SLEEP: Perhaps the most dramatic difference this month has been SLEEP. Sleep had gotten very, very, very bad. Like up every 2 hours bad….with lots of crying...and then Ben would be up at night too. Andy and I were exhausted to say the least. After a year of never sleeping through the night (aside from when we went to California and then when my mom watched Josh overnight for our anniversary in January), it really starts to wear on you. I'll just speak for myself here, but I was losing my mind. I was crabby all the time and felt like I was never functioning at 100%. After many talks with our pediatrician and a ton of research, we decided to let Josh cry it out. I was really opposed to this method for a variety of reasons, but I was also getting desperate. The first night was VERY hard. He cried for an hour before falling asleep, I think this was around 11:00. It was so sad to watch him on the monitor. He was so tired, yet he was standing in his crib, resting his head on the railing, flipping his head from side to side. He finally fell asleep, only to wake up a few hours later. I think Andy was in Ben's bed at that point so he couldn't hear anything, but I let Josh cry for another 45 minutes. It was the same thing: standing and resting his head on the railing. :( Josh was crying, I was crying. It was bad. BUT the next night, he woke up once, cried for a few minutes, and then fell back to sleep. After that, he was pretty much sleeping through the night!!!! It was amazing. It still is amazing. As I (dramatically) told our pediatrician, it has been life changing. I definitely feel better, but I truly believe that Josh does too. He seems much happier. I even think he started eating better after his sleeping got better. He always went down nicely (awake) but now he typically sleeps from 7-6:30 or so. He does squawk every once and a while, but nothing longer than a few seconds. As far as naps go, he is not always taking his morning nap anymore. He will usually get at least an hour or so of sleep at some point during the day. His teachers at school said he now falls right to sleep when the put him in the crib. Such a good little sweetie pie.
EATING: His eating has been great lately too! I am still nursing him in the morning and before bed, but I don't think he is getting that much. He does a good job drinking his whole milk throughout the day, though I still don't think he gets enough milk. He goes in cycles with what he likes to eat, but some of his favorites are chicken, turkey, grapes, blueberries, blueberry muffins, goldfish, and cookies. He is always signing "more" for something during dinner. I love watching him stuff his sweet little face.
COMMUNICATION/COGNITION: This boy! He's so funny and so smart, just like his big brother. I feel like he went from being a baby to a smart little boy overnight. He seems to understand everything and will follow directions like, "go give this to daddy" or "go get ___." He has the cutest head nod when he wants something. We think he has said "yes" a few times, but he will definitely shake his head "yes." (And quite dramatically at that!) He STILL says dada WAY more than he says mama, but he does say both. He knows where his tummy is, he knows when to "pop" in "Pop! Goes The Weasel," and he knows how to blow and give kisses---the best! He loves reading books and he loves doing whatever his big brother does. I was scratching my leg tonight because my skin is so dry, and within minutes, I had 2 extra little hands helping me out. It was so sweet. (Even if Ben had to run over to help because Josh wasn't doing it right. "He has to use his nails like this…") Josh also loves music so much. He is the cutest little dancer. He loves going to music class and he blows me away with what he can do. Alright, I'll stop bragging now, but seriously--he's not a baby anymore! (Wah!!! Though the sleep sure is nice. ;) )
FINE/GROSS MOTOR SKILLS: What can't this boy do? He loves running, chasing, climbing, and hanging with the big kids (Andy and Ben). He is just starting to be able to play catch with Ben--yippie! I love watching them play together. Josh's new favorite thing is playing with balls and putting things in to either the toilet or the garbage. I'll find socks, his pacifier, and other non-garbage things in the trash on a daily basis. I suppose that is better than the toilet, because he has also put those things there. :) He is still in to picking up every crumb and piece of fuzz he can find and sticking them in to his mouth. He can high-5 and pat-a-cake with the best of them. He loves to "drive" cars around and he is a pro at turning the pages in books. He is such a good listener and I just love watching him soak everything in.
Alright, I'm off to bed, but I have to pick things up here! No more 6 weeks between postings. Now that I'm sleeping better though, I'm definitely feeling more like a human! I will try and update on the other things going on soon, one of them being possibly moving! It's a crazy (and stressful) story that has yet to be completed. Eek!
