After reading that starting a sleep pattern early can set babies up to be good sleepers for life - we decided to get started! Every night Gabe sits down with Zach (after eating mind you - our little one does not skip any meals!) and reads him a story. Then we read a little Bible verse along with a poem that goes along with it (Thanks Pasha & Val - my favorite book!). Finally, we pray for Zach, and put him to bed.
Zach... like me (or so Gabe says).... can be a little stubborn. If he's not ready for bed, or would rather be up seeing what's going on... sometimes bed time isn't as smooth as it may seem. Just the other day he cried for over an hour on/off because he refused to go to sleep. I sent Gabe in to check on him (no way could I - I'd pick him right up!). Gabe said he'd go in there, Zach would instantly stop crying, give him a huge smile (he thought Daddy was there to rescue him), and promptly start another meltdown once he leaves the room. Sounds familiar... Mommy knows how to throw a fit, and ends up smiling too after she gets her way... have to keep an eye on this Monkey-See-Monkey-Do already, huh?? ;)
Zach is getting so much better. The more we stick with the routine, the better Zach is. Last night he fussed for about 5 minutes before zonking out for over 10 hours! YES - 10 Hours!!!! We got in a little Mommy/Daddy time, but were still in bed before 10:00. Oh, being and mommy/daddy is such hard work!! :)
No matter how much/how little sleep we get... there's nothing like picking a smiling baby up out of his crib. Sure makes you wonder what in the Earth we did before Zach was here?? Funny in just 3 months how much life can change!! (And how much more sleep we get now than in the first few weeks!!) Oh, how he is worth it all!!
Sometimes when he wakes up a little too early, Daddy will go get the Munch Man, change him, and then bring him to bed with us. (Yeah - from the parents who said 'he'll never sleep with us'... I think we all break the rules!) That way I can hold the little man, nurse him, and we ALL get more sleep in the morning! Then, I can get up, pass baby over to Daddy while I get ready for work. Dad gets to snuggle with Zach a few minutes before his alarm goes off. Then, I'm on baby duty... washing his little face, and changing his diaper and outfit for the day. Mommy gets to love on him, load him in his car seat, and give him a quick kiss before Dad is ready to head out the door to Grandma K's. It's amazing how fast routines just 'happen'. I love this pic of an early morning snuggle session of Daddy/Zachy...
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