she was out.
She slept until 7am and was up. I tried putting her back down but the other 2 kids were up and she could hear them so there was no point in trying to get her back down, plus I had to get Zachary ready for the bus.
She went back down at 8am and is still sleeping.
I had read on Sleep Baby that some kids need an extra little cat nap in the evening. So I'm thinking, maybe she should go down at 7pm for an hour then I could put her to bed at around 9pm.
That's the plan for tonight but we will see what happens as my plans don't seem to be going accordingly these days.
On a side note, I'm totally tossing the idea around of starting a blog about the things a sleep deprived mom thinks about when you are up for hours at a time trying to get your baby back to bed lol I have some goodies in there :0)
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Night Nine
I learned 2 valuable lessons last night! 1) Never check in on a sleeping baby and 2) Remember the plan.....
Napping has been going really well. I can put her down awake now which I was never able to do before so I've been feeling good and confident about the way things are headed.
I've been reading alot of info from the Sleep Baby website as well which has been helpful.
So yesterday, Isabella had her 2 2hour naps and then was ready for bed. We did our nightly routine and put her down. She cried for about 30 seconds then was out. She woke up about half an hour later and cried for about 5 minutes but fell asleep again, I was so proud!
I went to bed around 10pm knowing you never know what the night is going to bring and as I'm lying there, I thought I should probably check on her to make sure she hadn't kicked her blankets off when she was crying (a classic Isabella move) Especially with it being -30 outside, her room was a little cool and I didn't want her being cold. So I snuck in, tucked her in and pow! She was awake. UGH! I was so mad at myself. Well, it took another 2 hours to get her back to sleep but by midnight she was out.
She woke up again at 3am and like before, it took 2 hours. But by the end of the 2 hours, I thought to try redoing our night time routine, so bum change, massage, nurse and bed. Not sure if it was because she was just ready to go back down or if it was the actual routine but it worked and she was out and lucky me got 2 more hours of sleep before I had to get up for the day.
I really have no idea what is going on with her. It seems like now that we have her naps in order, she is thinking night time is nap time too. She is also starting to teeth again so some fun meds might be in the routine for the next few nights as well ;0)
Napping has been going really well. I can put her down awake now which I was never able to do before so I've been feeling good and confident about the way things are headed.
I've been reading alot of info from the Sleep Baby website as well which has been helpful.
So yesterday, Isabella had her 2 2hour naps and then was ready for bed. We did our nightly routine and put her down. She cried for about 30 seconds then was out. She woke up about half an hour later and cried for about 5 minutes but fell asleep again, I was so proud!
I went to bed around 10pm knowing you never know what the night is going to bring and as I'm lying there, I thought I should probably check on her to make sure she hadn't kicked her blankets off when she was crying (a classic Isabella move) Especially with it being -30 outside, her room was a little cool and I didn't want her being cold. So I snuck in, tucked her in and pow! She was awake. UGH! I was so mad at myself. Well, it took another 2 hours to get her back to sleep but by midnight she was out.
She woke up again at 3am and like before, it took 2 hours. But by the end of the 2 hours, I thought to try redoing our night time routine, so bum change, massage, nurse and bed. Not sure if it was because she was just ready to go back down or if it was the actual routine but it worked and she was out and lucky me got 2 more hours of sleep before I had to get up for the day.
I really have no idea what is going on with her. It seems like now that we have her naps in order, she is thinking night time is nap time too. She is also starting to teeth again so some fun meds might be in the routine for the next few nights as well ;0)
Monday, January 16, 2012
Night Eight
I know people reading this are probably totally frustrated with me. They keep saying you are all over the place, you need to pick one routine and stick with it, you are confusing her.... I know. I really do. But when you feel like you have tried everything, you don't know what to try next and when you are in the moment and something is not working, you want to try something else, anything else to get her back to sleep.
I found a website called Sleep Baby and they had some great advice and I felt like she was actually talking to me! I realized that Isabella is completely overtired and should be napping way more then she does. I have been afraid to put her down for naps thinking she won't sleep at night and I was sooo wrong. See, like I said before, just because I have 3 kids doesn't mean I know everything... I'm starting to realize, I don't think I have a damn clue about anything lol
I also bought a sound therapy machine yesterday (which is totally awesome, I want to buy one for everyone I know!)
So after reading about the naps, Bella had been up for just under 2 hours and she was yawning and rubbing her eyes, normally, I wouldn't have thought to put her back down because she had pretty much just gotten up but I decided to try this advice out along with the sound machine.
I nursed her but put her down awake and turned the sound machine on and left the room. She cried for 3 minutes then was out! She slept for another 2 hours.
So at bedtime, I cut out the bath as the website that baths can actually engage babies instead of relaxing them and this is what we were finding with Bells. I did still do the massage but switched to an all natural lotion to keep our routine still somewhat normal, nursed her and put her down awake and turned my new favorite machine on. Again, she cried for about 5 minutes then was out. Now to see what the rest of the night would bring....
She did wake up an hour later so I went in to resettle her and put her back down. She did cry for about 20 minutes until Don told me to go back in lol I was so surprised that I was so non emotional about letting her cry. I guess you just get to a point where you know there is nothing else you can do. But i did go back in, nursed her quick and again but her down awake to the white noise and she was out. Is it bad that I'm now okay with letting her cry as I'm finding she sleeps better after a good cry? lol
She slept the rest of the night until 3am. I went in and again, a quick nurse and put her down and white noise on.... and she has been sleeping ever since and it's going on 9am.
This week will be all about getting her naps in place and still working on putting her down awake.
At least, I know feel like I have some sort of direction and maybe a bit of a plan now....
I found a website called Sleep Baby and they had some great advice and I felt like she was actually talking to me! I realized that Isabella is completely overtired and should be napping way more then she does. I have been afraid to put her down for naps thinking she won't sleep at night and I was sooo wrong. See, like I said before, just because I have 3 kids doesn't mean I know everything... I'm starting to realize, I don't think I have a damn clue about anything lol
I also bought a sound therapy machine yesterday (which is totally awesome, I want to buy one for everyone I know!)
So after reading about the naps, Bella had been up for just under 2 hours and she was yawning and rubbing her eyes, normally, I wouldn't have thought to put her back down because she had pretty much just gotten up but I decided to try this advice out along with the sound machine.
I nursed her but put her down awake and turned the sound machine on and left the room. She cried for 3 minutes then was out! She slept for another 2 hours.
So at bedtime, I cut out the bath as the website that baths can actually engage babies instead of relaxing them and this is what we were finding with Bells. I did still do the massage but switched to an all natural lotion to keep our routine still somewhat normal, nursed her and put her down awake and turned my new favorite machine on. Again, she cried for about 5 minutes then was out. Now to see what the rest of the night would bring....
She did wake up an hour later so I went in to resettle her and put her back down. She did cry for about 20 minutes until Don told me to go back in lol I was so surprised that I was so non emotional about letting her cry. I guess you just get to a point where you know there is nothing else you can do. But i did go back in, nursed her quick and again but her down awake to the white noise and she was out. Is it bad that I'm now okay with letting her cry as I'm finding she sleeps better after a good cry? lol
She slept the rest of the night until 3am. I went in and again, a quick nurse and put her down and white noise on.... and she has been sleeping ever since and it's going on 9am.
This week will be all about getting her naps in place and still working on putting her down awake.
At least, I know feel like I have some sort of direction and maybe a bit of a plan now....
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Night Seven
Just putting it out there now.... anyone know of a VERY TALL bridge I could jump off??????
Last night was a goody!
Again, we started off with our new routine that we have started, this was night four. I thought I would add solids into the mix so she is less hungry and want to nurse less which would lead to learning to fall asleep on her own more...
So we did solids, bath, massage, quiet time.
All was good until quiet time. It usually takes me 10-15 minutes to get her to fall asleep and then anything after that is anyone's guess... but last night it took me almost 2 hours to get her to sleep!
After about an hour, I felt confident that she was in a deep enough sleep for me to put her down. I put her down and left the room. I went to close the door and boom! She was awake and crying.... I never wanted to hit my head on a door so much!
Went back in and tried rubbing her back without taking her out. That didn't work so back the the rocking chair that is now becoming the torture chair for me. After more rocking and using me as a soother she seemed calm enough to put her down. I put her in her vibrating chair and turned her aquarium on. She was yawning and rubbing her eyes so I thought she would be out in a few minutes, plus she didn't cry when I left the room so I thought she was okay. I told Don I was going to have a shower as my patience were getting short and after a very stressful day with very little sleep, I just needed a break.
I can usually hear her crying while I'm in the shower so since I didn't hear anything, I thought maybe... just maybe she had fallen asleep.
When I got out and went to check on her, she was screaming like i had never heard her scream before. So of course I thought she had gotten a leg stuck in the crib and tried to roll over and broke it or something like that. So I rush in to find Don rocking her.... see, I told you she didn't like him lol
I picked her up and she immediately stopped crying and even in the dim light from the night light you could she her giving Don the death glare as she whimpered. It was so sad but at the same time, kinda funny.
I sat down and rocked her and suddenly started to have a panic attack. What would happen if something were ever to happen to me? It is a very scary thought to know you are the only person on this entire planet that can feed and soothe your baby. Oh, the things you think about when you are stuck in a chair with a baby for hours on end. I could seriously start a log just for that!
So after her massive meltdown with Daddy, it only took 5 minutes and she was out. I was able to put her down and leave the room. By this time it was 10:45pm, an hour and 45 minutes after starting our quiet time. Thanks for nothing Johnson & Johnson!
So I decided that I should go straight to bed as you never know when her Highness is going to wake up next and for how long. But it is frustrating as I now don`t get any me time at all. I`m with the kids all day then taking 2 hours to put the baby to sleep just took all my me time. So yippee! I get to go to sleep just to wake up to do it all over again.... I am not finding the joy in this anymore.
3:45am came way too fast for me.... back to the torture chair. We did all the same stuff and yet she didn't want to fall asleep although she was yawning and rubbing her eyes. You could tell she was fighting it and it is baffling to me. It came to the point where I seriously couldn't even hold her anymore so I put her down and moved the rocking chair beside her crib so she could still see me and know I was still there. This worked for a bit but not for long. In the end after another 2 hours, I was able to rock her to sleep... while I stood up. So, back to bed at 5:45am.
I honestly see why parents let their kids cry it out and I really wish I had the guts to do it but I'm too emotional for that. I torture myself thinking she is just a little baby and she can't understand why I'm just letting her cry. She can't rationalize that she just needs to learn to go to sleep. Would an adult just go to sleep if they were so incredibly upset over something? How many times has something bad happened or there is something in our lives that we are upset over and we say, I couldn't sleep at all last night. I'm sure it's the same for a baby and the only reason they really fall asleep is that they are too exhausted to fight it anymore. That isn't teaching them anything in my mind.
Even though I am sooo over these sleep games with Bells, I do find it amazing how hard she fights sleep. She was sooo tired, yawning and rubbing her eyes yet she would fight it to no end. I do hope she keeps that spirit up when she is older but in the daylight hours not at night.
Last night was a goody!
Again, we started off with our new routine that we have started, this was night four. I thought I would add solids into the mix so she is less hungry and want to nurse less which would lead to learning to fall asleep on her own more...
So we did solids, bath, massage, quiet time.
All was good until quiet time. It usually takes me 10-15 minutes to get her to fall asleep and then anything after that is anyone's guess... but last night it took me almost 2 hours to get her to sleep!
After about an hour, I felt confident that she was in a deep enough sleep for me to put her down. I put her down and left the room. I went to close the door and boom! She was awake and crying.... I never wanted to hit my head on a door so much!
Went back in and tried rubbing her back without taking her out. That didn't work so back the the rocking chair that is now becoming the torture chair for me. After more rocking and using me as a soother she seemed calm enough to put her down. I put her in her vibrating chair and turned her aquarium on. She was yawning and rubbing her eyes so I thought she would be out in a few minutes, plus she didn't cry when I left the room so I thought she was okay. I told Don I was going to have a shower as my patience were getting short and after a very stressful day with very little sleep, I just needed a break.
I can usually hear her crying while I'm in the shower so since I didn't hear anything, I thought maybe... just maybe she had fallen asleep.
When I got out and went to check on her, she was screaming like i had never heard her scream before. So of course I thought she had gotten a leg stuck in the crib and tried to roll over and broke it or something like that. So I rush in to find Don rocking her.... see, I told you she didn't like him lol
I picked her up and she immediately stopped crying and even in the dim light from the night light you could she her giving Don the death glare as she whimpered. It was so sad but at the same time, kinda funny.
I sat down and rocked her and suddenly started to have a panic attack. What would happen if something were ever to happen to me? It is a very scary thought to know you are the only person on this entire planet that can feed and soothe your baby. Oh, the things you think about when you are stuck in a chair with a baby for hours on end. I could seriously start a log just for that!
So after her massive meltdown with Daddy, it only took 5 minutes and she was out. I was able to put her down and leave the room. By this time it was 10:45pm, an hour and 45 minutes after starting our quiet time. Thanks for nothing Johnson & Johnson!
So I decided that I should go straight to bed as you never know when her Highness is going to wake up next and for how long. But it is frustrating as I now don`t get any me time at all. I`m with the kids all day then taking 2 hours to put the baby to sleep just took all my me time. So yippee! I get to go to sleep just to wake up to do it all over again.... I am not finding the joy in this anymore.
3:45am came way too fast for me.... back to the torture chair. We did all the same stuff and yet she didn't want to fall asleep although she was yawning and rubbing her eyes. You could tell she was fighting it and it is baffling to me. It came to the point where I seriously couldn't even hold her anymore so I put her down and moved the rocking chair beside her crib so she could still see me and know I was still there. This worked for a bit but not for long. In the end after another 2 hours, I was able to rock her to sleep... while I stood up. So, back to bed at 5:45am.
I honestly see why parents let their kids cry it out and I really wish I had the guts to do it but I'm too emotional for that. I torture myself thinking she is just a little baby and she can't understand why I'm just letting her cry. She can't rationalize that she just needs to learn to go to sleep. Would an adult just go to sleep if they were so incredibly upset over something? How many times has something bad happened or there is something in our lives that we are upset over and we say, I couldn't sleep at all last night. I'm sure it's the same for a baby and the only reason they really fall asleep is that they are too exhausted to fight it anymore. That isn't teaching them anything in my mind.
Even though I am sooo over these sleep games with Bells, I do find it amazing how hard she fights sleep. She was sooo tired, yawning and rubbing her eyes yet she would fight it to no end. I do hope she keeps that spirit up when she is older but in the daylight hours not at night.
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Night Six
So, I'm not quite sure what I did to piss off the Mr. Sandman but for some reason he has it out for me!
Last night we did night three of the 7 day challenge. So again, bath, massage, quiet time. And again, it took Isabella almost 30 minutes to fall asleep. She would nod off but when I would try to mover her, she would wake up so I had to start from the beginning again. She finally fell into a deep enough sleep for me to move her into her bed.
I enjoyed a bit of quiet time before Lexi decided she wanted to join me in my hot relaxing bath which makes it not so relaxing anymore, then went to bed.
I woke up to Bells crying assuming it was 5ish and thought, wow I must have been tried cause I would have sworn, I just fell asleep.... and I was pretty much right. It was 1:30am! Seriously, WTH! Went in and tried to get her back to bed... and of course failed. It took an hour of trying different things before she fell back asleep.
So back off to bed, I crawled only for her to wake up again at 5:15am. I seriously wanted to throw a temper tantrum, just ignore her and hide under the blankets and pretend that I was somewhere far far away. But I knew the longer I let her cry, the more likely she would wake up the other 2 kids, not something I would appreciate.
After trying for about 30 minutes, I gave up, put her down and turned her aquarium on. As I left the room, I heard Zachary. I went in and he was jumping on his bed! So I settled him down and turned off the lights. On my way back to bed, I stopped and didn't hear anything at Isabella's door so kept going but noticed Lexi's light on. So, I went in and checked on her and she couldn't find her doll. We found the little run away and put her back to bed. Stopped again in the hallways and still didn't hear anything from Bells, so back to bed.... again, it was 6:15am. Waited a couple of minutes before letting myself fall back asleep and pow! Her Highness calls. I literally almost started to cry! How much of this can seriously one person take! Especially all the while, the hubby is snoring beside you (but in his defense, Isabella doesn't like him so there is really nothing he could do to help anyways. Lexi was the same way as a baby)
So, back into her room, may have gotten a little cranky with her, tried to rock her then gave up. I took out her vibrating seat, put her in it, turned her aquarium back on and left. I turned that bathroom fan on as well so it would be harder for the other kids (and me) to hear her. I climbed back in bed and looked at the clock, it was 6:30am. I layed there for about 10 minutes as I hadn't heard anything and thought to torture myself a little more. I wanted to see if she was actually asleep, so I opened the door lol
It was kinda like one of those scenes in a movie where you are yelling at the character No! What are you doing!!! But I did and she was sleeping!
I was free to go back to bed..... for 45 minutes until Zachary woke up......
Needless to say, I am just a little cranky this morning as cursing Johnson and Johnson and their stupid crappy 7 day challenge.
At this point, I'm at an utter loss and I just want to run away.... I hear Tahiti is nice this time of year ;0)
Last night we did night three of the 7 day challenge. So again, bath, massage, quiet time. And again, it took Isabella almost 30 minutes to fall asleep. She would nod off but when I would try to mover her, she would wake up so I had to start from the beginning again. She finally fell into a deep enough sleep for me to move her into her bed.
I enjoyed a bit of quiet time before Lexi decided she wanted to join me in my hot relaxing bath which makes it not so relaxing anymore, then went to bed.
I woke up to Bells crying assuming it was 5ish and thought, wow I must have been tried cause I would have sworn, I just fell asleep.... and I was pretty much right. It was 1:30am! Seriously, WTH! Went in and tried to get her back to bed... and of course failed. It took an hour of trying different things before she fell back asleep.
So back off to bed, I crawled only for her to wake up again at 5:15am. I seriously wanted to throw a temper tantrum, just ignore her and hide under the blankets and pretend that I was somewhere far far away. But I knew the longer I let her cry, the more likely she would wake up the other 2 kids, not something I would appreciate.
After trying for about 30 minutes, I gave up, put her down and turned her aquarium on. As I left the room, I heard Zachary. I went in and he was jumping on his bed! So I settled him down and turned off the lights. On my way back to bed, I stopped and didn't hear anything at Isabella's door so kept going but noticed Lexi's light on. So, I went in and checked on her and she couldn't find her doll. We found the little run away and put her back to bed. Stopped again in the hallways and still didn't hear anything from Bells, so back to bed.... again, it was 6:15am. Waited a couple of minutes before letting myself fall back asleep and pow! Her Highness calls. I literally almost started to cry! How much of this can seriously one person take! Especially all the while, the hubby is snoring beside you (but in his defense, Isabella doesn't like him so there is really nothing he could do to help anyways. Lexi was the same way as a baby)
So, back into her room, may have gotten a little cranky with her, tried to rock her then gave up. I took out her vibrating seat, put her in it, turned her aquarium back on and left. I turned that bathroom fan on as well so it would be harder for the other kids (and me) to hear her. I climbed back in bed and looked at the clock, it was 6:30am. I layed there for about 10 minutes as I hadn't heard anything and thought to torture myself a little more. I wanted to see if she was actually asleep, so I opened the door lol
It was kinda like one of those scenes in a movie where you are yelling at the character No! What are you doing!!! But I did and she was sleeping!
I was free to go back to bed..... for 45 minutes until Zachary woke up......
Needless to say, I am just a little cranky this morning as cursing Johnson and Johnson and their stupid crappy 7 day challenge.
At this point, I'm at an utter loss and I just want to run away.... I hear Tahiti is nice this time of year ;0)
Night Five
So, last night was night 2 of the sleep challenge that we are trying from Johnson and Johnson.
Its very simple, bath, massage, quiet time and your baby is supposed to sleep through the night. I was worried that Isabella was going to wake up super early again like she did the day before but I kept everything at the same time and hoped for the best.
Everything went smoothly although it did take her longer to fall asleep. The previous night, she was out almost instantly but last night it took her almost 20 minutes to fall asleep. But once she was out, I put her down and went down stairs to enjoy one of my favorite shows, The Vampire Diaries!
Just as the show was getting good... guess who decided to wake up! UGH! This was an hour later too. I waited a couple minutes to see if she would go back to sleep but no such luck. I tired to rock and nurse her again but she wasn't having any of it. I guess she wanted to see Damon and Stefan too ;0) By this time it was 9:45pm, an hour after she had fallen asleep.
After watching Vampire Diaries and the Secret Circle and Bells playing away, it was time for bed for the both of us. So back into her room for our usual routine and it took her about 10 minutes but then she was asleep.
I didn't really know what to expect but was hoping for her to sleep till around 8 or 9am.... Ya, I gotta stop doing that.
She was up again at 5:30am! I spent an hour trying to get her back to bed and finally at 7am, I had to get Zachary up. So again, she was up till around 8am and then went back down.
I'm really not liking this new routine she is getting into and thinking this whole Johnson and Johnson thing is a huge scam to get you to buy they products then leave you hanging.
I'm getting very flustered.
Its very simple, bath, massage, quiet time and your baby is supposed to sleep through the night. I was worried that Isabella was going to wake up super early again like she did the day before but I kept everything at the same time and hoped for the best.
Everything went smoothly although it did take her longer to fall asleep. The previous night, she was out almost instantly but last night it took her almost 20 minutes to fall asleep. But once she was out, I put her down and went down stairs to enjoy one of my favorite shows, The Vampire Diaries!
Just as the show was getting good... guess who decided to wake up! UGH! This was an hour later too. I waited a couple minutes to see if she would go back to sleep but no such luck. I tired to rock and nurse her again but she wasn't having any of it. I guess she wanted to see Damon and Stefan too ;0) By this time it was 9:45pm, an hour after she had fallen asleep.
After watching Vampire Diaries and the Secret Circle and Bells playing away, it was time for bed for the both of us. So back into her room for our usual routine and it took her about 10 minutes but then she was asleep.
I didn't really know what to expect but was hoping for her to sleep till around 8 or 9am.... Ya, I gotta stop doing that.
She was up again at 5:30am! I spent an hour trying to get her back to bed and finally at 7am, I had to get Zachary up. So again, she was up till around 8am and then went back down.
I'm really not liking this new routine she is getting into and thinking this whole Johnson and Johnson thing is a huge scam to get you to buy they products then leave you hanging.
I'm getting very flustered.
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Night Four
So, after another day of reading books, blogs and websites about how to get your baby to sleep, I cam across the Johnson & Johnson website. They have an entire section on sleep and even have a 7 day sleep challenge. Of course, it included their Calming bubble bath and lotion but it says it works and I actually had both of them here, so I gave it a try.
It is a 3 step process that they say will get your baby to fall asleep and stay asleep faster and more effective then before. Step one is a bubble bath using their calming bubbles. Step two is a massage using their calming lotion and step three is quiet time before falling asleep.
Sounds pretty basic and obvious but tried it anyways.
I put the big kids to bed at 8pm then put Isabella into her bath at 8:15pm. She had her massage at 8:30pm. I nursed her and she was asleep at 8:45pm.
I was on edge all night wondering if she was going to wake up just as I was going to go to bed around 11pm so I stayed up a bit longer but by the time I had fallen asleep, she was still sleeping. I kept waking up all night waiting for her to wake up but she stayed asleep. She did end up waking up at 5:45am so I went in. I fed her and put her back down but she was still awake. I thought I would test my luck and just left her. When I left the room, I noticed that both kids lights were on in their rooms so went in to check on them. Zachary was wide awake playing so I tried to get him to go back to bed but that wasn't happening so he stayed in his room and played. Next, i had to check on Lexi and she was in her tent that Daddy made her a few days ago that she now sleeps in and she was awake too playing with her InnoTab lol I told her to turn it off and go back to sleep. I turned off the light, closed the door and stood in the hallway for a minute. I still didn't hear anything from Isabella so I did a little happy dance and went back to bed, it was 6am. I laid there waiting for her to cry and just as I was drifting off, she started to cry again. I looked at the clock and it was 6:30am. I tried to fed and rock her again but she wasn't interested so I brought her back to bed with me. She was tossing and turning but then would settled down for a few minutes so by the time I had had enough, it was time to get Zachary ready for school anyways. We got him ready and off to school at 8am and by that time, the little miss was ready to go back to sleep. She was out in under 5 minutes and since Lexi was up early and now sleeping again, I thought I would try to grab a couple of minutes of sleep since I have been up since 5;30am. The next thing I knew, Lexi was waking me up at 10am! I felt so refreshed but kinda guilty as Lexi was suppose to be at ballet at 10am lol Oops, next week ;0)
So, the sleep routine seemed to work but I think I may need to bump it back a bit as I don't want her getting into a routine of getting up at 5:30am then going back down at 8:30am every morning.
I am having issues now putting her down for an afternoon nap, so this is something I'm going to have to work on as well.
The adventures never seem to end around here...
It is a 3 step process that they say will get your baby to fall asleep and stay asleep faster and more effective then before. Step one is a bubble bath using their calming bubbles. Step two is a massage using their calming lotion and step three is quiet time before falling asleep.
Sounds pretty basic and obvious but tried it anyways.
I put the big kids to bed at 8pm then put Isabella into her bath at 8:15pm. She had her massage at 8:30pm. I nursed her and she was asleep at 8:45pm.
I was on edge all night wondering if she was going to wake up just as I was going to go to bed around 11pm so I stayed up a bit longer but by the time I had fallen asleep, she was still sleeping. I kept waking up all night waiting for her to wake up but she stayed asleep. She did end up waking up at 5:45am so I went in. I fed her and put her back down but she was still awake. I thought I would test my luck and just left her. When I left the room, I noticed that both kids lights were on in their rooms so went in to check on them. Zachary was wide awake playing so I tried to get him to go back to bed but that wasn't happening so he stayed in his room and played. Next, i had to check on Lexi and she was in her tent that Daddy made her a few days ago that she now sleeps in and she was awake too playing with her InnoTab lol I told her to turn it off and go back to sleep. I turned off the light, closed the door and stood in the hallway for a minute. I still didn't hear anything from Isabella so I did a little happy dance and went back to bed, it was 6am. I laid there waiting for her to cry and just as I was drifting off, she started to cry again. I looked at the clock and it was 6:30am. I tried to fed and rock her again but she wasn't interested so I brought her back to bed with me. She was tossing and turning but then would settled down for a few minutes so by the time I had had enough, it was time to get Zachary ready for school anyways. We got him ready and off to school at 8am and by that time, the little miss was ready to go back to sleep. She was out in under 5 minutes and since Lexi was up early and now sleeping again, I thought I would try to grab a couple of minutes of sleep since I have been up since 5;30am. The next thing I knew, Lexi was waking me up at 10am! I felt so refreshed but kinda guilty as Lexi was suppose to be at ballet at 10am lol Oops, next week ;0)
So, the sleep routine seemed to work but I think I may need to bump it back a bit as I don't want her getting into a routine of getting up at 5:30am then going back down at 8:30am every morning.
I am having issues now putting her down for an afternoon nap, so this is something I'm going to have to work on as well.
The adventures never seem to end around here...
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Night Three
Last night I had one of those situations where you don't know what to do.
I tried putting Isabella down for a nap around 5pm as she was tired but wouldn't go to sleep. So she stayed up and by 7pm was wiped. So I fed her at 7pm and she was out! I told myself I was only going to let her sleep for an hour so I could put her back down for the night at around 9/9:30pm. So after getting the big kids in bed it was 8:30pm and she was still sleeping. Optimistic me thought maybe if I leave her, she will sleep through the night as the Sleep Sense program said to put her down between 7/8pm. I thought maybe this was the trick! Ya, not so much!
She woke up at 9pm ready to go. She played till 10pm and I started putting her back down. We went through all the usually techniques again tonight. Fed her to sleep but she woke up when i put her down, tried rubbing her back and shushing her, womb bear going, aquarium on, picking her up to stop crying and putting her back down then letting her cry. I let her cry for about 20 minutes and with no sleep insight, i went in and took her to my bed. I was beat and couldn't stand to do anymore rocking of any kind. She wrestled around for a bit and I actually feel asleep before she did but when i woke up an hour later around 12:30am, she was asleep. I put her back in her own crib and she is still sleeping.... going on 9 1/2 hours!
Yay for sleeping through the night for the third night in a row but not so much for my tata's lol I'm so used to feeding her in the night that my body is not used to not feeding for this long! I feel like Niagara Falls over here lol I would pump but it is in her closet in her room and there is no way I am going in there! So I will just suffer it out and hope she is really hungry when she wakes up.... then take the pump out of her room ;0)
I also went to the library yesterday and got an army of sleep books to start going through. The first one I looked through is Sleep Solutions for Your Baby, Toddler & Preschooler. I thought I would like this one as it is written by Ann Douglas who wrote the Mother Of All Pregnancy Books, a book that I swore by when pregnant with all my kiddos. But going through it, she doesn't seem the have a sleep "plan" at all. All of her suggestions are sleep crutches... something I need to get away from.
Her first suggestion actually to get a baby to fall asleep is to nurse them to sleep! I was shocked! She also suggests swaddling, getting your baby naked, soothe with sounds like the white noise machines, lullaby's swishing and shushing noises, sounds and vibrations, getting them in motion, holding them, infant massage, giving them a soother or some type of teddy bear or transitional item.
I have tried all of these but it still isn't going to solve the basic problem of getting her to fall asleep on her own. The author did suggest one thing that I might try. She said to take one of the baby's crib sheets and either sleep with it or stuff it in your shirt for a few hours to get your scent on it them put it back in the baby's crib so they can smell you. I may try this one and see if it helps... although, I'm not holding my breathe.
So on to more research today to see if we can find a system that will work for us and we will see what new adventures go on tonight!
I tried putting Isabella down for a nap around 5pm as she was tired but wouldn't go to sleep. So she stayed up and by 7pm was wiped. So I fed her at 7pm and she was out! I told myself I was only going to let her sleep for an hour so I could put her back down for the night at around 9/9:30pm. So after getting the big kids in bed it was 8:30pm and she was still sleeping. Optimistic me thought maybe if I leave her, she will sleep through the night as the Sleep Sense program said to put her down between 7/8pm. I thought maybe this was the trick! Ya, not so much!
She woke up at 9pm ready to go. She played till 10pm and I started putting her back down. We went through all the usually techniques again tonight. Fed her to sleep but she woke up when i put her down, tried rubbing her back and shushing her, womb bear going, aquarium on, picking her up to stop crying and putting her back down then letting her cry. I let her cry for about 20 minutes and with no sleep insight, i went in and took her to my bed. I was beat and couldn't stand to do anymore rocking of any kind. She wrestled around for a bit and I actually feel asleep before she did but when i woke up an hour later around 12:30am, she was asleep. I put her back in her own crib and she is still sleeping.... going on 9 1/2 hours!
Yay for sleeping through the night for the third night in a row but not so much for my tata's lol I'm so used to feeding her in the night that my body is not used to not feeding for this long! I feel like Niagara Falls over here lol I would pump but it is in her closet in her room and there is no way I am going in there! So I will just suffer it out and hope she is really hungry when she wakes up.... then take the pump out of her room ;0)
I also went to the library yesterday and got an army of sleep books to start going through. The first one I looked through is Sleep Solutions for Your Baby, Toddler & Preschooler. I thought I would like this one as it is written by Ann Douglas who wrote the Mother Of All Pregnancy Books, a book that I swore by when pregnant with all my kiddos. But going through it, she doesn't seem the have a sleep "plan" at all. All of her suggestions are sleep crutches... something I need to get away from.
Her first suggestion actually to get a baby to fall asleep is to nurse them to sleep! I was shocked! She also suggests swaddling, getting your baby naked, soothe with sounds like the white noise machines, lullaby's swishing and shushing noises, sounds and vibrations, getting them in motion, holding them, infant massage, giving them a soother or some type of teddy bear or transitional item.
I have tried all of these but it still isn't going to solve the basic problem of getting her to fall asleep on her own. The author did suggest one thing that I might try. She said to take one of the baby's crib sheets and either sleep with it or stuff it in your shirt for a few hours to get your scent on it them put it back in the baby's crib so they can smell you. I may try this one and see if it helps... although, I'm not holding my breathe.
So on to more research today to see if we can find a system that will work for us and we will see what new adventures go on tonight!
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Night Two
So, 2 nights ago I let Isabella cry it out and after 20 minutes, she was asleep and slept for 9 hours. I was thrilled and felt invincible!
I have started reading some sleep techniques and felt confident that I was on the right track. A friend recommended the Sleep Sense program. One of the big points she makes is to put the baby down between 7pm and 8pm so they can get a full 12 hours of sleep a night. So, I started to put Bella to sleep at 8pm. I nursed her and she fell asleep although she wasn't in a deep sleep when I put her down but she didn't fuss at all so I thought I was in the clear. The other 2 kids got to bed and I settled in to celebrate my victory with a piece of chocolate cake and Kim & Kourtney Take New York!
Well, 20 minutes into it, I had heard her crying! UGH!!!!!! I went up and tried to just rub her back but not say anything and not pick her up. She did not like that at all and started to freak. I had talked to my sister and she had mentioned the Baby Whisperer and the technique of picking up baby until they are calm and then putting them back down... and doing that as many times as it takes for the baby to learn to lay down alone and go to sleep. Oh, and I guess she also recommends crawling into the crib as well if your baby isn't responding to you picking them up LOL Something I guess my sister has done LOL Ya, I would totally break the crib!
I tried to decide what action I was going to take to make this as painless as possible. I remembered that she had only cried for about 20 minutes the night before so I thought we would give it another try. Well, after 30 minutes of crying and the crying escalating to a panic cry, I went in and she was totally poopy! One of my scarring moments relived from when Lexi was a baby. So I brought her down, changed her and let her play. She was not tired and I didn't see the point of just letting her cry or me rocking her if it wasn't going to work. So after an hour of her playing and me finishing Kim & Kourtney, I took her back up for round 3. I fed her and she quickly fell asleep. And again, I put her down to her just waking up! I seriously wanted to pull my hair out! I tried to let her cry it out again but after another 30 minutes of her cry escalating, I caved and went in. I fed her again, waited a few minutes and she was out for the rest of the night. She slept for 8 hours, woke at 7am was up till 8:30am and went back to down 11am.
I'm starting to feel like I'm slowly losing control and her entire sleep schedule is coming undone one day at a time. We will see what tonight brings as I'm ditching the 8pm bedtime and going to try for a 830pm/9pm bedtime and see what happens.
I have started reading some sleep techniques and felt confident that I was on the right track. A friend recommended the Sleep Sense program. One of the big points she makes is to put the baby down between 7pm and 8pm so they can get a full 12 hours of sleep a night. So, I started to put Bella to sleep at 8pm. I nursed her and she fell asleep although she wasn't in a deep sleep when I put her down but she didn't fuss at all so I thought I was in the clear. The other 2 kids got to bed and I settled in to celebrate my victory with a piece of chocolate cake and Kim & Kourtney Take New York!
Well, 20 minutes into it, I had heard her crying! UGH!!!!!! I went up and tried to just rub her back but not say anything and not pick her up. She did not like that at all and started to freak. I had talked to my sister and she had mentioned the Baby Whisperer and the technique of picking up baby until they are calm and then putting them back down... and doing that as many times as it takes for the baby to learn to lay down alone and go to sleep. Oh, and I guess she also recommends crawling into the crib as well if your baby isn't responding to you picking them up LOL Something I guess my sister has done LOL Ya, I would totally break the crib!
I tried to decide what action I was going to take to make this as painless as possible. I remembered that she had only cried for about 20 minutes the night before so I thought we would give it another try. Well, after 30 minutes of crying and the crying escalating to a panic cry, I went in and she was totally poopy! One of my scarring moments relived from when Lexi was a baby. So I brought her down, changed her and let her play. She was not tired and I didn't see the point of just letting her cry or me rocking her if it wasn't going to work. So after an hour of her playing and me finishing Kim & Kourtney, I took her back up for round 3. I fed her and she quickly fell asleep. And again, I put her down to her just waking up! I seriously wanted to pull my hair out! I tried to let her cry it out again but after another 30 minutes of her cry escalating, I caved and went in. I fed her again, waited a few minutes and she was out for the rest of the night. She slept for 8 hours, woke at 7am was up till 8:30am and went back to down 11am.
I'm starting to feel like I'm slowly losing control and her entire sleep schedule is coming undone one day at a time. We will see what tonight brings as I'm ditching the 8pm bedtime and going to try for a 830pm/9pm bedtime and see what happens.
Night One
So, the past week, Isabella has gotten more difficult to put to bed. She will fall asleep while nursing, sleep for an hour then wake up around 10pm ready to party. It can take an hour or sometimes even more to get her back to sleep then she is up usually at 5am.
I'm exhausted especially since the older kids have been on Christmas break and have been home for 2 1/2 weeks.... which doesn't help with trying to get Bella to nap during the day either.
So tonight after nursing, rocking in the chair, rocking her standing up and singing along to her favorite lullaby (which happens to be Marry You by Bruno Mars) on my Iphone, I felt confident putting her down. I should have known better and waited for another round of Marry You before doing it cause the minute I laid her down, her eyes popped wide open and she was up. THE WORST FEELING EVER (well, one of them anyways)
Well, I just couldn't do it anymore so I left the Iphone on repeat, tucked her in and left the room. At first she was quiet and I thought I had struck gold and I was totally falling in love with Bruno! But no such luck. She started crying and I had no idea what to do. So of course, I went onto Facebook lol
I asked for help from all my FB mommies to see if there was something that I was missing or some secret technique that I have been missing out on. I got alot of replies and advice from friends. All the while, Bella was upstairs crying.
But about after 20 minutes or so of talking with my FB army of moms, Isabella actaully fell asleep! I was worried about her falling asleep from crying it out and being stressed and waking up a few times in the night but she didn't! She slept for 9 hours!
Now, I am not a cry it out kinda mom. Lexi and I have had a couple of bad experiences that involved one night with her covered in puke and another night a horrible case of diarrhea when she was baby and I swore if we had anymore kids, I would never do it again.
But I thought to myself, Isabella was only "crying" it wasn't a pain cry or an panicked cry, just a I'm not getting what I want cry and it worked. So maybe I will give it another try tomorrow and see what happens.....
I'm exhausted especially since the older kids have been on Christmas break and have been home for 2 1/2 weeks.... which doesn't help with trying to get Bella to nap during the day either.
So tonight after nursing, rocking in the chair, rocking her standing up and singing along to her favorite lullaby (which happens to be Marry You by Bruno Mars) on my Iphone, I felt confident putting her down. I should have known better and waited for another round of Marry You before doing it cause the minute I laid her down, her eyes popped wide open and she was up. THE WORST FEELING EVER (well, one of them anyways)
Well, I just couldn't do it anymore so I left the Iphone on repeat, tucked her in and left the room. At first she was quiet and I thought I had struck gold and I was totally falling in love with Bruno! But no such luck. She started crying and I had no idea what to do. So of course, I went onto Facebook lol
I asked for help from all my FB mommies to see if there was something that I was missing or some secret technique that I have been missing out on. I got alot of replies and advice from friends. All the while, Bella was upstairs crying.
But about after 20 minutes or so of talking with my FB army of moms, Isabella actaully fell asleep! I was worried about her falling asleep from crying it out and being stressed and waking up a few times in the night but she didn't! She slept for 9 hours!
Now, I am not a cry it out kinda mom. Lexi and I have had a couple of bad experiences that involved one night with her covered in puke and another night a horrible case of diarrhea when she was baby and I swore if we had anymore kids, I would never do it again.
But I thought to myself, Isabella was only "crying" it wasn't a pain cry or an panicked cry, just a I'm not getting what I want cry and it worked. So maybe I will give it another try tomorrow and see what happens.....
So It Starts....
As a mom of 3, you would think I would know a thing or two about how to put a baby to bed. Well, not so much :0( All 3 of my kids have been totally different when it comes to bedtimes.
Zachary was and has been my dream sleeper from the very beginning. Sleeping through the night at 6 weeks, would fall asleep anywhere and napped till he was 3 years old.
Alexis was my bad sleeper. She didn't sleep through the night until she was 4 years old and stopped napping just before she turned 2. BUT at least she took a soother and I could lay her down and she would fall asleep on her own.
Isabella turned 7 months yesterday and started out great! She was sleeping 8/9 hours straight at 3 weeks. I thought I had it made! This lasted off and on for about 2 months then started the waking up 2-3 times a night. She wasn't sleeping longer than 4 hours at a times for weeks at a time.... which meant I wasn't sleep more than 4 hours at a time for weeks. She had been a good napper as well. A morning nap for 2 hours then an afternoon nap for 2/3 hours. Well, those days seem to be over as well. I'm lucky if I get an hour nap out of her in the mornings and afternoon naps have turned into 1/2 hour naps. Sometimes now, she will stay awake while I go out and run errands. This isn't good! My mom said that my sister stopped napping all together at 9 months. Just telling you now, I will go insane if that happens!
I have always nursed Bella at bedtime (an issue that is most likely causing my current sleep issues) but when you have 3 kids and a hubby that works alot of nights and you are trying to get all 3 kids in bed, you do whatever works to make it through. But in classic Bella style, she has switched things up on me. I can feed her and put her to bed between 8:30pm and 9:30pm, she will fall asleep but then is up again within an hour ready to party. So, when it is time for me to go to bed around 11pm, I'm having a huge problem getting her back to bed. I had fed her an hour or so earlier trying to get her to sleep the first time, that when I go to feed her to sleep again, she is not interested. She just wants to play. I have tried everything to get her back to sleep and I'm starting to dread bedtimes.
So I will be trying different sleep techniques, trying others advice and reading books and websites in My Adventures In Finding Dreamland for both Isabella and myself.
I know it's not going to be pretty and it will be one of the hardest things you have to go through as a parent but I don't want another "Alexis not sleeping through the night until she is 4" on my hands.
So, bare with me as I figure my way through this...... And the let Adventures begin!
Zachary was and has been my dream sleeper from the very beginning. Sleeping through the night at 6 weeks, would fall asleep anywhere and napped till he was 3 years old.
Alexis was my bad sleeper. She didn't sleep through the night until she was 4 years old and stopped napping just before she turned 2. BUT at least she took a soother and I could lay her down and she would fall asleep on her own.
Isabella turned 7 months yesterday and started out great! She was sleeping 8/9 hours straight at 3 weeks. I thought I had it made! This lasted off and on for about 2 months then started the waking up 2-3 times a night. She wasn't sleeping longer than 4 hours at a times for weeks at a time.... which meant I wasn't sleep more than 4 hours at a time for weeks. She had been a good napper as well. A morning nap for 2 hours then an afternoon nap for 2/3 hours. Well, those days seem to be over as well. I'm lucky if I get an hour nap out of her in the mornings and afternoon naps have turned into 1/2 hour naps. Sometimes now, she will stay awake while I go out and run errands. This isn't good! My mom said that my sister stopped napping all together at 9 months. Just telling you now, I will go insane if that happens!
I have always nursed Bella at bedtime (an issue that is most likely causing my current sleep issues) but when you have 3 kids and a hubby that works alot of nights and you are trying to get all 3 kids in bed, you do whatever works to make it through. But in classic Bella style, she has switched things up on me. I can feed her and put her to bed between 8:30pm and 9:30pm, she will fall asleep but then is up again within an hour ready to party. So, when it is time for me to go to bed around 11pm, I'm having a huge problem getting her back to bed. I had fed her an hour or so earlier trying to get her to sleep the first time, that when I go to feed her to sleep again, she is not interested. She just wants to play. I have tried everything to get her back to sleep and I'm starting to dread bedtimes.
So I will be trying different sleep techniques, trying others advice and reading books and websites in My Adventures In Finding Dreamland for both Isabella and myself.
I know it's not going to be pretty and it will be one of the hardest things you have to go through as a parent but I don't want another "Alexis not sleeping through the night until she is 4" on my hands.
So, bare with me as I figure my way through this...... And the let Adventures begin!
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