It's 4:30 in the morning and I'm writing this post as I pump (story of my life!). I just came back from feeding Ethan...who was sleeping in his own crib, in his own room...Some of you may think "big deal, that's what babies do", but not Ethan! I made the decision since Day 1 to co-sleep with him. That worked well until he started to grow (from his little peanut weight of 4 pounds 13 ounces) and my arm was falling asleep. I was finally able to get him moved into the Fisherprice (Newborn) Rock n Play which is where he slept, swaddled, for about a month. Then one night he just regressed and did not want to sleep there anymore. Being a mom of twins, I highly value my sleep so I didn't fight it and brought him back to bed with me. this went on for a few weeks before I decided I just wasnt getting good sleep because we were basically waking each other up too often. I was able to transition him back to the rock n play but then, 2 nights ago, Ethan woke up FIVE times between the hours of midnight and 7:00 am. Not okay. He is 5 months old, not a newborn. (Keep in mind that Wesley on the other hand, is sleeping through the night now. About 8-9, sometimes even 10-11 hour stretches, which is why this post is focused on Ethan who is not quite the sleeping rockstar like his brother).
Anyway, that night was my breaking point and I decided he needed to start sleeping in a crib (his feet were sticking out of the rock n play) and he needed his own room (because I no longer wanted to have to tiptoe around my bedroom in fear of waking him up). This was a moment I DREADED-basically because I knew it would mean hours upon hours of screaming and puking (Ethan is NOT a "cry-it-outer"-he will never eventually fall asleep. He just cries so hard until he pukes. In 5 months he has never just "fallen asleep eventually") You can see why this move was met with dread and hesitation on my part!
I cleaned out the spare room (which was home to all of their toys they arent old enough for yet, bigger size clothes, boxes of diapers, etc). Paul took apart his crib and moved it in there, along with the glider and pack n play (which we use for a changing table). Keep in mind that Ethan is a side sleeper, who is used to a confined, tight space, and always had something to grab onto whenever he flailed or woke in the middle of the night. My solution to this was to introduce a security blanket ( you know, those little square foot blankies that havr a stuffed animal head and arms and are silky on one side). Well he immediately took to it-yay! And my solution to keeping him on his side, in a "confined space" while still being safe, was to cut a pool noodle in half and tape it to his crib mattress and put the fitted sheet over it. This created a little divet in the crib and allowed him to sleep on his side (or back if he wanted) and was something pressing against his body which is how he was used to always sleeping.
Enough of the rambling! That first night I prepared myself for the worst. up every 5 minutes to soothe a screaming baby. But it never happened!! I gave him his bedtime bottle, rocked him to sleep (which I will never give up, I enjoy it), and put him in his crib. That was it!! He did wake every 3 hours to eat (which he obviously can go longer than that, so we'll work on that next) but I just couldnt believe there was no crying. He woke up several times but put himself back to sleep with no prompting from Paul or I. And that's how it has been tonight too! As I sit here and watch him on his monitor, he was squirming around (but quiet) after I left the room but now he is fast asleep. Not a peep out of him!! I just assumed it would be this horrible and dreadful experience which is why I put it off for so long. Now, dont get me wrong, I know things could start to get ugly once I try to take away one of his nighttime feedings but I'll take what I can so far!! It's progress-baby steps, but it's progress!! Yay Ethan!! :-)
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