Cutting the First Apron Strings

Gasp!  Two posts in two weeks!?!  Yes, friends, things are finally slowing down a bit around here...for me...not so much for my hubs.  He puts in very long hours these days, but he loves the chance to be running a tractor that is actually working correctly.  Except for last week when the tractor started on fire.  Then I guess he had to use his manly fire-fighting skills.

We had a major break-through at our house this week.  For 4 or 5 weeks now, Kyla has been waking up more and more often during the night.  She used to only get up once a night to eat and go right back to sleep.  Then it became twice, then three times, four, and finally SIX times a night on both Sunday night and Monday night.  (Insert frustrated Mommy scream)  Something had to change.

Ever since she was born, Kyla has slept in our bedroom in her Pack-n-Play.  The reason is that her bedroom is upstairs, where ours is on the main floor.  I didn't like the thought of having to run upstairs every time she woke.  Honestly, I wasn't ready to let her sleep that far away, either.  (When we decorated the nursury, I never imagined it would be an issue for me.  I never thought I would be one of those moms who woke up all the time just to see if her baby is still breathing, either!)

On Tuesday night, Kyla spent the first night in her bedroom upstairs all by herself.  She cried for the first 20 or 30 minutes after I put her in her crib.  But eventually, she fell asleep.  She only woke twice the whole night!  And the daycare provider said she slept so much better than she usually does at daycare that day, too.  Wednesday night:  She didn't cry at all when I put her to bed, and she only woke ONCE during the night.  Something worked...whether it was the bigger bed, soft music that plays all night, or just the newness of everything that shocked her system right out of its bad habits.

I actually think Kyla handled the move much better than her Mommy did.  I have never slept so far away from my baby, and I don't think I got a lot of sleep that first night.  I laid awake for long periods of time, and when I slept I dreamt of my little angel upstairs.  Bryan made a pretty accurate observation of the situation.  He said that maybe we could just have her sleep in her Pack-n-Play in the living room for a few nights before she moved upstairs to "wean us off of her."  NOT to wean her off of us.  So true.  We are very attached to our little girl.

We are all adjusted now.  Running upstairs in the middle of the night isn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be.  Bryan and I enjoy being able to talk in more than a tiny whisper and even being able to turn on a light in our room after 8:30 p.m.  Our little girl is growing up. 

I guess we just need to get used to it.