Shopping

This weekend I  was visiting with a Mom who is pregnant with her second child.  She was in awe that I  took all three kids to the grocery store.  Going to the store used to terrify me too, I remember times where it was difficult with one, then two and three.   Talking about shopping made me realize that I have adjusted to three kids.  Despite some days that are extremely hard and tear filled things are getting better.

Bar Star

Many years ago but it feels like yesterday, I was a bar star. 

Dancing and drinking with a bunch of friends was my preferred way to spend the weekend.  My girlfriends and I would spend a couple hours pre-drinking and getting ready.  I miss having hours to devote to making myself look amazing.

Tonight Mike and I are going to see Nelly.  Ww both love  Nelly because he was  popular when we were (seperately) travelling in Europe.

It was fun and stressful getting ready wirh the girls.  Ally and Zoe both love when I  put make up on and we have fun with it. I missed having an objective and knowledgeable opinion today.  Ally thinks I look beautiful just by putting makeup on; which is wonderful  but not helpful when you are wondering if you look like a clown.

Postpartum Craziness

I have been doing some reading on hormonal fluctuations in the postpartum period.  There isn't much information (at least from my brief looking around) but what fascinates me is that even if you don't have your cycle back there are major fluctuations.  You may be saying, "Dah!"  But I didn't know.  I was honestly surprised and then I realized that is definitely explains many of the goings on around here.  And add to the mix sleep deprivation.

I honestly will have days where I hate my kids, husband, and myself.  I am in tears and I feel like I can not handle anything and I just want to lay in bed. 

Then the next day I will be perfectly fine and feeling great.  I am productive and able to play with my kids and manage the business.

So weird...

My poor husband.

Today is a great day, thankfully!

Crying it Out - does it really work in the long run?

As some may know we have had ongoing sleep battles with my almost 4 year old (eeekkk!  4!)  For quite some time.  The really bad fights started almost a year ago when she moved out of her crib to her bed.

Yes, our daughter slept in her crib until she was 3 and I highly recommend it....(even though as you read on you will find out that I have no idea what I am doing.)

She slept well for about a month and then the craziness hit and it really hasn't stopped.  There has been much crying and fighting.  Mike and I have done everything.  We have put up gates, child locks, bought cd players, rubbed lavender on her feet, laid with her, sang, read, spanked, ignored, not spoken, yelled, continuously put her back in her room like Super Nanny...and on...and on....

I feel like I have read every single book on sleep or at least the popular ones.  They all say the same thing eventually consistency, schedules, sleep logs and crying.

As I get ready to sleep train Georgia, I am really beginning to wonder if all this sleep training is just some buzz word that Dr. Ferber came up with.  Is sleeping through the night actually achievable for any child? 

I have never been too concerned about the number of wake ups my babies have until they are about one.  Then my exhaustion sets and and well...truthfully I end up pregnant too.  Maybe my expectations are too high?

I do think a regular schedule is very important and we do our best to promote good healthy sleep.  I am a firm believer that sleep is crucial to growth and development.  I love sleep, personally.

As I type, Mike has just taken Ally after her second wake up of the night (and it is only 11pm) to bed.  Yep, we are sleeping with our child.   For the past two weeks Mike has taken Ally downstairs at his bed time and they sleep for the rest of the night.  At first it was because the fight had started to happen through out the night too and we decided that sleeping was more important then the where.

Now I sit here perplexed because we had a tough night with Zoe (yes it could be the blasted time change too) and it seems that getting Georgia to sleep is also a fight.  I just feel like we are doing something wrong.  I admit that I have a very hard time letting my children cry it out but I have found that it works...or at least in the beginning.

Basically I sleep with my babies until they are about 6-7 months.  The rule I had was that you could sleep with me as long as you sleep.  Around 6 months each girl starts to be distracted by and want to nurse all of the time and not un-latch until morning.  I  can't do that for long before it drives me nuts and fighting to get my nipple away from an insistent baby is hard when you sleep together.  So we do cry it out and move then to their own bed and room.  Things seem to go really well.  Until they are older...

Yawn.... 

Why is it so hard?  Why is there so many tears and heart ache?  Why is sleep something you have to teach?