Some who read this will be able to relate and others won't, but here goes...
Getting Austin to sleep can be challenging at times and other times it's very easy. Most nights, to get him "down for the night" (translation: to sleep where he only wakes up every 3 hours or so to eat and no longer awake for the day) takes a little while, like an hour most nights and sometimes up to two hours. I usually start the process before Neil gets home, like around 5:30pm or so. My goal is to have him "asleep for the night" by 7pm.
When he does get to sleep it's like the streets are paved with gold because that's when I get to relax for the day, drink a lot of wine and Neil and I get to spend our time together. Neil doesn't see Austin awake and active most weeknights so sometimes I stick him with the first two feedings. True love.
So when it came time to bring the stuff upstairs to Austin's room for the night (stuff = bottles, warmed, filtered water in a thermos) I forgot that I didn't plug the nightlight back in to see in the room as it became dark before having the chance. Since I blacked out his window, there really was no light, damn it. Neil and I both stumbled in there needing to unplug the fan to plug in the nightlight and move the fan to the other outlet (outlets being used for baby video monitor, fan, hairdryer, humidifier, the "ocean waves" playing blissfully in the background. Hopefully, Austin thinks he's on a beach somewhere and is soothed into sleep...) As I'm stumbling around in pitch dark I can hear the stir... the stir of a baby almost not asleep anymore. Damn it, it's only 8:30pm, please, no, no do not wake up.
Clink, clank, thump - there goes the fan being unplugged dropping to the floor.
Neil plugs in the nightlight, seamlessly.
Scratch, scratch, fan plug rubbing against the plug's wall plate - crap, I can't feel the plug for the fan, need to put back in!
Austin: Eh, eh, eh.
Me: Crap. Where is the damn... scratch, scratch...
Neil: SHHHHHHHHHHHH
Austin: EH, EH...
Thunk... plugged in. Waited until the stirring stopped before switching on nightlight.
Tiptoed out.
Baby still asleep, mission accomplished.
2 comments:
7pm is a nice time. Griffin would never go to sleep that early, but he's in bed and sleeping by 8:40 every night (starting book, bottle, bed at 8:25). I always feel that from 8:40 until my bedtime isn't enough me time! Good for you!
So...I totally learned something from you! I've NEVER put my kid "down for the night" before 10pm. I always thought that if I kept them up, they'd sleep better, so from 8-10 I'd work to keep them up (it was usually pretty miserable for them).
Anyways, after reading that you put Austin "down" at 7, I decided to try it.
Dude---it was awesome!!! He goes down at 8 and I now have my evenings again! What was I thinking all this time????? The first night, he sleep from 11-4...it was awesome!
You rock!!!
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