February 7, 2014
vroom
Kyle is officially turning into a little boy. He knows how to blow his nose (seriously blow it, not just make the fake sound), and he "vrooms" his cars as he plays with them all over the house. And I am officially turning into a sap mom, because both of these things make my heart swell. Who knew nose blowing could be so cute?
February 6, 2014
love
I couldn't think of any better title for this post. LOVE is the only word that describes the night we had last night. After dinner, Kyle was sitting in his high chair and Brian and I were goofing around with him while we got his bath ready. We were having so. much. fun. We put on some kid songs and sang and danced around, which made him laugh so hard! He was loving the music, and watching mom and dad act like total dorks. He was snapping his fingers with us and clapping his hands. He laughed with us during his entire bath and we had a long tickle sesh afterwards.
I love nights like this, when there is so much joy in the house and everyone is just having a blast being home and doing the normal routine, enjoying each other's company. Family time at its best!
February 5, 2014
8 hours
It feels like a million years since I've gotten 8 straight hours of sleep. Up until this week, I haven't even given it a second thought; it was just normal to me to wake up once a night to nurse Kyle and then back to sleep for a few hours. The routine was working for us, and I didn't feel a need to disrupt our lives and make any drastic changes.
But last week Kyle had croup (our scariest night to date), and was having a hard time breathing. Thankfully he's much better now, but his sleep has not recovered. For a full week he's been up multiple times every night, and the only thing that will soothe him is to nurse. He knows what he wants, and doesn't stop until he gets it.
I know that this routine can't continue. It's taking a toll on all of us - especially me. I'm exhausted and starting to get frustrated that my baby doesn't remember how to sleep 8 straight hours... something that came so easy to him just 8 days ago. I know that at 1 year old he should be able to sleep through the night, and that we're going to have to make some changes to get him there.
We've done it before and know we can do it again, but the thought of what's to come is upsetting and scary. Sleep training is no fun, and I'm not looking forward to any part of it. But I want my baby to be happy and get good rest, so it looks like some tears are inevitable.
As I sit here while Kyle naps in his crib for 2+ hours, I'm trying to remember what it was like before I could get him to sleep in his own bed. I would rock him or nurse him to sleep, and sometimes have to sit there and hold him for an hour or more so he could get a nap in. If I was lucky, I'd be able to gently lay him down in the swing and he'd sleep in there for a little bit. Once I bit the bullet and let him cry in his crib, it didn't take long before he learned to make himself comfortable and take good naps in there.
I remember once that was done (when he was around 5 months old), I thought: WHY DIDN'T I DO THIS SOONER? The luxury of having a baby sound asleep in his crib for hours was amazing and he was getting the rest he needed. I'm hoping and praying that the sleep training we're about to endure goes as smoothly, and that in a week my next post will be titled: Sleeping Through the Night: WHY DIDN'T I DO THIS SOONER?
Wish me luck, because so far I'm not handling this very well.
But last week Kyle had croup (our scariest night to date), and was having a hard time breathing. Thankfully he's much better now, but his sleep has not recovered. For a full week he's been up multiple times every night, and the only thing that will soothe him is to nurse. He knows what he wants, and doesn't stop until he gets it.
I know that this routine can't continue. It's taking a toll on all of us - especially me. I'm exhausted and starting to get frustrated that my baby doesn't remember how to sleep 8 straight hours... something that came so easy to him just 8 days ago. I know that at 1 year old he should be able to sleep through the night, and that we're going to have to make some changes to get him there.
We've done it before and know we can do it again, but the thought of what's to come is upsetting and scary. Sleep training is no fun, and I'm not looking forward to any part of it. But I want my baby to be happy and get good rest, so it looks like some tears are inevitable.
As I sit here while Kyle naps in his crib for 2+ hours, I'm trying to remember what it was like before I could get him to sleep in his own bed. I would rock him or nurse him to sleep, and sometimes have to sit there and hold him for an hour or more so he could get a nap in. If I was lucky, I'd be able to gently lay him down in the swing and he'd sleep in there for a little bit. Once I bit the bullet and let him cry in his crib, it didn't take long before he learned to make himself comfortable and take good naps in there.
I remember once that was done (when he was around 5 months old), I thought: WHY DIDN'T I DO THIS SOONER? The luxury of having a baby sound asleep in his crib for hours was amazing and he was getting the rest he needed. I'm hoping and praying that the sleep training we're about to endure goes as smoothly, and that in a week my next post will be titled: Sleeping Through the Night: WHY DIDN'T I DO THIS SOONER?
Wish me luck, because so far I'm not handling this very well.
January 30, 2014
snow bunnies
Last weekend we took Kyle to the mountains for our 1st vacation as a family of 3. To say we were impressed with our little guy is a serious understatement. He was so easygoing and fun, and again made us realize yet again how very lucky we are to have such a good baby!
We stayed in a huge cabin with 4 other families - 10 adults and 7 kids ages 11 months (Kyle), 1, 3, 5, 6, 9 and 17. It was Kyle's first time sleeping in the pack n' play (which I was pretty nervous about), but he did pretty well. The first night was a breeze, but the 2nd night he was up for a few hours. Not crying, just having a hard time falling asleep. The next day we realized he had gotten another tooth and a MOLAR, which probably explains that sleepless night!
The cabin we stayed in was perfect. It had 3 separated levels, so we could put the kids to bed on the top floor and bring the monitors to the basement (with a poker table, bar, air hockey table and flat screen) for a few hours of adult fun. The middle level had a kitchen and huge open area, so the babies and kids could play around while we cooked and hung out.
Since Arrowhead was a sunny 65 degrees all weekend, on Saturday we took a drive to Snow Valley so the older kids could have some fun in the snow. We went sledding and bundled Kyle up so he could experience his first snow day! He wasn't a huge fan of the cold because he can't stand anything on his head, hands or feet (and mean mommy tried to cover all 3), but once he got used to it he had fun watching the skiers and eating lunch by the snow.
The other thing I was worried about was naps, since Kyle doesn't typically take naps just anywhere. It can be a process getting him down - especially in the afternoon - so I was a little nervous that he wasn't going to get any naps in and he would be a wreck at the end of the day. But it ended up working out just fine; he napped on the way there and in his stroller on the first day and took a pretty good nap in the pack n' play the second day. All that mommy worrying for nothing!
Packing for a weekend away with baby is no joke, but it was well worth it. We had so much fun and can't wait to go back again next year!
We stayed in a huge cabin with 4 other families - 10 adults and 7 kids ages 11 months (Kyle), 1, 3, 5, 6, 9 and 17. It was Kyle's first time sleeping in the pack n' play (which I was pretty nervous about), but he did pretty well. The first night was a breeze, but the 2nd night he was up for a few hours. Not crying, just having a hard time falling asleep. The next day we realized he had gotten another tooth and a MOLAR, which probably explains that sleepless night!
The cabin we stayed in was perfect. It had 3 separated levels, so we could put the kids to bed on the top floor and bring the monitors to the basement (with a poker table, bar, air hockey table and flat screen) for a few hours of adult fun. The middle level had a kitchen and huge open area, so the babies and kids could play around while we cooked and hung out.
Since Arrowhead was a sunny 65 degrees all weekend, on Saturday we took a drive to Snow Valley so the older kids could have some fun in the snow. We went sledding and bundled Kyle up so he could experience his first snow day! He wasn't a huge fan of the cold because he can't stand anything on his head, hands or feet (and mean mommy tried to cover all 3), but once he got used to it he had fun watching the skiers and eating lunch by the snow.
The other thing I was worried about was naps, since Kyle doesn't typically take naps just anywhere. It can be a process getting him down - especially in the afternoon - so I was a little nervous that he wasn't going to get any naps in and he would be a wreck at the end of the day. But it ended up working out just fine; he napped on the way there and in his stroller on the first day and took a pretty good nap in the pack n' play the second day. All that mommy worrying for nothing!
Packing for a weekend away with baby is no joke, but it was well worth it. We had so much fun and can't wait to go back again next year!
January 29, 2014
we have a walker!
I've been busier than normal the past few weeks with our first family vacation, work deadlines and making updates to our house. But I wanted to do a quick post to share that KYLE HAS STARTED TO WALK! He took his first step about a week ago, and he gets better every day. Over the past 3 days, he's gone from 3 steps and falling face first to practically walking across the room unassisted. It's so adorable and he is so proud of himself.
My big boy also got his first molar this week. I'm not sure why, but the second I saw it I lost my mind and started crying uncontrollably... I wasn't expecting to see such a big boy tooth in my baby's mouth! I think the fact that he is walking and getting "adult" teeth was just too much for me to handle at once. A mom's heart is a very delicate thing :)
