Bad. Really bad. Enough that I’m starting to seriously consider letting Mark use the frozen milk one night – whatever it takes to let me sleep through the night.
But then I remember that if I go from 2 -6 feedings a night down to zero, my boobs are probably going to explode. I’d have to get up and pump anyway. Then I worry about screwing up my supply. One thing that’s been nice about giving Willow every single feeding of her life directly from the boob is that my supply seems to be right where she needs it.
But then again, sleep would be so nice. I feel like I did during my irresponsible college days, when I stayed up late too often and went through the day in a fog. I’m there, but I’m not. I would undoubtedly be a better parent, a better partner, a more contented person, if I had enough sleep to be fully mentally present. In that respect, it’s in my children’s interest, as well as my own, to make sure I get some sleep soon.
I know I’m building up unrealistically high expectations for this video that we’ll be watching in 13 days (whose counting?:)). But I’m hoping it will help us to ramp down the nighttime feedings. Getting it down to a maximum of one or two a night would be wonderful at this point.
In other sleep-related issues, we can’t figure out where to put Willow to sleep. In an attempt to remove her from the parental bed (1. to reduce nighttime wakings and feedings and 2. so mom and dad can sleep together again one of these days), we’ve been putting her in the swing in our room. That works, in terms of getting her to sleep, and I can handle the annoying rhythmic clicks. But she has started to propel herself, even when swaddled, so that she starts out vertical and ends up horizontal. We’re worried she’ll propel herself off the swing entirely. This may limit the lifespan of the swing, something we never had to worry about with River, as he laid there like a log until he reached the maximum weight limit. Lately, she starts out in the swing, then ends up in my bed.
The next thought was the bassinet. But Mark worries that the fabric-covered border around the bassinet reduces air flow in the same way a crib bumper does and is a likely cause of SIDS. So he doesn’t want her there.
We don’t want to set up the full-size crib in River’s room until we return from our big trip, and until she is sleeping better.
So what’s left is the carseat and our bed.
Should we try the carseat, since that is where she’ll most likely be sleeping when we travel? Any other ideas?
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2 comments:
It can't hurt to try the carseat. My sister's baby slept better in the carseat than anywhere else for the first number of months of her life. Use some of that frozen milk and get some sleep! It makes such a difference! I was lucky with this baby for a while--she shocked me by sleeping mostly through the night starting at about 2 months. But that honeymoon seems to have passed and she's waking up a lot and wanting to be in my bed -or nursing- all night long. I think it's b/c she's teething. My son was a voracious nurser when he was teething too. I really hope we return to the through-the-night sleeping soon. It was awesome!
Do not try the car seat. Please. Obviously, you can do your own research, but my understanding is that kids slumped over in car seats have 20% restricted oxygen flow since their chests are compressed in that position. If SIDS or other health risks worry you, I would not opt for this. In addition, I know someone personally who let their kid sleep loads in the car seat & his neck grew crooked from being slumped all the time & they have had to do a lot of therapy to try to correct it. I am sure you can be more creative then that. Have you considered a crib mattress on the floor beside your bed? -a cosleeper? -why wait on the crib?
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