sleep, where art thou?

I uploaded Zoey's birth story. Up there on the tab bar.

 I can not believe it's already been a year. Crazy! It was so neat to write it and feel like it had just happened, only not really. So thankful for time passing since being pregnant and giving birth. It's such a whirlwind and kind of stressful for me.

Zoey is taking an unusual morning nap (perhaps because she was up at 6am?) and Jack is content and nearby. I normally love the upcoming spring (and still do) but the early sunrise kind of kicks our behinds. Arizona doesn't have daylight savings so there is no turning the clock back that hour and kiddos wake up with the sun. Even with blackout shades, for real.



Zoey is such an interesting sleeper and so, so opposite of her brother. Jack loves his sleep, still takes a near 3 hour nap every day. I have to wake him up almost every day. He is like his daddy. Even at Zoey's age he still needed those naps and didn't really love life without them.

Zoey can easily function on an hour and a half nap. She might not be the happiest camper the last hour of it or so, but she is ready for the day after she wakes up.



This can be so tricky and seriously exhausting.

I would hope that after only an hour and a half nap she would fall into a deep needed sleep at night and there would be no more worries. However, it's as if she gets her last burst of energy anywhere between midnight and 3am. She's been like this since about 6 months old and I can not for the life of me figure out why. I give her two naps, I nurse her back to sleep if she wakes up early, I've put her to bed later, I've let her sit in her crib and talk/cry for an HOUR and she's still just a bubble of energy and just can't seem to fall asleep. Of course I have given her tylenol thinking she might be in pain, but that didn't work so well either. So weird. I trust that shortly after she is weaned she might find the love and blessing of a full night's rest. The last few nights have been good. She's gotten up to nurse, but fell right back asleep (thank you Lord!) but this morning she was up at 6 and yesterday it was 6:30. Which I'm okay with really. I'm an early bird and that typically means she'll be ready for a morning nap around 9. It's just the middle of the night-life that is killin' me. I mean, she is just too cute when she is awake so it's hard to be frustrated and she's not crying (besides outbursts every 15 minutes or so. Kind of hard to sleep through that in the other room ;) so it can't be that annoying.

She's pretty much talking to herself. I have moments of laughter in the middle of the night thinking of her being a 2 year old and waking her brother up so they could play at 3am. Knowing Jack he would hardly open his eyes and just mutter "go back to sleep" and she probably would. I know she'll get there, but I just had to document this so if another lil kiddo is like this I can reflect and feel comforted (? Kind of?) I've googled it (of course) and it is very common and most mom's don't know what to do. We aren't into crying it out (although I have definitely tried it with her) but she just has to no tears. She is simply ready to party. Can't say I blame her.

a snowy sunday

 

Last night we slept with the window shade open. The snow fell all night long and we wanted to catch it as we drifted off to sleep. Which, when I think of it is kind of weird. Both of us wear glasses and without them we can't see much of the snow + we fell asleep in about 2.5 seconds. None the less, we wanted to see that beautiful crystal glow when we woke up.

However, after the 4th time Jack woke up in the night I shut the blinds to avoid any sign of daylight. It was 4:45am, people. I wasn't ready to see the snow or the morning. He sure was cute in those doggy pj's though. And I do try to treasure each little rock and cuddle. Around the 3rd time I went in to rock him he got kind of fidgety as if to tell me, "Ma, you're not giving me a lot of room here to get comfortable." So back into the crib he went and I didn't hear a peep. Until about a half hour later.

We don't get a lot of snow here, but about 2 times a year it falls heavy and thick and beautiful. The ever present Arizona sun soon greets the day and we have sugar looking snow that melts quickly. 

It sure is great to see the snow when it does visit, even if it doesn't last for long.

And these chubby little legs? I could just eat 'em right up.

The art of getting Jack to sleep...

When I was pregnant I did a lot of research on the many different parenting styles. I'm not one for confrontation and have been known to waddle on the fence, so I really wasn't sure how we were going to parent and what it would look like. I like to take the best of everything (that includes desserts) and try to leave behind the things just don't fit. Obviously, this doesn't work on every aspect of life, but when it came to parenting I trusted Christ as our guide and His truths, while trying to leave behind the different things I had seen or experienced that weren't my fav.

And so we rocked and loved...and cuddled and co-slept for a while. It was magic. Now, he is a healthy one year old who somehow sleeps through the night (lovin' that) and recently can go to sleep on his own without anymore rocking. This morning I found myself missing the rocking moments. I missed snuggling with him as he dozes off and cradling his growing, squirming body. I tiptoed into his room to make sure he was still breathing (Hey, I'm a slightly paranoid first time mom.) only to find him nuzzled between a blanket and a stuffed animal. His arm was wrapped securely around the bear and he was sleeping peacefully. Did I panic because I wondered if he might suffocate? Well, yes. Did I wake him up trying to take the bear away/remove the breathing hazard? ....yes. But he fell back asleep shortly thereafter.

There are a few tricks to Jack's sleeping skills...

1. He loves falling asleep when it's dark. Too much light=too much to see.

2. We rock in the chair for a while as he hums to himself or reaches up to stroke my face. (so, so precious.) He also loves to grab my left over muffin top and scratch it. Why is this? I have no clue. His other hand likes to reach for what used to feed him. Hm.

3. After a couple of minutes I try to breath slower and put my head back and "fall asleep." I even open my mouth a little--and occasionally drool, j.k--for added effect. I peak down at him every so often. I pray, I write emails in my head, and/or the to do list for the day.

4. He starts to breath slower and yet his eyes are still wide open.

5. I seriously almost fall asleep.

6. I take a peek to see him fast asleep, his little pacifier bobbing like an apple in water.

And there you have it, works like a charm. No, not every single time. Last week, for instance, he decided he wanted to only take one nap. For an hour and a half. Which left a very cranky toddler and a very impatient/worn out mom. I thought his mornings nap days were over. Praise Jesus, they aren't. Praise Jesus he's sleeping through the night. My theme song this week? I told John this morning, it feels so strange having our nights back. I almost forgot what sleeping through the night felt like.

Glee Cast - Dog Days Are Over (Glee Cast Version)
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I am such a sucker for this Glee business. I am lovin' Sing-Off. It's like a real life Glee!