Sunday, January 27, 2013

Into the Crib- Ferber style


I hesitate to write this post, hoping I don't jinx anything....

Well, I finally put up the pack and play that had been set up in our bedroom since we brought Charlotte home.  Charlotte had only been sleeping in the car seat... or our bed- oops.   So the P and P was just taking up space. We didn't have an extremely difficult time getting Trevor used to his crib, but we did wait until about 6 months to put him in there... and after that he made sure to ask for a couple of late night meals for several months afterwards.  I am determined to not go through that many nights of interrupted sleep this time around.  From a good friend, I heard that the Ferber method was a good one to get babies oriented with their beds and soothing themselves to sleep when they wake up during the night.  The method, also nicknamed as the "cry it out" method is generally recommended for 3-5 month old babies, so we are kind of using our own modified version of it.  After her bath and last feeding around 7:30-8, we swaddle her up and put her in the crib with a loud noise maker (a must for us in both nurseries at all times).  Then we let her cry for one minute, then come back to shhhh her back to sleep until she stops crying.  If, she starts to cry again, we push our reaction time back to 3-5 minutes where we would Shhhh her back to sleep again.  After leaving that time, if she woke and cried again, we would wait 10 minutes before returning to her room and the times just keep getting spaced out further after each cry.   Eventually she is supposed to realize that it's not really worth her crying if all she is going to recieve is a "shhhh" and she should hopefully stop crying and return to sleep on her own while also reminded that we are there for her the first times she cries.

We've been lucky, we have only made it to the 2nd 5 minute cry out.  Then she has fallen asleep for good after that so far.  It's been about 1.5 weeks.  We've modified it by not really ignoring her cries after she has been asleep for more than 5 or so hours.  IF she wakes up then, I do feed her because I never know how much food she really needs (those random growth spurts).  But essentially, the method helps her stay in the crib and makes me feel better about leaving her there if I know that she has been fed and "should" be ready for bed.  SO, baby girl is finally spending time in her pretty nursery.  And, while it is still a little inconsistent, she slept from 7:45pm- 6:00am without a peep last night.  After feeding her at 6, she went back down until 9am.  I'm beyond thrilled with that sleep pattern.  It seems that Charlotte is more interested in sleeping than eating, while Trevor made sure he never skipped out on a free meal.  (could explain her 15%+/- versus his 75% in weight) :)




Way to go Charlotte, you've definitely won the sleeping better earlier contest in this family!  Oh and now our second camera is actually being put to use.  It sure is nice (knock on wood) having both kids in bed by 8:00 for some peace and quiet.  


Thursday, January 17, 2013

Dreaming of warmer weather

This week has been cold and wet!  And tonight, we already have 4 inches of snow.  I'm not big into snow.  I like the indoor parties involving fires/s'mores/hot chocolate, but for the most part, I just think it makes life a little more difficult with small children.  Oh and I hate being cold.  About this time of year (every year), I start thinking about how great it would be to take a tropical vacation.   This is where I want to be right about now....


Turks and Caicos- 2011- Trevor turned 4 months on our trip


 













 YUM







Travel exer-saucer:)


We want to go back Dad!







Wednesday, January 9, 2013

2 months- Charlotte!

So she is 2 months today!  Charlotte has been such a sweet baby.  I thought Trevor was a pretty manageable baby, but Charlotte has made him look difficult.  She loves to sleep and except for some "witching hours" which we hope we are growing out of, she only cries when she is hungry.  I always believed that only formula babies slept through the night, but Charlotte has already slept through the night a handful of times which has been amazing since her brother did not until 8 months. She loves her car seat, as in probably spends 20 out of 24 hours a day in it... yes, she is sleeping in it overnight, which I see as an improvement from her sleeping in bed with me for the first few weeks (oops).  Crazy how Trevor abhors his seat and Charlotte loves hers. 

Hmm, what else can I think to write down in case I ever happen to compare this stage of her life to a future baby... She has been on a 3 hour (3 ounces per) during the day eating schedule since her birth.  She is taking Zantac because she was continually spitting up and making choke/gag like sounds.  I have also tried to measure her feedings out more to make sure that she is not over eating which could have also lead to the increased spit up and choking.  Something is working, not sure which or both, but she has improved.  She started smiling consistently around 7 weeks.  As of 7 weeks, we started the bedtime routine of bath and last feeding around 7-7:30 before plopping her into her nice comfy bed (car seat), which has been working well.  She loves her sound machine and paci.  Charlotte has finally graduated from newborn clothes to 0-3 month, but is still wearing size N diapers.  I"m guessing she weighs somewhere around 9lbs.  She also has suffered from NO diaper rash which is a HUGE difference from Trevor even at that age. She has also managed to somehow escape the baby acne and overly dry scalp that Trevor had as well at that age.  I am really hopeful that her skin wont be as sensitive as his has been.    

Her 2 month appointment isn't until Monday and I can't wait to hear her stats and what the doctor thinks about her car seat habit.  Happy 2 mo birthday to Miss Charlotte!  We love you and thank you for putting up with your overly sweet, sometimes (all the time) in your face big brother, and tagging along with us wherever we go!

2 months today!


as compared to one month ago..


Mommy says I'm really filling out and becoming much happier 

In final news, although it is Charlotte's birthday, I got a birthday present... I found out that as of a new health care reform, every woman with insurance (regardless of type)  is entitled to a free breast pump as of January 1st.  I had one with Trevor, but it was old and very large.  I'm very excited about my new medela freestyle pump (size of an avocado) because we tend to be on the go occasionally.  Speaking of, Charlotte quite enjoyed her first visit to NYC.  Pictures to come sometime...







Friday, January 4, 2013

Swimming

So, I rejoined a gym which was planned. However, now Alec gets to be a member as well (most cost efficient way with the two kids). Let me tell you just how thrilled he was about this new situation.... Well he didn't actually realize how thrilled he was until tonight.

Very last minute, we decided to head to the gym to take Trevor swimming. He hasn't been in the water since August and this past summer he only went under by accident with complete shock. We met some friends there and they gave us some recent tips learned from their swim lessons which basically included- dunk your child and laugh. Well, Trevor loved it! He laughed going under, coming up, jumping off the side, and going down the slide. Even the shower in the family locker room was exciting to him.

Tonight made me that much more excited about our "over priced" gym and the Pool this summer.