tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7439109790681220541.post6830440164040934848..comments2024-02-25T21:04:09.828-08:00Comments on Sunshine and Snowflakes: Approaching 2 monthsJenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13491687007971233290noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7439109790681220541.post-77264822983038611822011-03-24T22:27:25.741-07:002011-03-24T22:27:25.741-07:00Hey Jen, two quick comments:
1) have you tried nur...Hey Jen, two quick comments:<br />1) have you tried nursing lying down? That SAVED me with the sleepless nights problem. When baby woke up, I could nurse him back to sleep while still dozing myself. It took a little work to help him learn how to latch lying down, but once he got it, my life totally improved! :)<br /><br />2) If you choose to read Babywise, it might be wise to also read some discussions from the "opposition" to that style of parenting. I've read the book, and it is very seductive in the "if you do x, y, and z, you will be following God's will AND your baby will be perfect" sense. And it is easy for new parents to get so involved in following the babywise rules that they lose touch with their God-given mommy sense. There have been some really tragic child deaths linked to Babywise training. Just...do your research (and of course being you, I know that you will!)Emily (Laundry and Lullabies)https://www.blogger.com/profile/16367630628716619991noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7439109790681220541.post-7985790066091315052011-03-22T21:45:29.021-07:002011-03-22T21:45:29.021-07:00I see the Babywise recommendations and I think I r...I see the Babywise recommendations and I think I read before that you were reading that book earlier. I have read Babywise and like it to an extent, but if you have a tendency toward the notion that if you do everything right then everything will go the way you want it to, like I do it can perpetuate feelings of inadequacy when everything doesn't go as planned. <br /><br />I think if you follow the babywise suggestions, your baby will sleep better than he would have otherwise but some babies really are born better sleepers than others who still won't sleep well even if you are doing everything right from your end.<br /><br /> Even the babywise polls suggest some babies don't sleep through the night early when you follow the plan, just most of them do and that for boys it is usually a little later. Boys typically are hungrier and their digestive system is more immature. Also, weight is a bigger indicator of when they can sleep through the night than age so if your child happens to be low-weight for his age then it might take longer.<br /><br />And, you know what the biggest surprise was, even after my first-born started sleeping an 8-hour chunk? He started waking for other reasons like separation anxiety, teething, accidentally rolling-over in his sleep and freaking himself out. Though, once they stop waking up from hunger, at least they sleep decent chunks occasionally. The No-Cry Sleep Solution and Babywise were a good combination to help balance me out, and I think you said you were reading that one too, which means you are doing everything right! You are doing all the tips and they aren't working, which unfortunately is just life this side of paradise. <br /><br />There are a few tricks though that have helped me tip the scales in my favor a little. Pick one night feeding that you want to try to eliminate. If daddy can go in there this usually works even better because food isn't so much on their mind. First, make sure there are no gas bubbles, this is a horrible culprit for multiple wakings in my kids. They are really gassy and when they are so still and sleeping at night it wakes them up crying whereas in the day they kind of wiggle it out of their systems. Then, see if you can get them to fall back to sleep without a feeding... stand on your head if you have to. This can be very frustrating to them and stressful for mom and dad but, if they go to sleep and stay asleep until the next time they usually wake up to eat, then they have become 'addicted' to that feeding more than needing it for food. If they don't sleep very long and then wake up again, then they are actually hungry. Then you need to try and get more calories into him during the day time, one way or another and that should help the night wakings. Part of the problem though, is that if they are eating a lot at night, they don't demand as much during the day, even if they eat frequently it is less ounces per feeding probably. So if you can get him to skip even one feeding for three nights or so, he will be hungrier in the day and eat more per feeding then and you'll have extra milk in the day because he didn't eat as much as normal the night before. It is kind of a vicious cycle. I've even been so desperate to only give half a feeding during the night because they just wanted it so bad and wouldn't relax, which is a gamble because you think they will wake up again sooner, but if it is a want rather than a need, they actually will sleep as long as they ever do and you are tipping the caloric scales in your favor.<br /><br />As for the vaccines, it is no fun to make a decision knowing that no matter what you do, someone will think you are wrong and harming your child. Feel free to use your best judgment and then not talk about it, because people can't criticize what they don't know :)Jennifer Himeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15573325291479125824noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7439109790681220541.post-91453750737819457752011-03-22T21:11:05.114-07:002011-03-22T21:11:05.114-07:00Golly, Jen, I bet you kiss those chubby cheeks eve...Golly, Jen, I bet you kiss those chubby cheeks every day - what a cutie!<br /><br />Just for what it's worth, I know that many people have used Babywise and kept their common-sense and it's been helpful for them, but if you do go that direction, make sure to do a bit of research first (I know you're all about the research, so you probably don't need me to tell you that!) because it has been linked to some failure-to-thrive and even death cases when parents have taken it too seriously.Jessica Snellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17185831697537364088noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7439109790681220541.post-23494802724922397742011-03-22T18:38:18.249-07:002011-03-22T18:38:18.249-07:00Matthew is adorable!! Those cheeks! Oh my goodne...Matthew is adorable!! Those cheeks! Oh my goodness : ) I totally remember when Sadie was a newborn, I thought I was going to lose my mind. I kept wondering how I never knew how hard it was all going to be. I saw that another post mentioned the book Babywise. It was what we followed and Sadie slept through the night at 8 weeks to the date. A lot of my friends use this method too and all of them have had success. But, whatever you choose, God will give you the grace and strength to endure, my friend. And I promise that it gets SO much better as they continue to grow and become more independent. I am loving this stage with Sadie right now. I am almost nervous to have another newborn, but I think that the second time around won't be quite as traumatic for me. Just know that you are not alone! Lots of moms feel the same way. Hang in there!Traceyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03968724260312165851noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7439109790681220541.post-8865017355777752011-03-22T17:30:29.082-07:002011-03-22T17:30:29.082-07:00Hang in there Jen! You are doing a great job. Go...Hang in there Jen! You are doing a great job. God gave you your precious Matthew, and He will continue to strengthen you and give you wisdom each step of the way. You are not alone! <br />Thanks for the pictures. He is so 'pickin cute'!Krisahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10952325671353127531noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7439109790681220541.post-63516984182227678302011-03-22T16:53:49.200-07:002011-03-22T16:53:49.200-07:00Oh, he is so adorable!! Glad you updated~ I've...Oh, he is so adorable!! Glad you updated~ I've been thinking about you. I just love the way you pray over him, so sweet. I am very afraid of the sleep deprivation part of parenting because I know that I don't function well on little sleep. Praying you get some much needed rest! Enjoy your little guy!Ashleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10826913919163707391noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7439109790681220541.post-81541034209452096502011-03-22T14:31:15.153-07:002011-03-22T14:31:15.153-07:00Jen - I know what you mean about sleeping through ...Jen - I know what you mean about sleeping through the night. Please check out this site. <br />http://www.kellymom.com/parenting/sleep/sleep.html<br />It made me feel so much better. My baby is 7 mths old and no - he's not sleeping through the night and it sounds to me like that's OK for a totally breastfed baby. Do not let others make you feel bad. I got so tired of people asking if he was sleeping thru the night, that I started saying, "Yes, he's sleeping fine." You are a wonderful mommy - never doubt it.Michelehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01795317388267497199noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7439109790681220541.post-16290367163021166252011-03-22T12:24:39.239-07:002011-03-22T12:24:39.239-07:00Love the update, Matthew is such a cute little dud...Love the update, Matthew is such a cute little dude!!! :) I will be praying for sleep for the 3 of you. It is very painful, I just want to encourage you, it. will. get. better! (Slowly, but surely...) But yes, it is oh so painful- I remember being so suprised by that too. Hang in there, (you will want to do other things rather than sleep, one day soon, it happens slowly!) Thanks for the darling pictures of your sweet boy. We are praying for you!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16658903115116597725noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7439109790681220541.post-52297444260838369832011-03-22T08:53:01.610-07:002011-03-22T08:53:01.610-07:00He is just adorable! I am sorry you are so sleep d...He is just adorable! I am sorry you are so sleep deprived, it is really hard to get through that. I feel your pain. My 2nd daughter did not sleep through the night until at least 9 months. We searched and searched for "the" reason and just could not find one. The good news is we did survive (somehow). I am glad I have photos though because so much of that time is a blur! Hopefully it encourages you to know that from a little over 1yr until the present she is a great sleeper and rarely wakes up at night.Lisahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02406647984102448864noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7439109790681220541.post-79418418245672710202011-03-22T08:39:04.072-07:002011-03-22T08:39:04.072-07:00Jen, I loved the update. your little family is bea...Jen, I loved the update. your little family is beautiful. :) Your words of self-doubt kill me girl! I can totally relate on the sleep issues. Mine didn't sleep through the night until after she was a year old. I remember thinking all the same things you expressed. I remember my mom telling me all her 4 kids slept through the night by 2 months. I asked her why....her response: "By then I was too tired to wake up in the night." no baby monitors back then. Lol! I guess I want to tell you you are not alone and, somehow, the frustrating infancy just makes the "reasoning" years that much sweeter. I didn't even enjoy zoe until she was a year old and I felt SO guilty about that after dealing with infertility. Anyway...love you and you are doing fantastically!Becky Hinchcliffhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18198435991712139290noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7439109790681220541.post-77187475564241404892011-03-22T07:47:37.901-07:002011-03-22T07:47:37.901-07:00What a DOLL!!! Congrats and hang in there with th...What a DOLL!!! Congrats and hang in there with the sleep. I'm sure you've gotten TONS of advice, but I'm going to throw some your way, too - Makenna has always been a rockstar sleeper (maybe because we let her sleep in her swing for the first 2 months of her life - yup, all night long, swinging away listening to crickets chirp:)) BUT I have heard from friends that 2 great books to checkout are Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child and Babywise. One friend swears by Babywise - went from the situation you are in to great sleeper in like 2 days. Reading your updates I'm pretty sure you've probably read all the books and heard all the advice, so if you are rolling your eyes at more mommy advice, go ahead, I'd probably roll my eyes at me too:) ha! Enjoy every minute of that little guy - he is precious! What an amazing gift EA is!Laurahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05431441723252043195noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7439109790681220541.post-40965190536379262372011-03-22T04:49:47.348-07:002011-03-22T04:49:47.348-07:00Thanks for the update! I think about all of you o...Thanks for the update! I think about all of you often! I think it amazing how EA babies tend to look just like their mommies and daddies! Looking at the first pic, I thought, "WOW. He looks just like his dad!" Then, in later pics I couldn't get over how he has mommy's eyes. Very cool.<br /><br />Glad you are adjusting to this new leg of your journey. May sleep be with you! (I feel like this will be my biggest struggle as well).<br /><br />Don't wait so long to update next time!Ms. Pollywoghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03333603296034804747noreply@blogger.com