In the past several weeks Liam has been very difficult when it comes to getting sleep. All the trouble seemed to coincide with his new crawling/standing skills. I think that fact he can stand up in his crib and scream is something he is taking a strange delight in!
Anyhow...naps have been sketchy and the nights have been horrible. I sort of gave into him with naps and simply let him stay up as tired as he was just to avoid the screaming in the crib. That lead to nights with us getting up about 4-7 times trying to soothe him, rock him to sleep and even a desperate middle of the night bottle he wasn't interested in.
By this past Friday night we were DONE! It was like having a newborn...and we did not think his going backward in his sleep progress was something we could ignore any longer.
We decided it was time for a little tough love. Crying it out was the new sheriff in town. We began Saturday morning for his nap. One hour solid of screaming and a two hour nap. Saturday afternoon nap. Lovely..no problem. Saturday night.....he was up at 4:00 am and screamed to 4:30 am. I know this doesn't sound long, but to listen to your baby crying and not respond is so difficult. Difficult but for his greater good. He needs his solid sleep. We need our sleep. Nate and Chad need their sleep! Anyhow....today's naps weren't too bad. I put him to bed awhile ago and had about 25 min of screaming. I find that if I run away to the basement then I can't hear him as well and it doesn't bug me :)
With all that going on plus a very early morning on Saturday for a IAFF sponsored fishing derby, a wrong number phone call at 5 am and getting up early for church we were all quite edgy and cranky today. After watching Keith increase in his moodiness all afternoon I kicked him out this evening to catch a 'guy' movie with my brother. I do hope he comes back with an attitude adjustment :) LOL! Actually, all we need is a good night's sleep. One can hope!
6 comments:
Leaving a baby to cry it out is something I was never good at. Kudos to you for staying strong!
Rachel, I know it's hard on one's nerves, but good for you! I had to do the same thing around that age with my kids, and they get 'it' pretty quick and then the problem is solved :) Hope Keith enjoys himself tonight!
Hang in there Rach! You're doing a great job!
Oh yes, the crying is soooooo hard to hear... I used to go for a walk and let Christian listen cause I couldn't handle it. Here's to happy, well rested days ahead!
Crying it out is SOOOOO hard...I totally feel for you. It's not easy at all, I had to do it with two of my kids and it wasn't fun...but it worked...and now they are GREAT sleepers.
Lis does this with me all the time. She claims it works just fine. (Now I have you guessing. The crying or the movie?)
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