Update on the Sleeping Standoff

I had a lot of commiserating and well wishes after my post about Drew's sleeping {or lack thereof} situation. One of the reasons I wrote the post yesterday was encouragement to myself. I knew I couldn't chicken out if I put it on my blog {grin}. And chicken out I did not!

Drew went down super easy {fell asleep nursing}, and I snuck into her room before I went to sleep and sprinkled Lavender essential oils around her in the bed. I was so nervous when I went to bed because I shut both our doors! I woke up a couple of times and looked at the monitor {I always have the volume off because I never need it}, and she was sleeping. The last time I checked was 3:45, and at 4:15 I heard her up and crying. She would go from crying/screaming to chewing on her crib rail to crying to chewing to screaming. The crying spells never lasted more than a few minutes at a time and by 5:00 she was back asleep! And I had to wake her up at 8:20 to get ready for school! It went just about as good as could be expected!

I feel like this just proved the point that it was well past time. It was actually pretty easy on me in the night because A) I was SO tired from the night before, B) she never got THAT worked up {sleep training her for naps was way worse} and C) I knew it was time.

So yay!!!

Sink, Sank, Sunk...I'm Tapping Out

Drew Kathleen, you have defeated me. I have said for 6+ months any combination of the following as excuses for continuing to nurse you in the night:

• She's so petite. And she really nurses. So maybe she's still hungry?
• She only wakes up once and goes back down so quickly, it can't hurt?
• She won't take a pacifier, so I don't know how to teach her to self-soothe.
• Her wake-ups are getting later and later in the night, so surely she'll figure it out.

Well, times up. 

Last night you partied from 12:45 - 3:45 AM. You cried for me, you ripped your rail guard off and gnawed at your rails {you will probably have wood chips in your poop tomorrow}, you screamed. I nursed you probably 4 times. You cried when I put you back in bed.

I went to bed at 11:45 {after working for 2 hours}, was up 4 times between 12:45 - 3:45 and woke up at 6:20 for work. Mama is tired. You are getting WORSE at sleeping. All my excuses are just that...excuses.

I am at a loss for how to help you sleep through the night without just letting you cry and figure it out on your own. We did it with your brother, but he took a pacifier. I am scared of how tonight will go. I don't want you to cry for hours and feel abandoned {yes, I recognize I'm being dramatic, but these are still my feelings. #mamaproblems}

So...my little love...I will see you in the morning. Gulp. I guess the upside is I can catch up on Downton Abbey while I watch you on the monitor?