Thursday, January 3, 2008

A little of this, a little of that

To answer some questions:
- I cut Matthew's hair while he is in his highchair and I use regular men's clippers. Not sure which size attachments...I always just eyeball it. I do the top first and then the sides...and I just try to go fast, fast, fast!

- They are building a new house in the field behind our home. The good news is that the people like us and tried to push their home as far east as possible so as not to block our view of the mountains. The bad news is they may still block our view of the mountains. The other good news is that the animals (Xena, sheep, llama, etc) will still be able to roam free once the house is finished.

- My mom got me the Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child book and, while it is taking some time, I really think it is working!!!!! Matthew's wake time is around 7:00a, 1st nap around 9:00a, 2nd nap around 1:00p, and bed around 6:30p. While he was up from 11:30-12;30 last night he hasn't been doing the really huge stretches of awake time like he used to. He still wakes up at 5:30a...and seems to go in and out until his bottle at 6:15a...but then back to sleep til 7:00. He seems to be much more well-rested....his old bedtime was around 7:15/7:30p.

- The blog posts are going to be hit and miss for awhile as my mom is in the hospital and Matthew and I will be traveling to see her. Please pray for healing for her body...and peace in her heart. And please pray that I will keep my eyes on Jesus instead of the storm.

5 comments:

Rebecca Lily said...

Praying for your mom today! And for you!!

Love you girlfriend.

Rebecca

P.S. I use men's clippers on Grant's hair too. The ultimate 5 second haircut!! He is needing one by the way... I should do that tomorrow. :) Also glad to hear that the sleep patterns are starting to regulate a little!! And girl, 6:30p is EARLY!! I'm starting to feel really bad about Grant's 9pm bedtime!!!

jen said...

Tish, of course we will continue praying for your mom and your whole family.

I have been doing some sleep reading also and read the Ferber book. I was surprised that according to that book, Andy is sleeping about 2-3 hours more than the average kid his age... but he seems to have a very similar schedule as Matthew (just shifted one hour later - wakes 8am, sleeps 7pm). He seems happy and well rested, and I can't complain about getting to sleep till 8am! (for now, until I go back to work). Just curious, what does your book say about how many hours they should be sleeping?

love ya! Have a safe trip! We'll be thinking of you!

jen

taiwanbaby said...

Sorry to hear about your mom. Am sending many good wishes your way. Good hear that the sleep thing is working itself out. nothing in this world beats a whole night of sleep.

Sherry said...

Tish Im sorry to hear that about your mama. We'll be praying for her over here. Plus I am very impressed that you cut Matthews hair. Believe me when Kobi gets buzzed I dont even want to be in the same room. LOL!

Shannon said...

So, I decided to catch myself up on your story and the sleep issues you've been dealing with (especially since I am considered a secret hero!!).

I also have the Healthy Habits sleep book and I have referenced it from time to time, but can't say I've read the whole thing. All I can say is that life was really insane for me those first few months of parenting two new babies...and if it weren't for my husband encouraging our family to get out & about, I probably wouldn't have done much of anything. In fact, I remember calling my girlfriends with more than one kid to ask them when they took their showers! My husband would simplify everything - I would say, how am I ever going to find time to go get a haircut and he would say, you make an appointment and you go get your haircut - that simple.

Soooo....we just started our pattern by being on the go and the kids have rolled with it all. It took Griffin 8 1/2 months before he slept through the night and up until just a few weeks ago before he had a pretty predicable solid nap schedule, so I DO know what it is like to have the unpredictability of sleep and how exhausted you can feel. Most of those months are a blur to me. We just made the most of everything as it sounds like you are doing too. When we were on vacation, he would wake up even more than normal, but I was going to bed earlier, so I didn't feel much more tired. Of course, I was longing for a stretch of solid sleep - which I do have now, thankfully. So, this season will pass. (On the other hand, Ainsley has been a great sleeper from the start. We had sleep issues with bonding and had her in our room for the first 3 months, but slept well and does now too).

Anyway - hang in there. I know what sleep deprivation can do to you! Just keep getting out and about and enjoying the moments you can. (Also - fyi on your son's need for constant attention. Griffin also went through this phase which lasted about 1-2 months. I remember the late afternoon being the worst and I could not get anything done. As it started out of the blue, it seemed to pass out of the blue - so hopefully your guy will be steering away from that too soon).

Thanks for the photo tips. I will have to re-read them in the morning as it is almost midnight here now and I can't think very straight. And, finally, I use Prego Traditional spaghetti sauce. :-) Hope you have a good sleep night tonight!

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