Sleep Training

Last week Friday we began sleep training our little guy. We knew this would be an adventure but we are amazed with how well it has gone (overall). That first night was terrible as we sat downstairs listening to him cry and cry and cry in his crib. The crying went on for two hours that night; it was so hard to listen to him crying for that long and not going up there to get him and cuddle him.

Probably the hardest night for me was night three. Andrew had fallen asleep in my arms after eating that night and as I went to lay him down in his crib his eyes popped open. He looked up at me with this terrified look in his eyes almost pleading with me not to leave him there. That look would break any mommy's heart. I will admit that I spent a lot of that evening crying myself and fighting every urge in me to run upstairs to pick him up. 

We learned after that night that our little guy is best to be laid down when he is still awake but very sleepy. So we have been careful to get through our nightly routine of nursing, reading a Bible story, singing a song, and saying our bedtime prayers all before Andrew falls asleep in our arms. 

I knew in the end that everything would be worth it and it is. Last night (one week into the sleep training) Andrew cried from only five minutes before putting himself to sleep :). This is such an amazing feat considering it used to take around two hours of rocking in daddy's arms and then crossing our fingers that he would stay asleep when his head hit the bed, which often did not happen.

Sleep Log:
Night 1 - Crying for 2:00 hours, Asleep at 10:00pm, Woke at 6:00am
Night 2 - Crying for 1:15 hours, Asleep at 9:15pm, Woke at 6:45am
Night 3 - Crying for 0:40 min, Asleep at 8:50pm, Woke at 8:10am
Night 4 - Crying for 0:20 min, Asleep at 8:40pm, Woke at 6:30am
Night 5 - Crying for 0:30 min, Asleep at 8:15pm, Woke at 6:30am
Night 6 - Crying for 0:09 min, Asleep at 8:20pm, Woke at 7:00am
Night 7 - Crying for 0:05 min, Asleep at 8:50pm, Woke at 6:00am


There is one definite downfall to this whole process...I have never used so much stain remover on his pjs and sheets before in his life. But if the payoff for a peaceful evening and a good night's rest for all of us is another load of laundry a week for me; I will gladly take it with a smile, especially when I get more smiles from him.

Next step is conquering naps but from what we have learned in speaking to others these can take more time and will improve with age and as our little guy continues to sleep well at night.

First Taste

During the past three weeks or so Andrew has become very curious about Todd and myself eating. It is so funny to watch him watch our fork go from our plate to our mouth and if he can he will start to reach for our food as well. We knew this was a huge sign that our little guy was growing up even more and was ready to start eating solid food...crazy to think he is old enough for that.

The final product...not too bad for our first "solid" food I thought. I can't really say that he loved it or not as he didn't really eat much. He more played with it than anything but he did try to suck the cereal off of the spoon. 

Our Not So Sleepy Boy (or so he thinks)

Ever since day one our little guy has been one to fight sleep and he fights it well. In the past few weeks this has gotten worse making for late evenings and long days. He has been going to bed between 10:30 and 11:30 at night after a long process with Daddy. Andrew is content to be rocked to sleep in his daddy's arms and will snuggle into a deep sleep there; however the second his little head touches the mattress he is crying like the world is ending. He still prefers to sleep in his bouncy chair but even some nights that is a struggle. 

Like many of us if we don't get enough sleep at night we are not the happiest during the day, well this is very true for Andrew. This week has been our hardest I would say. There has not been a day this week where we haven't had fits of screaming, most of which last for hours on end. The only thing that helps me through this is that I know some moms have it much worse than I do, but the most frustrating part is that their is nothing wrong with him, he is only tired and won't sleep.

I will admit that during this time it is hard to keep my composure especially when he begins to use his strong arms in his fit as this usually results in him grabbing my glasses and sometimes sending them flying off of my face. Being as blind as I am without my glasses this makes me very nervous.

Eventually we do win the battle (often not until the early evenings though)...

We have plans to start a sleep training process this weekend...hopefully it goes well and we can be over this hurdle.

Starting Something New

With a new job comes a new hobby (or at least I think so). I saw this idea on the internet a while back and really wanted to make one for Andrew. I will admit that it didn't take me long to buy the fabric and other supplies but it took me a long time to get started. 

I wasn't quite sure how to do the letters but after a quick lesson I think they turned out pretty well. The pillow isn't perfect but I'm happy with how it turned out...

 But most importantly I think Andrew likes it...

More projects are in my future, I have already started the next one :) I think I may be hooked.

Who Needs Toys When You Have Toes

Andrew has really started to develop his skills and personality lately. He is a very vocal little boy and very interactive with whatever is around him. It is so much fun to watch him find new things...

These simple things he does always brings a smile to our faces. You just have to love him!

Soccer Mom

This past weekend our family made a change...

About a two weeks ago the car that Todd drove decided it was done after it had carried people around for 203,000 miles (over 125,000 of those were between Todd and myself over the past six years). So this means we were in search of a new vehicle. We knew this day was coming soon so we had been searching and looking, along with saving up money for our new purchase. We were able to find a new vehicle (or at least new to us) that fit into what we had saved up - going back into debt was not an option since we got debt free recently and refuse to ever go back. Thanks to God that we were able to meet this need that our family had - being at home without a car for a week and a half was a little rough on me.

So in the end I have officially became the soccer mom sooner than I thought that I would. We purchased a 2007 Chrysler Town and Country...yes that's right a minivan for this mom of one.

My Boys Playing Soccer Together

Andrew absolutely loved it - I see sitting at games in my future 

It will be a big adjustment for me but a good one as traveling to visit our parents will no long be a puzzle in the packing department and we won't need to continually borrow larger vehicles to transport various things as we have needed to in the past. The other adjustment will be finding the van in parking lots...just last night I ran to the store and found myself looking for my car in the parking lot, not the van. This could make for some comical times ahead.

 

Easter

We had a great time celebrating Christ rising from the grave this past weekend. We traveled up to our hometown and spent a lot of time with family.

Andrew got to experience his first Easter egg hunt, he enjoyed walking around with me and holding the eggs...

But it was also a tiring experience watching his cousins running around picking up eggs.

Through all the fun that we had I count the amazing blessings that our Lord has given to us...most of all His son to die on the cross for our sins. Also for the amazing blessing for my wonderful family of three.

4 Months Old

Hard to believe that Andrew is 4 months old already; time goes by so quickly.

It seems like everyday he learns something new and becomes more and more interactive. He has really started to giggle now which is a lot of fun. Usually all it takes now is someone playing Boo with him or finding his ticklish spot just below his ribs. The other thing that he finds extremely funny is coming up behind mommy and getting her with his feet (of course this takes daddy's help).

Andrew also rolled over for the first time this weekend. It was so much fun to watch him achieve this goal and be so excited about doing it. After flopping on his back after rolling from his stomach he got the biggest smile on his face. He also honored my one request, to do this in front of both of us, so glad that both Todd and I were able to see this first of Andrew's.

Other things our little guy is up to...

• Growing like crazy - doctor's appointment today and he is 16lbs 12oz and almost 25 inches long.
• Talking like crazy, it is rare to have a quiet moment in the house when he is awake but we love it
• Sleeping through the night. He started dong this a few weeks ago but we are definitely at a point for there are more nights than not that this happens.
• Showing patience. No longer does he instantly start crying when he is hungry, he will be patient with us if we need to finish something up before we can sit down for a feeding.
• Loves books, this little guy loves books no matter what the kind. We have quickly learned to watch our Bibles in church; those thin pages crinkle and tear very easily, but every time I open mine to the first page of Hebrews it makes me smile.

We have such a big boy that is growing like crazy and we love him with everything that we have. 
 

Laundry

I have never done more laundry before in my life, but it is still one household job that I really don't mind doing. Especially with a little helper...

"When you are folding the laundry, think how lucky you are to have so many clothes"

- Unknown -