This guy is not letting us sleep.It makes me tired just thinking about it. I know it’s not the most exciting topic to read about. And, I know most parents suffer from lack of sleep to some extent. We are smack-dab in the middle of sleeeeeeep-deprivaaaaaaation around here. Of the chronic variety. I’m at work – should be drafting a motion or something else productive, but I just can’t get myself to focus. It’s finally catching up with me.
I was chatting with a friend yesterday whose son is Nolan’s age. He sleeps much better at night and she wondered how I do it. “I don’t know.” I shrugged. “Aren’t you crabby? You don’t seem crabby.” She said. “I take it out on Pauly.” I explained. And, he takes it out on me. Thank goodness we have a strong foundation, because we’re pretty snappy with each other lately.
I don’t quite know where to begin. Well, from the beginning, I guess. Nolan was a fussy baby. Remember? He was not one of the babies who slept all the time. He would only nap in my arms or in the swing. I tried, really hard, to get him to nap in his pack-and-play. When I was on maternity leave, Beck was in day care on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and I would not leave the house on those days. I would devote myself to trying to get Nolan to nap in his bed. I was not successful. We also ended up sharing our bed with him at night, even though that was not our plan, because it was the only way we could get any sleep. Finally, though, at some point, he started napping in his own bed. I just kept trying, and I guess when he was ready, he just did it. For a while, they were short naps – 30-45 minutes. But now, he’s a pretty good, maybe a really good napper. He takes a regular nap in the morning, around 9, for 1.5-2 hours. That is AWESOME. Then, he’ll take another nap in the early afternoon, which is less predictable, but usually substantial. He wakes up from his naps happy, instead of crying.
Nighttime, though. Siiiiiiiigh. Not good. He goes to bed between 6:45 – 7:30, depending on when and how long his afternoon nap was. He usually sleeps for 3 hours, maaaaaybe 5 hours. Then, game over. He’s up every hour after that. I try to put him back in his bed, but I’m exhausted, and he’s crying, so he ends up in our bed. But, he’s still restless. I think most of it is attributable to teething, and milestones (he now wakes up and sits up or stands up and cries), but I know some of it is a habit we’ve created, and some of it is just his personality. I keep telling myself that when he’s ready, he’ll sleep. In his bed. For a reasonable stretch of time. Paul and I have agreed to take the path of least resistance for now, which is a combination of the pack-and-play and our bed and as little crying as possible. We tried moving Nolan into the crib in Beck’s room. I was even more tired (trekking downstairs to feed him several times per night instead of just rolling over or putting him in the right position to nurse), and Beck’s sleep was disturbed. After five nights, and after Beck starting acting out and beating Nolan up, we nixed that plan. We also tried to let Nolan “cry it out.” He cried for t-w-o. h-o-u-r-s. Not acceptable for me, so crying it out is put on hold indefinitely. We only have two bedrooms, and one is Beck’s, and Beck is sleeping well. We don’t want to mess with that. So, for now, Nolan is stuck in our room.
Beck wasn’t always a good sleeper. Eventually, though, that changed and he consistently sleeps 10-11 hours at night and takes a 1.5-2 hour nap most days. That is our ray of hope. Nolan’s temperament is very different from Beck’s, but I’m still hopeful that if I just keep trying, and gently encourage him to sleeeeeeep, he will do it when he’s ready. I’m tired, though. Really tired. Usually, when I reach my breaking point, Nolan cuts me a little slack. So, universe, send him the message that mama needs a break! And a nap. Throw in a massage for good measure. Thanks.
I was chatting with a friend yesterday whose son is Nolan’s age. He sleeps much better at night and she wondered how I do it. “I don’t know.” I shrugged. “Aren’t you crabby? You don’t seem crabby.” She said. “I take it out on Pauly.” I explained. And, he takes it out on me. Thank goodness we have a strong foundation, because we’re pretty snappy with each other lately.
I don’t quite know where to begin. Well, from the beginning, I guess. Nolan was a fussy baby. Remember? He was not one of the babies who slept all the time. He would only nap in my arms or in the swing. I tried, really hard, to get him to nap in his pack-and-play. When I was on maternity leave, Beck was in day care on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and I would not leave the house on those days. I would devote myself to trying to get Nolan to nap in his bed. I was not successful. We also ended up sharing our bed with him at night, even though that was not our plan, because it was the only way we could get any sleep. Finally, though, at some point, he started napping in his own bed. I just kept trying, and I guess when he was ready, he just did it. For a while, they were short naps – 30-45 minutes. But now, he’s a pretty good, maybe a really good napper. He takes a regular nap in the morning, around 9, for 1.5-2 hours. That is AWESOME. Then, he’ll take another nap in the early afternoon, which is less predictable, but usually substantial. He wakes up from his naps happy, instead of crying.
Nighttime, though. Siiiiiiiigh. Not good. He goes to bed between 6:45 – 7:30, depending on when and how long his afternoon nap was. He usually sleeps for 3 hours, maaaaaybe 5 hours. Then, game over. He’s up every hour after that. I try to put him back in his bed, but I’m exhausted, and he’s crying, so he ends up in our bed. But, he’s still restless. I think most of it is attributable to teething, and milestones (he now wakes up and sits up or stands up and cries), but I know some of it is a habit we’ve created, and some of it is just his personality. I keep telling myself that when he’s ready, he’ll sleep. In his bed. For a reasonable stretch of time. Paul and I have agreed to take the path of least resistance for now, which is a combination of the pack-and-play and our bed and as little crying as possible. We tried moving Nolan into the crib in Beck’s room. I was even more tired (trekking downstairs to feed him several times per night instead of just rolling over or putting him in the right position to nurse), and Beck’s sleep was disturbed. After five nights, and after Beck starting acting out and beating Nolan up, we nixed that plan. We also tried to let Nolan “cry it out.” He cried for t-w-o. h-o-u-r-s. Not acceptable for me, so crying it out is put on hold indefinitely. We only have two bedrooms, and one is Beck’s, and Beck is sleeping well. We don’t want to mess with that. So, for now, Nolan is stuck in our room.
Beck wasn’t always a good sleeper. Eventually, though, that changed and he consistently sleeps 10-11 hours at night and takes a 1.5-2 hour nap most days. That is our ray of hope. Nolan’s temperament is very different from Beck’s, but I’m still hopeful that if I just keep trying, and gently encourage him to sleeeeeeep, he will do it when he’s ready. I’m tired, though. Really tired. Usually, when I reach my breaking point, Nolan cuts me a little slack. So, universe, send him the message that mama needs a break! And a nap. Throw in a massage for good measure. Thanks.
