Parting with the Paci

I remember giving Aubrey a pacifier for the first time.

(Is that really Aubrey? Oh my. I don't remember her being that bald.)

And you could say it was love at first suck.
Aubrey loved it so much that she wanted it all the time.
It was the key to getting her to sleep and our best friend for car rides.
Particularly the 12 hour ones to Kentucky.

Realizing that Aubrey's love for the paci was not waning, we made a rule to only use the paci for nap-time and bedtime when Aubrey was between 1 - 1.5 years old.

She was not a fan of this new rule, as you can see...

Well, as you all know, Aubrey is now THREE.
The time had come to part ways with the paci.
But with Aubrey, things are never black and white.
I knew this was going to be tricky.
This girl is strong-willed to the core.




So, the morning of Aubrey's birthday, Daniel took her to pick up some last minute birthday party essentials and while they were gone, the Paci Fairy stopped by for a quick pick-up and delivery.

She picked-up the pacis and left a magical note, glow in the dark stars for her ceiling, a mini pillow "piggy" pet (she sleeps on a big pillow "piggy" pet), and a paci that doesn't work (snipped the tip) now that she's a "big girl".

The note from the Paci Fairy...

Well, after her Robot Party, a worn-out Aubrey came home and did not nap.
I was getting nervous as bedtime neared.
Surely she'd have to sleep at some point, right?

Well, when bedtime arrived, she was tearfully begging for her paci.
The withdrawal process was beginning, and it wasn't pretty.
After lots of crying and sadness, we gave her the "broken" paci.

She was out like a light in less than a minute.

She continued to sleep with her "broken" paci for over two weeks. Each morning she'd tell me to snip off a little more of her paci (She wants to keep her paci, yet asks me to cut more of it off. I cannot figure that girl out for the life of me.). And finally, on October 5th, she went to bed and slept through the night without it.

I wish I could end this post with And We All Lived Happily Ever After, but...um...no.

Aubrey's naps became hit or miss -- with more days being non-napping days.
And she started waking up much earlier than usual, which honestly, was not fun.
Particularly at 5:19 a.m.
On Saturday.
When Daniel is working all weekend.


This just simply wasn't going to work.
I know when you have kids, you pretty much kiss sleep good-bye, but good heavens...

It was time to brainstorm.

I thought about getting Aubrey a piggy bank and giving her a "coin" for each night she slept and each nap she took. Then at the end of the month, she could buy a prize.

Or maybe I could make a sleep chart where she gets to put a sticker on for each bedtime/naptime success with a prize at the end of the week if she gets, say 5 out of 7 or something.

But, then I got to thinking...Should I reward expected behavior?

Also, I didn't really feel like making a chart. 

Hmmm...what about giving her hefty doses of benadryl to knock her out?
Juuuuust kidding. ;)


So instead of coming up with a clever, creative, non life-threatening way to catch some Zzzzs, I just bought a $60 child's alarm clock that is, quite frankly, one of the ugliest things I've ever seen.

It goes like this:
When the clock is blue = sleep time.
When the clock turns yellow = wake up time.
There is a separate nap-time function where I can set it for a specified amount of time with the same principle (blue/yellow light). This way, whether she naps or not, she is "resting" (aka: Mama gets some alone time) for at least 40 minutes. Thank you, Jesus.

It has lots of other functions (as it should for $60, am I right?!) that I haven't messed with yet.
It can play bedtime stories, lullabies, wake music, and white noise (like ocean sounds). And it includes a built-in Timeout Timer (red light) and Toddler Activity Manager (green light) for any positive timed activity like picking up toys.

The clock has worked like a charm.
We've gone from "It's not time to get up -- go back to sleep!" and having her wail and ultimately get up because it was evident that no one would be sleeping anymore to "Oh look, your clock is still blue...still bedtime...be sure to let me know when it's yellow! Nite nite!"

The sixty bucks for this magical clock was hard to fork over at first, but honestly...can you really put a price on sleep?

So.
There you have it.
No more pacis.
And sleep has returned to our humble abode.
All is well once again.

Now, I'm sure by the time I turn around, I will be kicking the bed of my 16-year-old Aubrey telling her for the millionth time "GET UP! YOU CAN'T SLEEP ALL DAY!"

Parenting is the weirdest thing.

Wit's End

On Sunday, Aubrey woke up at 1:02 a.m. -- no one got a moment's rest until close to 4 a.m. Talk about sheer misery...ugh...

(As many of you know, we've been fighting sleeping battles for the better part of 2 weeks now.)

When Aubrey woke up "for good" on Sunday morning at 6:40 -- she walked into our room, grabbed my devotional from the desk, and slid the book to Daniel who was groggily getting ready for work (yes, poor guy, he worked ALL weekend on little sleep.).

Daniel opened it to the current date, and he read the day's devotional to us all...

Wit's End

"At their wit's end, they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, and he bringeth them out." (Ps. 107:27, 28).

{The rest of the devotional is at the bottom of the post.}

*******

I think we all wanted to shout a resounding "AMEN!", which got me thinking...

I know Daniel and I are feeling at our "wit's end", but Aubrey is probably at her "wit's end" too.

If Aubrey could write this post, I think hers would be something like this:

So, you all know I've been having some sleeping issues with Momma and Daddy. I wake up at night (for whatever reason: dirty diaper/bad dream/thirsty/gums throbbing from the four teeth that have decided to come in all at once/etc.), I cry-out, and nothing. So, I do what any normal person would do: I throw everything out of my bed and scream and cry even harder. I can sometimes coax Daddy out of bed (apparently he still has a heart, Momma seems to be totally hardened) and have him rock me. I even pretend to be asleep when he does this sometimes, well, until he tries to put me back into that cage they call a crib.

You know, it's actually not even really about the sleep. You see, for the past couple of months, things have been different around here. It's like those two think they are the boss. That they are the ones running this show. Ummm, hello, were they not at the hospital September 17th, 2008? It's like they totally forgot I was born to rule the world. Now it's "NO" this and "NO" that. Don't they know who they're talking to?!

And get this, now when I go up to Momma or Daddy because I want/need something they tell me I will have to wait until they are finished with what they're doing. Can you believe the nerve of these two?! Telling ME to wait?!

And if Momma puts one more carrot, pea, broccoli, or any other vegetable on my plate, so help me God...I mean, you'd think she would have gotten the point by now: I. Don't. Like. Vegetables. But no, there they are on my plate at every meal (well, except for breakfast, which honestly I wouldn't put it past her to start doing at some point!). You should see her face when I swipe them off my plate onto the floor -- it's classic. Actually, it's one of the happier moments of my day. It's seriously hilarious -- it gets me every time. Haha...(just thinking about it makes me laugh!)

And the bottle. Oh, the bottle. If I hear Momma complain one more time about those dad-gum bottles... Yes, I don't mind drinking my beverages from a "big girl" cup -- heck, I will only drink my water and juice from them, but milk? No way. It just tastes better out of a nice, warm bottle. I probably get this from Daddy. He says nothing beats a cold, glass-bottled Coca-Cola. So see, bottle drinking is genetic. I can't help how God made me, now can I?

Oh, and by all means, don't get me started on my favorite TV show: Sesame Street. It's awesome, and I love it. Why can I not watch it all day long? Could someone please tell me why? Momma tries to tell me why, but I can't stop pitching a fit long enough to hear the explanation. I've shown them both that I can count, I know my letters, all my colors, all the common shapes, all my body parts, I sing, I dance, I read books, I have an extensive vocabulary for someone my age, etc. A little TV never hurt anyone, right? Well, Momma says it's one show a day. Period. Ugh...she is so unfair. Talk about an "Oscar the Grouch!" -- I live with one!

Between the two of them, I'm about at my WIT'S END!

{This Kodak moment came about that day Momma let me have some powdered donuts. Well, I wasn't quite finished with those sugary delights, and she put them away! She said I had "had enough" -- doesn't she know I tell her when I've "had enough"?!}

I keep telling/reminding myself that I just need to get through this week, because starting Saturday I'll get to see my Zubie, Grammy, and Pop Pop for a whole week! Now those people know how to treat a Princess!

*******

So, if you're feeling frustrated, defeated, or at your "wit's end" hopefully the remainder of the devotional will give you some much-needed encouragement.

Are you standing at "Wit's End Corner,"
Christian, with troubled brow?
Are you thinking of what is before you,
And all you are bearing now?
Does all the world seem against you,
And you in the battle alone?
Remember--at "Wit's End Corner"
Is just where God's power is shown.

Are you standing at "Wit's End Corner,"
Blinded with wearying pain,
Feeling you cannot endure it,
You cannot bear the strain,
Bruised through the constant suffering,
Dizzy, and dazed, and numb?
Remember--at "Wit's End Corner"
Is where Jesus loves to come.

Are you standing at "Wit's End Corner"?
Your work before you spread,
All lying begun, unfinished,
And pressing on heart and head,
Longing for strength to do it,
Stretching out trembling hands?
Remember--at. "Wit's End Corner"
The Burden-bearer stands.

Are you standing at "Wit's End Corner"?
Then you're just in the very spot
To learn the wondrous resources
Of Him who faileth not:
No doubt to a brighter pathway
Your footsteps will soon be moved,
But only at "Wit's End Corner"
Is the "God who is able" proved.
--Antoinette Wilson

Do not get discouraged; it may be the last key in the bunch that opens the door. --Stansifer

*******

And something Daniel and I keep telling/reminding ourselves...

This too shall pass!

Sunday Snapshots

Lately, we've been having problems in the Sleep Department over here.

Aubrey has been waking up early. I'm talking 4 a.m. early.

Then, just recently she has decided to throw kicking-screaming fits when we put her down for a nap. This is coming from a girl who used to lay right down and drift off to sleep within seconds of being placed in her crib. We recently went to the pediatrician so I know she doesn't have an ear infection or anything...I honestly don't get it.

I reached my breaking point the other day when Aubrey had been fighting her nap for nearly an hour. I just plopped down in the nursery rocking chair as Aubrey zipped out into the living room. I cried and prayed and cried and prayed.

"Please God, help Aubrey get to sleep. I know she's exhausted. Please help...Please help...Please help..."

I picked myself up and walked out into the living room to find this:

{Taken with my camera phone}
Talk about instantaneous answer to prayer!

She slept like that for 30 minutes, woke up, and went to the couch for a 1.5 hour snooze...

The nap-refusal happened again while Daniel was home. And apparently my prayers knocked them BOTH out this time. I'm telling you -- prayer is a powerful thing!

Now I just need to pray about these pants Daniel has been living in for the past 3 months. Can I get an "AMEN!"?

Well, I guess they're a step up from his zip pants, remember?

******

Hope everyone has had RESTFUL weekend!

Swaddling

At Aubrey's two month pediatrician appointment back in November, I asked the doctor when we should stop swaddling Aubrey to sleep. I never knew this could pose an issue until one of my blog friends made a reference to swaddling and how it can hinder growth development. Geez Louise! So, Aubrey's Ped suggested we have her broken of this sleep aid by around 4 months. Well, in November that sounded like we had tons of time to work on it (well, two months to be exact!). This week I realized Aubrey turns 4 months on Saturday. How in the world did this creep up on me!?

Well, it didn't really creep up on me. This has been coming for awhile now (again, two months to be exact!), and I think I've chosen to ignore it. You see, Aubrey loved being swaddled as a tiny baby, and Daniel and I found these wonderful swaddle blankets that were perfect. Everyone in the house loved them -- including Aubrey. See Exihibit A:



Before long, I realized I was really struggling to get Aubrey's legs in the lower half. And when I finally did, she would kick around in it quite a bit because of the cramped quarters (hello stunted growth development), so I just took her legs out and swaddled her with the top part. Ahhh...perfect.

Then, I noticed during her naps she would be in her crib struggling like a mental patient in a straight-jacket trying to break free from the bonds of this wonderful swaddle blanket.

I decided to try this non-swaddling thing, but wanted to do it gradually so she wouldn't flip out. We went one arm in and one arm out.



She did pretty well, but you could tell it was akward for her. Besides, this seems like it would create it's own form of growth delays if continued. Maybe she would stop using her other hand/arm all together. I didn't know, but didn't want to find out either.

So on Monday morning, Aubrey woke up and I unleashed her from this warm fleece torture device. Okay...it's time to break you of this swaddling technique. We're going cold turkey. I'm only doing it because the doctor said to...

I talked to Aubrey about how hard it was going to be for her to go to sleep without being all wrapped up, and how I was sorry I started it in the first place. I had no idea this would one day have the potential to harm her development. She listened contently to me and after her morning bottle & some play time, I put her in her crib (sans swaddle blanket) and said, "You can do it! Just go to sleep..."

I left her room and started cleaning out her bottle.

Not a peep on the monitor.

I made the bed.

Not a peep on the monitor.

I ate some breakfast.

Not a peep on the monitor.

Okay, something's wrong. She's probably rolled over and can't breathe!

I walk in the room and...

Zzzzzzzzzz

She's sleeping like a log.




**Swaddling isn't bad, but my advice to any soon-to-be moms out there reading this: Don't do anything in the beginning when getting your little one to sleep unless you're prepared to continue it as they grow. That means rocking to sleep, sleeping in your bed, or in our case -- swaddling. Just my advice...