FINALLY!

It's been a big week around here.  After months of getting hardly any sleep at night, Shae' has finally started to sleep better.  I think the Lord knew I was at my breaking point, because it happened at a time when I literally thought I was going to lose it.  Sleep deprivation is a nasty thing.  My sweet girl is almost 9 months old and it has been such a blur to me thanks to lack of sleep.  We were literally at the point of her waking every hour (every 2 if it was a good night).  So I was basically sleeping in 45 minute increments throughout the night.  This went on for about 2 solid months...EVERY night.  Tom would help out some on the weekends, but she would scream like crazy when he would get up with her...she wanted Mama.  Most times, I would end up with her anyway because he just couldn't calm her down.   So, you can only imagine how exhausted I've been.  Most days I would not get a nap during the day due to being too busy with the kids.  And even the days I did get one, it just wasn't enough to make up for the lack of sleep at night.  It was to the point that I felt sick all day from lack of sleep, nauseous, headaches, etc.  I finally caved and decided to just let her cry.  It was that or ship her off to Grandma's.  One way or another, I had to get some sleep!


So this is how we did it:   I started on Friday, with her first nap of the day.  Instead of rocking her like we usually do, I just laid her in her bed and said nite nite.  I then sat in the floor of her room with my back to her.  She stood and started screaming...and screamed....and screamed.  I tried staying in there and letting her see me, but not speaking to her, etc.  But after 30 minutes of this (a very stressful 30 minutes) I realized that this method was not going to work with her.  So I left the room.  She cried for an hour total at that nap.  I went in every 15 minutes or so and laid her down and patted her back.  This is how she ended up falling asleep.  Nap 2:  I laid her down and left the room.  She cried for 20 minutes.  After 15 I went in a patted her back and this is how she fell asleep.  Bedtime:  I read her books and cuddled, then laid her in bed, patted her back while I sang to her softly, then left the room. She cried for 12 minutes and then laid down and went to sleep.  I never went in that time.  She woke up once a few hours later and cried for less than a minute and was back asleep.  She slept the rest of the night.  This pattern continued for several nights.  Then on Monday night, she slept the entire night without waking at all.  The last 2 nights she's woken up and I've actually ended up in there rocking her, but overall it's been a good week!    We're not where my goal for her is yet (12 hours of continual sleep) but we are on the right track!  She's done 8-9 hours continual sleep this week more than once.  She is still not taking in very much solid food, mostly breastmilk still, so she can't go as long as I'd like because she gets hungry too soon.  But I'm at least seeing the light at the end of the tunnel! 


So yes, most of my FB posts have related to this topic, and so have some of my blogs, and yes, you are probably tired of hearing about it all, but this has been my life lately.  Everything else has been secondary to trying to get some SLEEP!   My time with Carter has suffered, my diet and workouts have suffered, my ability to be the wife and mother I want to be has definitely suffered....but thankfully we're on the right track.  I'm still not feeling 100% (one week is not going to make up for months of no sleep!) but I'm certainly feeling a thousand times better than I have in a long time.

                                                                   sleeping in church

                                                                    such a stinker!




The other breakthrough around here is that Shae' FINALLY started saying "Mama" yesterday!  I can't believe it took her so long, but she's saying it now :)  "Mama" was Carters first word at about 8 months old.  Shae' was saying "Dada" by 6 months old.  Go figure she'd put me through so much sleeplessness and not even say my name for so long.  She is a stinker for sure!  But she's my stinker and I love her to pieces.  And somehow my love for her has grown since she's started sleeping better. HA!