Hello, it's Mrs M,
When I was younger, sleep was something that I took for granted. Going to bed late, getting up early was a bit of a killer, but hey, I sucked it up and got on with it.... life was about making the most of it (
and still is... ) the night offered so much fun, it was worth missing out on sleep for, I think I speak for Pauly more so than I actually as I type this, and I think his friend Paul B would also agree going by their crazy, comedic, addictive stories Pauly has told me.
(Ones where I've literally laughed until my stomach hurt, and tears streamed !) they sure had some crazy nights out.
However, when your a parent, sleepless nights come hand in hand with the joy children bring... don't get me wrong being awake at night with a beautiful, sunshine smelling newborn is one of the most amazing things known to a Mother, it feels like it's just the two of you in the whole world awake, when the house and street is completely silent, and dark other than the night light that your too scared to turn off because you can't see your newborn,
(or if like me, you slept with the lights fully on for the first few weeks.... Oh hello to you, paranoid Mothers alike!)
As I sit here at 10.39 am on a Sunday morning, after the oddest nights 'sleep' we've ever had with Opeie, no means the worst, it makes me think about babies and their sleeping habits.
When it comes to babies
( and when I say babies, my timeline of a baby is when a baby aged newborn-.......... is fully milk weaned and decides they feel content enough to sleep through) I hate this expectation we have that when our babies get to 'X' weeks or months, or years they should be sleeping alone in their bed through the night, that they are going to be spoiled being rocked, or nursed, or sang to sleep, that co sleeping is 'giving in' to them, and they cry because it's 'what babies do'.... I tend to disagree.
Now Opeie might not be the best sleeper in the world, but he does excel at one thing, feeding during the night, yes he loves Moma's milk! And that's fine, in
my experience babies cry because they have a need for something, they don't cry for the fun of it, to make our lives tiring. It's because they can't say what they need. In Opeie's case as he's not much of a crier, it's usually because he wants Moma milk, even if it is every hour or so during the night, every night.
Luckily for me, Pauly has always been supportive of me choosing not to do the 'cry it out' thing with Opeie, every night in bed before kissing me goodnight, he says " Wake me up if you need some sleep and I'll take him in the lounge for a bit", or he's slept on the sofa for nights so Opeie and I can sprawl out on the bed as we still co-sleep. Not to mention getting up almost every morning with Opeie so i can snatch an hour or so's deep sleep. And mostly I'm grateful to him for putting up with me for resembling Oscar the grouch, when I'm sleep deprived.
(Thanks Papa P!)
The only thing we can put Opeie's odd sleep down to this week is teething. We're used to him waking every hour, but the last few nights have been, just, strange!
We have an amber teething necklace for Opeie which works a treat, he's never been much of a crier, unless he wants milk, but the last few days he's been holding his mouth, pointing and screaming. He's broken in a few teeth at the back this month already, so we're assuming it's more of the monster molars coming through.
While we were in Florida last year, I stopped by the godlike shop , mother ship, known as Wholefoods which I adore. Mainly to stock up on some bits we can't get here in the UK, Daiya vegan cheese for me, Tom's of Maine toothpaste for me and the boys, Almond milk , but I also bought some homeopathic teething things which I've not used until now. I think I'm going to have to give them a try and see how they go.
Having said all of that, Opeie has been sleeping a little better on the whole this last month.... mainly because we've finally manage to get him eating better at meal times, you might remember Pauly posting about his meal times before
here and
here. So I can't complain too much.
I hope next time I post about Opeie's sleep and food routines it's reporting that he's much happier and less tearful, Maybe the Aquabats should make a TV show about sleeping and eating properly, since our boy is obsessed with their music, Super Show and dances!
(Also, a quick Hello and Wave to all the new moms experiencing sleep deprivation for the first time- it gets easier and you do get used to it. And hello to all the Mom's still going through this, iPhones in the middle of the night are the best thing ever right? And a hello to all the people yet to go through it, it's not as bad as it sounds! )
