Nigh Nigh Mission

 I know that my blog entries have stopped but this baby thing is kicking my butt. Actually, the lack of sleep is kicking my butt.

Yesterday, we attended Caio's one month check up. I showed up with high hopes since I suspected Caio to weigh more than 10 pounds. Let me explain. I once read that once a baby weighs more than 10 lbs, he/she can go the night without feedings, so logically I was thrilled to hear that he is slightly above 10 lbs. In learning the news, I began to make plans of how I would help Caio sleep through the night. Well, the doc had a differ view. Though she agrees that  he can now sleep through the night, she believes that I should feed him on demand and that he will slowly adjust on his own. She also went on to say that babies begin to sleep through the night between their 4th to 8th month and that I should be patient. After 8 months, if he is not sleeping through the night, we are to intervene. 8 months! Is she out of her mind?! I'm a working mom. I can't go 8 months without a decent night of sleep. I become extremely cranky and bitch when I'm tired and hungry. Without sleep, I am capable of killing or driving those around me crazy. I can picture myself now saying, "No, your Honor. I plead not guilty due to temporary insanity."

Slightly frustrated by the doc's comments, I decided to "help" Caio sleep through the night as I did with my daughter. Calling this the Nigh Nigh mission, I devised a plan of action. For the first few nights, I will no longer wake Caio up for a feeding--those days are long gone! I will feed him when he asks for it as recommended by the doctor. Next, hubby and I will put him to bed by 10 pm. We began doing this last week and it has been going well. I will also move Caio's bassinet away from my bed. After having kids, I became a light sleeper. Any little noise wakes me up, so when Caio grunts or moves in his sleep I immediately wake up. By moving him, I'm hoping that I will sleep better and that I will disrupt his sleep less. There will also be no talking during the night. I want Caio to understand that night time is sleep/quiet time; it is not play time with mommy. Finally, I am using the French wait method (this comes from the book Bringing up Bebe). When Caio grunts or moves at night, I am going to wait a little before picking him up. Hopefully, this will help him learn to fall asleep by himself and not with my assistance. With my plan in action, I'm hoping that he will sleep through the night by his 2 month check up. Wish me luck!

Other side effects of a sleepless night: I have noticed that I look much older. Perhaps it's the dark circles under my eyes or my tired expression...regardless, I look older and that needs to change. Here is a before and after picture of me.

Before sleep                                                                                                            After sleep