6.05.2009

Short-Sighted

We had a girls' group farewell last night at the peninsula. The husbands came too and we ate and played washers and frisbee and talked and had a good time til the sun set. We will miss Sarah, Elizabeth, and Lauren. Here are some of the girls:


And here is Will (Lauren's son- in the blue), Addy (Sarah's daughter), and Henry (in the cowboy suit).



Please note that Will is 3 months older than Henry. Henry is a big boy, eh?

This week has been a bad sleeping week for little Henry James. I find myself short-sighted in the middle of the night because of exhaustion and I end up putting him into bed with me to get some shut-eye. If we put him down in his crib awake, he cries after no more than five minutes of laying there, sometimes sooner. If we put him in his crib asleep, he's been waking up pretty quickly this week for some reason...

I want him to sleep well and we do pretty well during the day- eat, awake time, nap, repeat. Yesterday, he fell asleep in his carrier outside, yes!, and then took a nap upstairs in his crib on his sleep positioner (which is getting entirely too small- he's big!) When he fussed, I went and patted him and put his pacifier in his mouth and he miraculously fell asleep for about 40 minutes and I didn't even have to pick him up. So, nighttime-

So, my main issue is the crying it out thing. I tried it once for 5 minutes on the timer and it was really sad. It's so back and forth and maybe I just need to try it but then people are like...hey, he's too young to cry it out. He's not the kind of baby you can just set down and he'll go to sleep. I don't mind him sleeping with me but I know that's not very conducive to either of us getting good sleep right now. He's also digressed this week from sleeping 3 and sometimes maybe 4 or once or twice, 5 hours- to not ever making it 3 hours during the night. I think maybe when he's sleeping right with me, he can smell the milk? I don't know. ANYWAYS, that's my vent session. He was 6-weeks- old on Tuesday and I'd like for him to be getting closer to sleeping through the night...not further away.

7 comments:

C and G said...

I'm sorry you guys aren't getting sleep! That's rough. Henry sounds similar to caris except she has her problems with daytime naps and early bedtime. She won't go to sleep on her own unless she is moving (stroller, car, in her sling)and I end up holding her or letting her sleep in the pouch...bad I know. I dont know the answer! You are doing great :)

Marylou said...

I either try to remember Darius Rucker's song "it won't be like this for long" or give Brian a swift kick in the shins when I'm getting back in bed for the 5th time in the middle of the night after being up w/ t. Either one works for me!

Olson Family said...

It gets easier...I could not stand listening to Jack cry and with Jacob it's so different! I've heard Jack cry for 20 months now and he's still alive and thriving so it's easier to listen to Jacob cry and know he's going to be a-okay. It's very normal for them to cry a bit when they are tired. With Jack I would only let him cry when Erik was home to help me through it! But after a while you learn their little cry patterns and you can tell if they are just trying to go to sleep or really hungry. IT WILL GET BETTER SOON!!!!

Anonymous said...

It's very tough but please remember that for centuries babies and children co -slept with their parents. There's realy nothing wrong with it and if everyone is sleeping, I say so be it. They will learn to like their own bed one day! Sleep is the most important thing!

Baby High Five said...

I still crawl in the bed with my kids sometimes. Read this book http://books.google.com/books?id=sQovc2twYVEC&pg=PP1&dq=helping+your+child+sleep+through+the+night&ei=JcwpSui0K5LqyATFprW4Bw

It solved our problems with Cade (which resulted fro his on my chest for 5.5 months, but I digress). If I recall, though, it does say to wait until they are older. You will get lots of advice, but this book worked for us.

Lorraine said...

Hey old friend. Has anyone mentioned growth spurts that babies go through? They will want to eat more often for a few days and then settle back into a longer sleep pattern. Good luck.

Deb said...

Yes, this too shall pass....I remember putting Josh's seat on top of the washer and putting it on spin. They would make him sleepy and stop fussing. It didn't last though. I was desperate for some sleep! It got much better at about five months...
:-) Hang in there...I know it is tough.