Tim and the boys were able to enjoy the Priesthood campout this weekend, so Mom and the girls (and Mitchell) went to the annual elementary school carnival by ourselves. We sampled the local cuisine-- hot dogs, snow cones and chocolate cupcakes--and we came home with sticky balls, temporary tattoos, and NO goldfish. So a good time was had by all.Mitchell didn't cry at all. That came later.
The only source of irritation came when I had to herd the kids into the cafeteria to protect them from hearing the song "Californication" being played by the band of high school boys as part of the entertainment. It's an ELEMENTARY SCHOOL carnival, people! Sheesh!Later that night, I decided to give Mitchell some tough love for the benefit of all. After sleeping through the night for a month, he's reverted to waking up a lot, again. When I mentioned this to my pediatrician as an explanation for my sleepy eyes, she said, "just let him cry." I immediately bristled because the last time I tried this approach was with Rheanna. I am NOT a pushover, let me make that clear. Rheanna proved to be a difficult case when it came to night time and naps. I went through many of the suggested techniques to try to get her to sleep in order to avoid bringing her into bed with me (which is apparently a choice worse than death). I would let her cry and cry, but after a little while of listening to her and seeing no signs that she was going to stop anytime soon, I would give up. Finally one night, I decided to steel myself and let her just wail to her limits till she tired herself out. I still don't know what her limits were because my limit to listening to incessant shrieking is one hour. Then when I got up to get her I discovered she'd kicked all of her blankets off and it was freezing. I officially gave up because I was getting no sleep, and what I was doing seemed a little too mean. She came into bed with me and, yes, I wasn't able to get her past that for a while, but it was a much more bearable experience. Later on I would happen upon an article about very alert babies that described Rheanna perfectly. Their suggestion was just to endure the best you can. So I was able to forgive myself for doing everything they tell you not to do.
I really wanted to explain all this to my pediatrician so she would give me some credit, but I'd already been stuck in her office for two hours. Mitchell's feeding was long overdue, and Keller and Meriel were displaying symptoms of claustrophobia. At that time I calculated that something as selfish as my dignity was not worth even five more minutes in that room.
After I got home and thought it over, I decided that I could give the night time standoff another try. Despite what various family members might think, common sense does not always lose out to stubbornness. Since Tim was gone camping on Friday with the boys, it was the perfect night to try. The question: Just how long can Mitchell cry before he wears himself out? This is baby #5. I've learned a few things. My patience has increased. I am more than his match.
The showdown begins at 3:18 AM. I slowly waken and realize that noise I keep hearing is not the ambulance siren I was dreaming about. I take a deep breath, stretch, and then settle into the position of perfect composure. It's on, Boy! Ten minutes go by . . . fifteen . . .I'm doing just fine. I'm not even phased. The shrieking continues unabated. I check the clock. Twenty minutes . . . twenty-five . . . thirty. Just out of curiosity, I try offering him a pacifier. He doesn't take the bait and the pacifier falls uselessly out of his gaping hole of a mouth. Thirty-five minutes . . . forty . . . forty-five. I'm not gonna lie, I'm getting uncomfortable now. Fifty minutes . Sweat is starting to moisten my forehead. Fifty-five minutes. My eyebrow is twitching involuntarily. Fifty-six . . .I will NOT lose to a baby! Fifty-seven . . . fifty-eight . . .
Saturday morning comes and it is time for reflection on the past night's events. I think I can reasonably conclude that both Mitchell and I have learned something very valuable from this experience. Mitchell has learned that even after a night of crying, you can wake up and smile this big (see picture below). And I have learned, much to my shame, that even after nine years of dealing with babies, my limit is still ONE HOUR.
(My apologies to all who saw that one coming.)
6 comments:
Wow does this ever sound familiar. Nathan was terrible when it came to sleeping through the night. But what's even worse is I didn't have the luxury of bringing him into bed with me because Boyd can't sleep when Nathan is in the room (sheesh, I wonder where Nathan got his poor sleeping habits from....)
I ended up using the Ferber Method. It helped, but of course wasn't the solve all that it promised to be.
I remember those days...Rheanna, that is. We felt for you, we really did. And the paper route to boot.
This just cracked me up. You seem to be doing pretty darn well with those kiddos so far, so I wouldn't put too much stock into parenting advice from novices...like pediatricians. What do they know? :)
I'm having this weird de ja vu...although the baby was named Kimberlee. And, um, you're better than me, I could only last about 40 minutes. For a long time I thought that the reason Keira slept so well was because she was my second child, which meant I was now an expert. Then I figured out it had nothing to do with me...what a let-down.
I have often wondered how my babies can wake up looking like they just dropped down from heaven when I know we both spent the night in HEL*. My # 5 came to us a champion sleeper (and before you even start resenting, let me just say, twins) but has decided in the last few months that he wants to wake with the birds and forego the 3+ hour nap. LAME. Have you tried rocking your baby to sleep? Using a real rock?
Okay. Bananas are a fruit, which already puts them at a disadvantage, IMO. If I want something sweet, I will always choose something along the lines of Little Debbie. I like eggnog. Cream, sugar, nutmeg. What is not to like? But how do you feel about condensed milk?
That is no fun! Good luck! Hopefully this faze will end soon!
Well, I assumed the "sweetened" part was implied. If all you have done is condensed the milk, your job is only half done.
And about that dessert. It really was fantastic. I love that pic because here it is, Pie's pre-birthday lunch, and I take a picture of the dessert....with only his arms in it....like maybe he is a little bit in the way. The restaurant (serving American comfort food) was one of those places that immediately does NOT put me at ease. Our waiter launched into a speach all about how EVERYTHING at the restaurant is made fresh there EVERYDAY. No freezer (except the one they keep the ice cream in, and that is ALL), no microwave. Everything is made from SCRATCH. So I was immediately taken aback by this, because my motto as a mother has ALWAYS been "Every thing is from the freezer section at WalMart and lovingly microwaved by me." I mean, how dare they? But you know what? My salad with "from scratch" BLT ranch dressing was amazing. And my crab cakes were fantastic. Ditto for the guac and cole slaw. I want to go back and eat that very same meal everyday for a week at least. Sorry, I just realized that you are still hungry and so my remarks were uncalled for. Forgive me.
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