Rock-a-Bye Baby

I'm going to completely jinx myself and say that I think we're making progress in the sleep department.

We originally hoped to implement the Babywise (a.k.a. CIO) method from the get-go.  It worked fine for the first few weeks, but as my sleepy newborn became more and more alert, he decided he really didn't like going to sleep without any help.  So I temporarily gave up on Cry-It-Out, and resorted to my tried and true method of nursing down.  Thing is, Car Car will not fall asleep while nursing.  ::facepalm::  So I was forced to pursue other methods:  singing, rubbing his noggin, laying next to him and fake sleeping (haha), babywearing, the swing, the bouncer, and, rocking... ((it was a very frustrating several of days)) 

I finally found that Parker liked being rocked; unfortunately, I did not like rocking him.  For two reasons...  First off, I royally suck at transitioning from arms to crib.  So after all that rocking, I would almost always wake him accidentally.  Second, the boy weighs over 15 pounds.  Do you have any idea how hard it is to rock 15-some pounds for that period of time?  I do!  The pinched nerve in my neck does!  It scared me to think that this could go on for months.  Just think about how much he'll weigh in another month, let alone another 3 months!

One day, after rocking my (extremely heavy) boy for what felt like forever, his eyes were still wide open.  All I could think was, SERIOUSLY PARKER??  It seemed so ridiculous to spend 30 minutes trying to put him to sleep, especially when he naps 4 times a day.  So I gave up.  I put him in the crib wide awake and walked out of the room.  He cried for four minutes...and then he napped for almost 1.5 hours.

I've continued to let him CIO for the past week, and I have no intention of turning back now.  He is doing so well with it, he hardly cries at all.  His schedule has become so predictable, he is happier during his waketime, AND, his nighttime sleep is improving!  Last night he slept for 5 hours, then 3 hours, then 4 hours!  Yay for CIO!!!

We may not have been able to implement it from Day 1, but I am so happy to have started it now, rather than at 9 months...like we did with Lucy.  

The Sleepless Shelton

Oh my beautiful boy, how I wish you would sleep more.  I don't know what I am doing wrong, but I feel like it's my fault that you are unable to sleep better. 

I know you are tired.  You yawn, your eyes get droopy, sometimes you'll even fall asleep in my arms; but when I put you down to nap or to bed, you only sleep for 20-40 minutes, or you won't sleep at all.  You've got a full belly, clean diaper, comfy clothes...what more do you need??  Tell me, PLEASE.  There was one week that I thought maybe gas pains were to blame, because you were gulping so much air - I even tried gas drops - but that issue seems to have gone away on it's own.  ::knocks on wood::

I'm really trying not to rely on nursing, but sometimes it's the only way you'll fall asleep.

A "good" nap lasts 45-60 minutes, but most naps are closer to 30 minutes.  Your waketime is between 1.5-2 hours,which is longer than most babies your age.  There have even been days that you've stayed awake for 6, 7, 8 hours straight.  Not fussing, not hungry.  Just AWAKE.

Nighttime is hard, because you're inconsistent.  You'll sleep in 1.5-3 hour stretches.  It makes it hard to do much with my kid-free time.  The good news is that we finally have a routine.  Every night, the four of us eat dinner together (you lay on my lap across the boppy), Daddy gives you your bath, then you have naked time with Momma (while Daddy is giving Lulu her bath), we get you dressed and fed, and you're in bed by 7:30.  I'm hoping that you start to recognize the cues for bedtime, because, right now, you're treating it like any other nap-- waking after 45 minutes. We've been bed-sharing more than I'd prefer, but those are the nights that you sleep in 3 hour stretches...  And I'd rather sacrifice my extra space than my extra zzzzz's.

I don't know what to do.  What I do know is that you and I are two very tired people.

2U2: Week Four (and then some)

We're still alive!  Are you surprised?  I am.

Blogging is near impossible as of late.  I have so much that I want to share, and absolutely no time to do so.  My life is consumed by these two tiny Sheltons between the hours of 6:30 am - 8:00 pm.  I'm tempted to blog during naptime, but then I lose my one opportunity to nap be productive around the house; and, of course, once the kids go down for the night, we like to have a little quality husband and wife time (or as we like to refer to it, an Entourage marathon).  I'm happy that I was able to keep up the 2U2 series for the first four weeks (albeit not always in a timely manner), but holy cow are these posts time consuming...I'll be doing monthly updates from here on out.

So, for the lazy or short-on-time readers, here is the condensed version of our fourth week:  my nipples are on fire (not in a good way), sleep sucks AGAIN, momma had a meltdown, there was a tarantula in our drive way, and I have mastered the art of leaving the house with two kids. 

Now for the long version:

BREASTFEEDING
Parker is still exclusively breastfed and nursing every three hours.  He's very alert during his waketime and nursing sessions.  Casey gave Parker his first bottle on Monday, and had no problems.  We are using my favorite bottle, the Playtex Nurser Drop-In.  I nursed Parker after he finished the bottle to help avoid nipple confusion.  We were anxious to introduce the bottle much earlier than we did with Lucy.  The plan is to feed Parker by bottle once each day so that he's familiar with it (you know, for those extremely rare occasions that I'm not around to nurse him).

Ok, so about my nipples (haha), for some bizarre reason they are both cracked.  Nursing is pretty uncomfortable for the first 30 seconds - no problems once Park is latched and my milk has let down.  I would have expected this during the first two weeks, but not the FOURTH.  What gives??   

NAPS
I have been reminded once again that newborn sleep habits are not all the same.  Park decided to add a little spice to our daily routine over the last week...the 2 hour nap (and 3 hour schedule) are no more.  Sometimes he'll sleep for 45 minutes, other times he'll sleep for 1.5 hours.  I very, verrrry rarely have to wake him after 2 hours.  Maybe it's another growth spurt?  I put Parker down awake, but drowsy, and swaddled with his arms free.  If I catch him at the right moment, he won't cry at all or he'll CIO for 1-2 minutes.  If I don't catch him at the right moment, he'll cry for up to 20 minutes.  His waketime varies; I try to watch for his sleep cues after 60 minutes and follow his lead. 

Lucy is officially down to one nap.  I try to put her down at noon, and she'll typically sleep for 1.5 hours.  (Today she spoiled me with a 3 hour nap.  Thanks honey!)  She'll stay in her crib for up to an hour after her nap to read and play.  

NIGHTTIME SLEEP
Parker's bedtime is dependent on his last nap, usually somewhere between 8:00-8:30, and consistently wakes at 6:30 each morning.  The first two stretches of sleep are the best at 2-3 hours, after that its every 1.5 hours.  It makes for a very long night...

Lu's bedtime is at 8:00 and she wakes between 7:00-8:00.    

DIAPERING
Lucy is in cloth during the day and a disposable at night.  Parker is half cloth and half disposable during the day, and disposables at night.  We are having a really hard time with prefolds this time around.  Parker soaks through them right away and then (understandably) wants to be changed.  I put him in a pocket diaper this evening and it fit really well on the smallest setting.  I might switch him to pockets full time, and then use the prefolds on Lucy. 

SIBLING INTERACTION
::shakes head::  Lucy, Lucy, Lucy...such a beast at times.  If she doesn't have my or Casey's full attention, she acts out.  It's the worst when I'm nursing Parker.  She'll swing from the curtains, stand on the coffee table, yank the night light or baby monitor, dump the contents of the laundry basket all over the floor, etc.  I've tried reading to her, cuddling, and even Barney DVDs, but nothing holds her attention.  Pinching was also a big problem last week.

Contrarily, she's starting to console Parker when I can't get to him right away.  She mimics what I usually do to soothe him - kissing his cheeks and rubbing his head or belly.  So sweet to watch!

MISCELLANEOUS
We ventured out of the house several times last week.  We did some shopping, visited Grampy at the hospital, and even went to Story Time at the library.  It's a lot of work, but worth it to avoid getting cabin fever...because cabin fever leads to meltdowns...like the one I had on Thursday.  The house was trashed before the day even started and I had absolutely no patience for it.  I went batshit crazy for all of 20 minutes, and then my friends and mother-in-law reasoned with me.  My expectations for myself and the house are up HERE and they need to be down here.

Oh, and we had a tarantula in our driveway.  First one in this house.  /dies

CONCLUSION 
Another week down with two kids.  TWO KIDS.  I still find myself needing to be reminded.  We have not one, but TWO little lives that we are responsible for nurturing and molding.  Sometimes I get so caught up in the number of diapers I've changed and how few hours I've slept that I forget that...

Mwah!

"Hey Parker, eat this Cheez-It"

Bahahaha! "Mom, mom!  He doesn't like the Cheez-It!"

 

All the cousins!

Pointing out a bird or a plane...(or Superman)

Reppin' the Albert.

2U2: Week Three

Week Three had it's ups and downs...  We made some progress, and we're slowly figuring things out.  It hasn't been as easy as I expected or as hard as I remembered.  Somethings, like breastfeeding, are second nature now.  Other things, like sleeping, aren't as textbook as I had hoped...

Here's a recap of our third week:

BREASTFEEDING
Is going well.  Park is a great breastfeeder, still exclusively breastfed.  He's even starting to get chubby!  He nurses for 20-30 minutes every three hours.  He has been more alert, so I don't always have to change his diaper to wake him.

NAPS
In an effort to help Parker get his days and nights straight, I decided to follow Kate's suggestion, and started waking him from naps after 2 hours (instead of 3 hours).  His typical waketime is 60 minutes, which puts us on a three hour schedule.  Parker goes down awake and swaddled.  Prior to this week, he laid there quietly until he fell asleep; but, this week, he's started crying-it-out.  The first time he cried, I checked on him immediately.  After checking his diaper and attempting to nurse, we decided to try letting him CIO; he cried for 8 minutes.  It was a little tough, but nothing compared to the first time Lucy cried-it-out.  He seldom cries for more than 5 minutes.

I also want to mention that we're swaddling a little differently than we did Lucy.  Our nurses in Postpartum told us to leave Parker's arms outside of the swaddle to reduce the risk of SIDS.  I leave his arms free or won't swaddle at all for naps, and then at bedtime I'll wrap his arms to make sure he stays warm.  (Hoping that makes breaking the swaddle habit a little easier in a few months!)

Lu is in the process of dropping her morning nap.  Sadness.  Most days she'll go down between 12-1, depending on lunch, and sleep for 1.5 hours; but sometimes she'll surprise us and take two naps.

NIGHTTIME SLEEP
We had some improvement from Week Two!  Park goes down between 7:30 and 8:30, and sleeps for 4 hours; I nurse him, change his diaper, and return him to the pack and play.  The rest of the night is kind of choppy...  After the first 4 hour stretch, he sleeps for 3 hours, then 2.5 hours, then 1 hour, and our daytime routine usually starts between 7:30 and 8:00.  So, still not perfect, but progress nonetheless.

Lucy has been going down at 8:00 and waking between 8:00 and 8:30.  (Which I appreciate mucho!)

DIAPERING
Both kids are in cloth during the day and disposables at night.  Parker is a very heavy wetter compared to Lucy.  I don't remember Lucy ever soaking through a prefold when she was his age; Parker, on the other hand, soaks through in an hour.  It's disrupting his sleep.  He's still too small for pocket diapers, so, for now, it's disposables to the rescue.  During the day he wears prefolds and Thirsties covers.  Lu wears BumGenius 4.0 pockets or Thirsties covers with Flip inserts.  Ah, and I'm still laundering each day.      

SIBLING INTERACTION
Literally as soon as I hit 'Publish' on last week's update, Lucy turned into this crazy jealous thing.  She shrieks whenever Casey holds Parker, and she acts out when I hold him.  She climbs up on tables, on the baby swing, the stairs, she pulls everything out of non-baby-proofed cabinets and drawers, yanks out every.single.wipe, yells, hits, yadda yadda yadda.  She still loves her brother, but she does not love to share her parents with him.  She smothers Park with kisses and hugs and occasionally love taps.  (We're working on the hitting...)

CONCLUSION
Is it horrible that I'm ready to wave the white flag?  One kid is hard enough, but 2U2 is REALLY HARD.  This last week I questioned whether I was cut out to stay home.  What does that say about me if I think a daycare is more capable of handling my kids than I am??  Maybe it's Postpartum Depression, or maybe it's just sleep deprivation, but I feel overwhelmed sometimes.  I feel guilty for snapping at Lucy.  I don't know how other SAHMs spend their days with their kids - doing projects or something educational.  I feel unproductive - like, if I'm home, I should be cooking and cleaning, and teaching Lucy something.  Instead the house is trashed and we're living off those freezer meals that I made when I was pregnant, and I'm embarrassed when Casey walks in the door each night.

And on that note, here's some pictures of the kids to distract you from my depressing ass...

BOOM!  Big wheel!

We color coordinate our stand mixers and bath towels.  No big.

The neck strength on this one...sheesh

2U2: Week Two

I'm kind of a pessimist.  If you know me at all, this isn't news to you.  I like to expect the worst and then be pleasantly surprised when life doesn't suck.  So when Casey went back to work last Monday, I did just that.  Fortunately, Parker still sleeps a ton (well, during the day at least...), so most of the time it's just me and Lu hanging out while he naps; it's those short intervals when they're both awake that things get interesting.

Here's a recap of our second week:

BREASTFEEDING
All signs of engorgement are gone.  Praise God!  Parker is still exclusively breastfed and latching well.  I think his 2 week growth spurt started on Friday, so he's been eating even more frequently.  He tends to be more alert and interested during his nighttime nursing sessions; I have to change his diaper before switching breasts during the daytime nursing sessions to make sure he's awake.

NAPS
Naps are Parker's strong suit, more so than nighttime sleep.  He extended his waketime over the last week and is now between 45-60 minutes.  Although there were several occasions that he surpassed his typical waketime and refused to sleep altogether...like on Friday...when he was up for 6 consecutive hours...and again on Saturday, when he was up for 3 consecutive hours (you know, during our newborn session).  He naps for 3 hours, and I wake him almost every time.  I put him down awake but drowsy, and swaddled.  He still doesn't seem to mind all the noise from Sissy. 

Lucy is still taking two naps a day, usually at 10:30 and 3:30, and sleeps for 1.5-2 hours each time.  She goes down with her Boppy, blankie, sippy, monkey, and a book.  I love naptime.

NIGHTTIME SLEEP
To put it simply, I dread going to bed each night.  (Maybe I jinxed our good luck with last week's update?)  Parker has his days and nights mixed up.  He sleeps like a rock all day and is drowsy during his waketime; but, come nighttime, he's wide awake, usually for 60 minutes, and sleeping in 1.5 hour intervals.  IT'S BRUTAL.  Everything I've read says to wait it out, and that it will resolve on it's own, but that can take up to one month.  We usually end up bed-sharing by the end of the night because I'm just so desperate for sleep...  I'm frustrated.  I don't want to fall into the same bad habits that I did with Lucy (nursing to soothe, bed-sharing out of desperation, yadda yadda yadda).

I wanted to start CIO, but Parker had (still has) the worst congestion AND two clogged tear ducts (which seem to be better now)...and he's in the middle of his 2 week growth spurt...so it didn't seem right.       

Lu has been going down at 8 pm, and sleeping in later and later!  Between 7:30-8:30!!!  Thank you, sweet girl!

DIAPERING
Both kiddos are in cloth.  (Except for Lu at bedtime.)  Parker is in prefolds and Thirsties covers - seriously, it's the only cover worth purchasing.  I use The Newspaper fold (a.k.a. Angel Wing fold), and Casey uses The Twist.  We haven't had any leaks and that makes me one happy, happy girl.  We were able to stop circumcision care after 10 days, which has saved us some time and mess during each change.

I've been laundering each day, and we've never run out of clean diapers.  ::knocks on wood::  Lu is usually in BumGenius 4.0 pockets or a Thirsties cover with a Flip insert.  (Trying to keep the prefolds set aside for Parker.)

SIBLING INTERACTION
Lu is still very much in love with her baby brother.  She loves to give him kisses and hugs.  Sometimes she's a little too rough; she wants to play with him like she plays with us...which involves hitting, kicking, licking, etc.  This morning she got really pissed when I used one of her blankets to cushion him; she tried to yank it out from under him.

She hasn't shown any signs of jealousy.  When I'm nursing Parker, she's usually walking around the bedroom or couch (wherever we're situated) making a mess playing with her toys.  Sometimes she'll stand behind me and gently tap my back as I'm burping Parker.

CONCLUSION

It was a good week overall.  Parker's nasty umbilical cord fell off and we're all still alive (just tired).  We may even attempt to venture out of the house during Week Three.  Stay tuned!  

2U2: Week One

This series is a spin-off of the Babywise Mom Newborn Summaries, but with my own twist.  I hate how little I blogged immediately after Lucy was born; I wish I were able to look back on that time to compare.  My hope is to keep up with this series for at least 4 weeks, but I make no promises.  For those unfamiliar (Mom), "2U2" stands for two kids under two years old. 

Our first week was surprisingly easy...  Casey took the week off of work, so the parent to kid ratio was even.  (I expect next week's update to be slightly more interesting, as today marks my first day alone with the two kids.)  We were home from the hospital on Tuesday night, and Parker had his first visit to the pediatrician's office Wednesday morning.  He weighed in at 6 pounds 13 ounces, which is an 8.5% loss from his birth weight - much better than Lucy's loss of 13%.  The pediatrician suggested supplementing with formula until my milk came in, but we didn't feel it necessary.  The stress level has been significantly lower with the second baby. We had a very lazy week, full of mid-day naps and snuggles.

Here's a recap of our first week as a family of four:

BREASTFEEDING
Parker has been exclusively breastfed to date.  I seem to have had way more colostrum than I did with Lucy, so we skipped that whole cluster feeding nightmare, and my milk came in much earlier - by day three!  Park has a great latch and is fairly alert during each nursing session.  I usually nurse Parker on one side, change his diaper to wake him up, and then nurse on the other side.  He's averaging 15-20 minutes per feed.  I've had minimal discomfort, absolutely no cracking or bleeding.  Our one problem, which is totally and completely my fault, is oversupply.  The engorgement has been much worse than I remember with Lucy...so I started pumping after nursing...and that created more of an oversupply.  Way to go, me!  I've stopped pumping and am hopeful that my supply will regulate in a few days.  Also, must plug the breastfeeding app on my phone!  It has made tracking so much easier.            

NAPS
We unintentionally fell into a loose schedule on Friday, and, fortunately, it seems to have stuck.  Parker's waketime is currently 30-45 minutes, with one longer waketime of 45-60 minutes in the evening before bedtime.  He naps for 3 hours at a time, and I wake him every time; there have been a few occasions that he's woken on his own after 3 hours.  Several naps were cut short due to diaper mishaps (more on that below).  I swaddle Parker and put him down while he's still awake, but drowsy, and he goes to sleep on his own within a few minutes.  He's had no problem sleeping with all the noise, and I'm hoping that that continues as he gets older, because Big Sister is sooo not quiet.

NIGHTTIME SLEEP
Parker goes down for the night between 8-9 pm (like I said, we're following a loose schedule, but hope to become more consistent in the near future).  I was waking him every three hours up until Friday.  My plan was to wake him every 5 hours, but he tends to wake on his own after 4 hours.  We had one really lousy night, where he was awake every 1.5 hours because of diaper leaks, but that issue has resolved itself.  My readers will be surprised to hear that we are not bed-sharing; we are co-sleeping.  For as much as I love cuddling my sweet babies, I love my space even more.  We have the pack and play set up in our bedroom, and we are all getting the best sleep possible.         

DIAPERING
Without a doubt, the most frustrating task this week!  There was one 24-hour period that every.single.diaper.leaked.  And all those leaks led to early waking from naps and throughout the night.  (Apparently boy parts need to face a certain direction...not something that I'm accustomed to thinking about.)  We switched to cloth diapers on Sunday, and we haven't had a leak since.  We also have to be mindful of his circumcision; every diaper change involves gobs of Vaseline and gauze.  Oh!  And he peed on me on Wednesday...must remember to cover boy parts immediately after opening the diaper! 

SIBLING INTERACTION
Lucy is absolutely smitten with Parker.  (Such a relief! I was afraid she'd hate him.)  Every time she hears him over the baby monitor, she stops whatever she's doing and yells, "Baby!" and then runs to our bedroom to check on him.  She gives him tons of kisses and hugs - sometimes a few too many - and she loves to lay random objects on his belly (her snacks, breast pads, burpies).  Of course we still have to remind her to be gentle...  Parker isn't interacting, obviously, but he does enjoy watching his Big Sister run circles around him.   

MISCELLANEOUS
Parker has a clogged tear duct.  ::sad face::  At first it was his left eye, but that cleared up, and now his right eye is clogged.  Lots of eye boogers...it is heartbreaking. And Lucy had a language EXPLOSION in the last week.  Suddenly she's repeating everything we say.  I'll do a separate post for the postpartum stuff, but I'll say that recovery has been a dream so far!  It's been a great first week, I just wish we had a little more time to interact with Parker - most of his waketime is spent nursing and changing his dipe.  It's still totally surreal to think we have kid(s), like, plural.   

And, to conclude, pictures!

Heading home from the hospital!

 

 

Sink baths!

Laundry basket races!

CIO, Attempt #2

I know, I know...I said we’d never try CIO again.  But desperate times call for desperate measures, and we were desperate last week!  Before last Friday our bedtime routine looked like this:

5:00 - 5:30 Dinner (1-2 ounces of purees)

5:30 - 6:00 Bath Time

6:00 - 6:30 Nurse to sleep

Once Lulu was asleep, I would wait for limp-limb sleep and then sneak out of the bedroom.  Fool proof, right?  Wrong. 

For weeks we battled the 45-minute intruder and/or constipation or teething pains.  And as a result, much of our night was spent taking turns soothing Lulu (until we’d finally go to bed, at which point she would wake in 1.5-2 hour intervals).  It was frustrating, to say the least.  I would finally collapse on the couch with my big glass of wine with Casey, and she'd wake up.   

But still, we persevered.  Bed-sharing was all we knew; we were committed. 

Until last Friday...when I finally reached my limit.  For three days Lucy refused to fall asleep after nursing; I spent hours trying to nurse her down before finally resorting to the car seat trick.  But even that wouldn’t put her to sleep!  As soon as we got home she’d wake up; and she’d continue to wake every 20 minutes all.night.long.  I dreaded going to bed each night. 

I didn’t know what to do.  I was mad (at myself).  I was scared.  I felt like a failure.  Everything I read said deal with it or Cry It Out.  Casey and I agreed that we had to try CIO one more time. 

We followed the same bedtime routine, except I nursed Lulu in the glider and put her down awake in her crib.  And once again, we followed the Ferber Increments to check on her.  The first night she cried for 1 hour and 15 minutes; she slept for 3 hours straight and then woke every 2 hours after that.  (I know that may sound horrible to some, but it was a huge improvement for us.) 

The second night she cried for 45 minutes, and woke every two hours. 

And for the past few nights, she cried for 20-60 minutes...and SLEPT.THROUGH.THE.NIGHT.  Say whaaaa?  I never thought the day would come!!! 

It was a big change all at once, the crib and CIO, but our girl did great!  We chose to bed-share to be closer with our daughter, and we will always cherish those memories; but we made a mistake by exclusively bed-sharing.  If I could go back in time, Lucy would start out in her crib each night and I’d bring her into our bed after her first night waking.  Also, we’d start CIO waaay sooner!  (Valuable lessons for Baby #2!)

And yes, hearing Lulu cry is heartbreaking.  That goes without saying.  I sit outside her bedroom door immobilized with guilt; but, when I wake up in the morning and realize that everyone got a full night of sleep, it is absolutely worth it! 






YAY for a well-rested Goosey!
(sorry for the crappy cell phone pictures)



Now go ahead and say I told you so!       

Nighttime Nursing

I created The Boob Monster.

I want your boobs, Momma!!!

We all know Lulu likes to eat.  And I, especially, know she likes to eat at night. 

Lucy has never slept through the night; at best, she's only woken once a night, and that only lasted for a few months.  All things went to hell when I returned to work (when I actually needed to sleep).  First I blamed reverse cycling.  Lucy wouldn't eat all day long, while she was with my dad, and then she'd literally nurse for hours when I got home from work.  Fast forward to the 4-5 month wakeful period, Lucy's night wakings moved upward of four times each night.  And that's when it happened, that's when I created The Boob Monster.

I have always nursed on demand and comfort nursed - my mom likes to call me the human pacifier.  There is nothing wrong with doing either of those, but there can be consequences...  Hunger is one of the strongest cues for the human body, and I essentially trained Lucy's little body to eat at these set times each night.  D'oh!

I once read on a breastfeeding forum that some mother's were eliminating nighttime feedings or scaling back their nighttime feedings by choice and/or by their pediatrician's recommendation, and I thought, "Well that's kind of mean.  Why would they do that?"  Now I get it!  (Does that make me judgey?)

I still nurse Lucy to sleep every night, with no intention of stopping anytime soon.  But now, when she wakes at 9 pm, 12 am, 1 am, and 2 am, I soothe her back to sleep without the breast.  By doing this, I've eliminated the hunger cues that caused her to wake previously.  It took us almost one week to reteach Lucy how to go back to sleep without nursing (and Holy God was that a long week!), but after only two days we saw a decrease in night wakings.  Now we're back to waking once a night!  YAY! 

So if you're a breastfeeding momma that also comfort nurses, keep doing what you're doing!  Just be sure to alternate your methods of soothing, especially for nighttime wakings.  Yet another lesson learned!!!


How did you handle nighttime wakings?  Or are you one of the lucky parents whose kiddos slept through the night at an early age?

I hate CIO, I hate CIO, I HATE CIO

I caved.  I decided to try the Cry-It-Out Method for Lucy's first nap this morning, and whaddya know, I was right. 

Cry-It-Out just isn't for us.  I've known this for years, since I heard my brother and sister in-law using it with my niece.  I'm the mom that cries when her baby cries.  I'm the mom that drops everything and RUNS to my baby when she needs me.  Why I ever thought that I could go through with this method is beyond me.

Oh ya, I was stupid and I was selfish.  That's why.

We had a terrible night last night.  Lucy went down later than she should have and she was up all night.  Finally, around 4:30 AM, we threw in the towel and put her in the car seat.  We drove around town for 30 minutes, got home, and she actually stayed asleep in her car seat for two hours.  Lucy is almost 6 months old...we should NOT have to resort to the car seat trick.  I told myself, "Tonight she sleeps in her crib."

So, tired and frustrated, I tried putting Lucy down in her crib this morning.  For my first attempt, I tried nursing her in the glider; when she fell asleep, I waited for "limp-limb" sleep and tried to transfer her....she woke up instantly.  Rinse and repeat.  Attempt #3, Casey rocked her.  And, attempt #4, CIO.  I read the Ferber Progressive Waiting Chart on this blog and away we went.

The first interval was three minutes.  Lucy didn't cry for the first two minutes, but once she started, she didn't stop.  I went in for two minutes, patted her belly, held her hand, and stroked her face - which made her cry harder.

The second interval was five minutes.  After three minutes I was sobbing.  Casey went in for the second "visit" and just as I was about to throw the baby monitor through the window, he and Lucy came marching into the kitchen.

He said, "She pooped....  And we're never doing that again."

And then we both started laughing, which made Lucy laugh.  But as soon as he set her down to change her, she started screaming again.  I think she so overtired and afraid that we'd leave her again...  After much soothing and nursing, she finally went to sleep in our bed.  Where she belongs.

Call me a wuss, call me an idiot, I don't care...  I'm not judging mothers that use the Cry-It-Out Method, not at all, its just not for our family. 

Lucy N.A.P.S.

Please ignore Casey, who is also a great napper, passed out on the floor...

I know that I've complained a time or two about Lucy's napping abilities, but over the past week it became very clear to me that her napping abilities are just fine. 

My nap-giving abilities, on the other hand, need(ed) some work.

With the help of my darling friends, Jaye and Meg, one very informative mommy blogger, and ultimately, Dr. Polly Moore, I have discovered the secret to infant napping!!

Its called, The 90-Minute Baby Sleep Program or N.A.P.S.

Note time when baby wakes up
Add 90 minutes
Play, feed, or pursue other activities
Soothe baby back to sleep

Now, right off the bat, I know most of you are probably thinking, "Gee, that's A LOT of napping!"  (*cough* Mom!)  Well, let me tell you, 1) It is NOT and 2)  Frequent napping helps baby sleep through the night.  Babies brains are in a constant state of development, even when they're sleeping - which is a whole other post, and so consequently, they need to nap every couple of hours!  

This book taught us so much.  We've learned to recognize Lulu's sleep cues; we've actually developed a schedule; we finally realized that the mysterious fussiness was actually over-stimulation; and, it has made for an overall happier Goosey.  What I loved most about this book was that it didn't advocate Cry-It-Out, because neither Casey or I agree with the CIO method, and it seems like the majority of books on infant sleep do so.  Dr. Moore actually points out that sleep training should not be used until at least 6 months.

From the very first day we used N.A.P.S. we noticed an improvement in Lulu's sleep quality.  Lucy is very much on a 90-minute clock (some babies are 120-minutes); she is very expressive in her sleep cues, it is unbelievable to me that we never noticed them before last week.  Prior to reading this book I always had to nurse Lucy down, but now she'll go down in her swing!  And if we catch her cues at the right moment she'll go down verrry easily. 

As for sleeping better at night...she's up to 8 hour stretches!!!  After almost a month of hourly waking, it is a very welcome change!!  I recommend you all go buy this book immediately, you will not be disappointed.

A well rested Goose is a happy goose.

Has anybody else used (and LOVED) the N.A.P.S. program?  What is your baby's nap time ritual?  

Lucy's Schedule

Lucy's schedule is non-existant.

......and its starting to be a problem.

Lucy's current caregivers (my dad, brother, and sister) tag team baby duty Monday through Friday, while Casey and I are off gallivanting 50 minutes west of F. Thrills.   

From the very beginning, Casey and I have leaned towards the attachment parenting style.  And we've followed the 7 B's to a T.  The 7 B's, for those not hip to the AP lingo are Birth Bonding, Breastfeeding, Babywearing, Bedding close to Baby, Belief in the language value of Baby's cry, Beware of baby trainers, and Balance.

Being sans schedule falls under the "Beware of baby trainers" category.  We have a nighttime ritual, but it doesn't commence at the same time every night.  We look for Lulu's cues to figure out when she's tired and ready for bed.  She recently started rubbing her eyes when she gets tired - which is adorable and a huge improvement from the spontaneous and inconsolable crying.

No one likes to see this face.

But like I said, being without a schedule is starting to affect everyone.  My dad/Fallon/Cole have to hold Lucy all day long or she gets fussy.  I'm talking can't put her down for ten minutes fussy.  And she's kinda heavy to be holding for ten hours straight.  Just sayin'!

I guess utilizing the Attachment Parenting style is great, for those who get to be a stay at home mom...but for those that have to continue working, it makes childcare a little troublesome for your daycare providers.  Back in the day, when I was on maternity leave, I was never able to accomplish a whole lot while Casey was at work (i.e.: showering, eating, using the bathroom....let alone anything truly productive - like laundry or cleaning).  So to impose that kind of responsibility on not one, but three people's lives, is a pretty craptastic feeling.

I have no idea what a good schedule looks like or whats to be expected from a 5 month old;  She's never been a very good napper.  But her lousy sleeping habits and constant need to be held have to be remedied.  I've done a little reading about infant sleep habits (which I shall post about later), but I'm trying to find some inspiration for a good, healthy schedule for Lulu (suggestions?).  I'm hoping to be able to persuade my Dad/Cole/Fallon to try out babywearing and this new schedule, because I think it could make everyone's lives a little easier.

What's your baby's schedule like?  Are any of you ladies following the Attachment Parenting style?

4 (almost 5) Month Wake

::waves::  Hello everyone!  I've missed you!

I thoroughly enjoyed my week off of work!  But wouldn't you know it?  The week I decide to stay home is the week Lucy comes into her 4 month wake.  What is the 4 month wake, you ask?  Let me tell you....

A truly rare site in the Shelton home.

At 4 months old a baby's little brain begins developing cognitive thought.  Babies are observing the world and learning from the moment they are born, but the real fun happens from age 4-7 months.  Babies begin to understand cause and effect, their attention span and memory increases, and (closer to 7 months) object permanence.  Neat, huh?

Casey and I have always known that Lulu is absolutely brilliant, just look at her:

"Oh my, Dada!  Your glasses look dirty, I'll clean them for you."

All these super cool developments do come with a price tag...  Oh hello, fussiness!  What up, distracted eater!  Goodbye, naptime!  Au revoir, sleeping through the night!

So for the last week or so Lucy has been extremely fussy and distracted while breastfeeding.  Like, eat for five seconds - pause - look around, eat for another 10 seconds - pause - whip her head around (with my boob still in her mouth) to see something distracted.  And holy hell, is she a fuss pot!  I have no idea what she wants.  This is the first time I've ever felt truly frustrated as a new mom.

She's also cut her two 60+ minute naps to three, sometimes four, 15-20 minute naps.  And my favorite side effect, so far, has been her nighttime sleeping....she has literally woke up a minimum of five times each night for the last six nights.  Every hour on the hour, after 11 pm.  Including last night.  Only this week, I do have to work.  ::sobs::    

My good friend, Jenn, told me all about the 4 month wake over lunch last week, since her little cutie pie (who's just ten days younger than Lulu) is going through the very same thing.  All along I had been blaming teething pains, ha!


The week wasn't all bad though...

We had lunch dates with baby friends

We swam

We had a birthday

 

Birthday Daddy!

We got new fluff (post to come!)

Yes, that's a paci.  No, she's still not taking them.

And we even started sitting up on our own!

Unfortunately, the only pic I managed to take is blurry.  Poo.

How was everyone's week?  Fill me in!