Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Sleep plan: Still a work in progress

So I thought I had a good plan, right? Just like last night, I'd bring Carter upstairs around 7:00, give him a bath, put on his PJs, read him a book, nurse him to sleep, and then gently place him in the pre-warmed cosleeper. All by around 8:00, I figured, which would give me a couple of hours in which to have dinner, straighten up, roll the garbage out to the curb, etc.

Okay, so first of all, I should note that he really didn't nap much today. Yesterday he had like 6 hours of naps, and today? Two hours, total, 8:30-9:30 and 2:45-3:45. He just didn't get sleepy, and then didn't stay asleep. I have no idea why. You'd think that would have made him more tired tonight, but just like the sleep books say, it works the opposite direction.

By 7:00 he was incredibly cranky and rubbing at his eyes, so I decided to skip the bath. I took him upstairs, put him in his PJs, and sat down in the glider with him. He wasn't interested in a book though, only in The Boobie, and he proceeded to nurse like he was starved. By 7:45 he'd had so much milk he was starting to spit up, but he kept nursing, almost desperately. It was like he knew it was something that would help him go to sleep, and he was frustrated that it wasn't working. I totally sympathized!

I rocked him for more than an hour, trying several different holding positions, but nothing was working. Around 9:00 he was really unhappy and I was quite hungry, so I decided that was enough for the night. We went downstairs, and I put him on his boppy lounger while I made dinner. He laid there quietly and watched TV (he likes to watch TV, which is terrifying in itself and warrants a whole 'nother post) while I cooked. I sat next to him on the couch with my dinner, and he watched me eat with a look of quiet curiosity. He didn't look remotely sleepy.

Around 9:45 he got a little wriggly and started chewing on his hands, so I picked him up to nurse him. Within a minute he was out, completely sound asleep, finally! I carried him upstairs and he didn't wake up, which is really unusual. I put him in the still pre-warmed cosleeper, turned on the monitor, and tiptoed away. And then I did all the straightening up I had meant to do, heh.

It's now almost 11:30 and he's still sound asleep. I'm in bed now and he's snoozing away next to me. I think this plan will work eventually, but it's clear that the daytime naps are crucial. :-P

1 comment:

Mattison Grace said...

It sounds like Carter is going through the same phase Matti is still going through. She only takes a couple of short naps a day now. Carter is so interested in the world around him. He can touch, feel, and see things so he is busy wanting to explore. \
If Carter is rolling to his side give him a week and he will roll right over. I know what you mean when you say you are not ready. Trust me-I definitely was not ready for that.
A sleep plan is great and eventually it will all fall into place. Even though we have the same routine, one night she might go down easy and the next it is a fight. I still cannot let her cry it out and probably will never be able to.
I am not sure how interested you are in stolling him outside right before bed time, but we started that on Tuesday and that has helped. Matti is so relaxed afterwards she does not fight me to stay awake. (walking is also good for me ha)
Carter is really moving right along with his milestones. Things do happen quickly so keep that baby book close by because you will find yourself updating it almost every day.
Goodluck with the sleep planning because once that is established you will be able to get a lot of things done.