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Hey, Look at Me!

Fman99 Feb 23 2010 06:21 AM

I haven't slept in a year and a half! My child is slowly killing me. I love her to pieces but she is a midnight usurper.

soupcan Feb 23 2010 07:21 AM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

Sucker.

Methead Feb 23 2010 07:42 AM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

Yeah, I feel your pain, although our little guy's been pretty good about sleeping. I think I've forgotten what it's like to NOT have a cold though.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Feb 23 2010 07:49 AM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

Feel for ya, brutha. Lunchpail was murder on us but he more or less stopped after 6 hellish months. One of the keys for us was his getting hella sick. We loaded him up with tylenol and out he went. So.. have you tried hard drugs? Seriously, what dies your pediatrician say?

themetfairy Feb 23 2010 09:10 AM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

I know it wasn't pretty when you tried this before, but I think you need to let her cry it out at night. The other option is outright bribery. Give her a prize every night you don't have to go into her room at night. And at the end of a set period (maybe marked by stickers on a calendar), give her a big prize. FWIW, bribery is what got us through potty training with MK. Sometimes you just have to resort to that when everything else fails.

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Feb 23 2010 09:29 AM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

[quote="themetfairy":2wvuhhll]I know it wasn't pretty when you tried this before, but I think you need to let her cry it out at night. The other option is outright bribery. Give her a prize every night you don't have to go into her room at night. And at the end of a set period (maybe marked by stickers on a calendar), give her a big prize. FWIW, bribery is what got us through potty training with MK. Sometimes you just have to resort to that when everything else fails.[/quote:2wvuhhll] (Scribbling furiously.) I read your war stories, and I shudder. Babies in my family tend to be happy (and famously unpicky regarding food). LWBH's tend to be dyspeptic/screamy... and she, according to LWMother-in-Law, was the worst of her sibs. I'm crossing every set of appendages I have right now.

Methead Feb 23 2010 09:45 AM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

[quote="John Cougar Lunchbucket":cnzfzjms] So.. have you tried hard drugs? Seriously, what dies your pediatrician say?[/quote:cnzfzjms] He's in day care, there's no way to really avoid the colds and coughs. I'm hoping my immune system suddenly goes into overdrive soon. We've had him on antibiotics a few times, for coughs that wouldn't go away and minor ear infections... nothing major. This past month or two, all three of us have been sick. As far as sleeping goes, I used to have to rock him to sleep... but a few weeks ago he started fighting me, so I just started putting him in his crib and getting the hell out of there. Most of the time he just falls asleep. Once in a while he'll yell for 5 or 10 minutes. Last night he started whining around 1 AM, but fell back asleep pretty quickly. He wants to eat whatever we're eating. Even if he's already eaten his own dinner. Doesn't want "baby food" anymore. He's a bottomless pit when it comes to food. Took his first steps yesterday too! Exciting times.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Feb 23 2010 09:55 AM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

Hey, congrats on the walking, is he a year old yet? I was suggesting the drugs as a means to help Fgirl sleep at night (facetiously)... as long as your kid's in day care he'll have a cold for the next 2 years probably (and so will you).

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Feb 23 2010 10:00 AM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

Where d'you all stand on the motorized-swing issue?

John Cougar Lunchbucket Feb 23 2010 10:02 AM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

Wasn't a total necessity in our house. It "worked" a few times to help him fall asleep but he didn't much dig it while awake.

Benjamin Grimm Feb 23 2010 10:04 AM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

[quote="LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr":36z6ant0]Where d'you all stand on the motorized-swing issue?[/quote:36z6ant0] Nice, but not nearly as indispensable as the ExerSaucer.

Methead Feb 23 2010 10:05 AM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

[quote="John Cougar Lunchbucket":3eqn2fue]Hey, congrats on the walking, is he a year old yet? [/quote:3eqn2fue] Just over 14 months. He still prefers crawling most of the time. We've been wondering when he'd start walking, but now that it's staring us in the face, we're a little shocked about what that means to our house and home.

Benjamin Grimm Feb 23 2010 10:08 AM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

A lot of babies skip crawling these days. I think it's because they no longer sleep on their stomachs. Both of my kids, and all three of my sister's kids, did very little crawling. Their first mobility was pretty much the "cruising" along the couch and the coffee table. (My sister's middle child, though, spent some time scooting around on her butt.)

Methead Feb 23 2010 10:10 AM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

[quote="Benjamin Grimm":1xpuo8wk][quote="LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr":1xpuo8wk]Where d'you all stand on the motorized-swing issue?[/quote:1xpuo8wk] Nice, but not nearly as indispensable as the ExerSaucer.[/quote:1xpuo8wk] Yes. We only really used the swing for a few months. It got to a point where he just wouldn't tolerate being in it. The exersaucer got a lot more use, and it was more fun for him too. I wish I didn't listen to the people who told me to get rechargeable batteries for the swing. I only had to recharge 'em once. The pack n play has been great. For a while I could put him in there with a bunch of toys and he'd entertain himself for an hour or so... as long as I was in the same room.

metirish Feb 23 2010 10:10 AM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

It's certainly a struggle and I don't know that there is any right way , just the way that works for you. Letting Lorcan cry at night and ignoring him was not an option , we had talked about it and agreed that we would not do that, and for just about a year I would take him to the spare bedroom when he woke up crying, it was the only way for us all to get a nights sleep. Then gradually we started putting him back in his crib and low and behold after a few nights he was fine and slept through the night. He has always been a great night sleeper and we rarely have problems , we have now changed his crib to a toddler bed and we wondered now that he can escape will he, hasn't happened yet and in fact most nights he will tell us he wants " my bed". On a few occasions that he has had trouble going back to sleep I would take him to our bed and he would have a fit wanting his own bed , great. The bottle could not have gone better, we just stopped it around 14 months I think and that was it...maybe a bit later than that but either way it was easy. I honestly think Day care is great and helps in all these things, structure and such. My only complaint and it's not a real complaint is that Lorcan wakes up like clockwork between 5:30 and 6am every morning.

Fman99 Feb 23 2010 10:16 AM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

[quote="John Cougar Lunchbucket":1xjnh7l2]Feel for ya, brutha. Lunchpail was murder on us but he more or less stopped after 6 hellish months. One of the keys for us was his getting hella sick. We loaded him up with tylenol and out he went. So.. have you tried hard drugs? Seriously, what dies your pediatrician say?[/quote:1xjnh7l2] Appointment scheduled for next week. My wife, strongly against medicating the children in general, thinks she may have a tonsils issue that is messing with her sleeping/breathing at night hence the wakeups. I think it's nothing more than a stubborn, headstrong, two year old version of my wife, who wants nothing more than to try and crawl back into her mother's cooter where she originated. Convincing her otherwise is like trying to sell pudding to a meth-head and convince them it's just as good. We can't let her cry -- it turns into screaming, and then her sucking down a river of snot, and ultimately throwing up in her bed. It's happened twice and each time was a mini horror show. We've tried bribery, stickers, M&Ms, the calendar, voodoo, begging, subtle coercion, MMA style beatings, you name it. She wants her mommy, and I can't blame her. (Fgirl was also a butt-scooter and not a crawler.) (Motorized swing and exersaucer -- both worthwhile, both Fboy and Fgirl liked them. Buy them at yard sales -- save a bucket of cash that way. Our kids never took to the pack and play though.)

John Cougar Lunchbucket Feb 23 2010 10:21 AM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

Exersaucer was great for those times where you need to put him someplace while you go to the bathroom or make a phone call or something. Definitely more use for us than the swing. Other useless baby things (for us) The hanging doorway jumping thing huge Kelty backpack carrier (cool thing to have but we hardly ever used it. Fortunately, we acquired and disposed of it for the same $75 on craigslist. Wireless monitoring device (our apt is small, and not like we weren't ever aware where the kid was) Useful items The plastic seat turning a regular chair into a high chair (we still use that -- almost 4 years!) baby bjorn (loved that thing) Backpack-style diaper bag (actually, a zip-off component of the Kelty thing, very useful)

metirish Feb 23 2010 10:31 AM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

[quote="John Cougar Lunchbucket":1swg0isf]Exersaucer was great for those times where you need to put him someplace while you go to the bathroom or make a phone call or something. Definitely more use for us than the swing. Wireless monitoring device (our apt is small, and not like we weren't ever aware where the kid was) [/quote:1swg0isf] hilarious, we had that and a video monitor watching him , we laugh now about it but at the time it seemed like a good idea, of course every sniffle heard and every turn seen on the monitor had me running to his room. Some day he will laugh at us about it. Starting to potty train now , with an assist from JCL who gave us some great tips. Still we are banking on this being a long haul , but's that OK. We had the motorized-swing thing , we used it but I wouldn't say we got a lot of use out of it.

soupcan Feb 23 2010 10:38 AM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

If its any consolation to any of you dads of young kids - my kids are now 9, 11 & 13 and I have a very hard time remembering having gone through the stuff you are all going through. I know that my kids did have troubles sleeping through the night, had year-long colds, were colic-y, liked/disliked battery-powered swings and exer-saucers but it seems like those times sped by so fast and were just a blip on the radar. My advise to Fman - and anyone that is having trouble with the kids sleeping at night or whatever else - is to just try and be patient. Its not going to last forever and will end sooner than you think. In the meantime take a lot of pictures...

seawolf17 Feb 23 2010 11:10 AM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

We were big fans of the exersaucer, for the reasons JCL mentioned. The swing was nice for about two weeks, but other than that, both kids got bored with it quickly. We've been bery, bery lucky with both kids as far as sleeping goes; they both started sleeping through the night at like six or eight weeks old. Our problem now -- MiniWolf turns four today -- is getting him INTO bed. It seems like every night is a battle trying to get him to stop running around upstairs after we've gone back down to watch TV or whatever. We got him to stop drinking fluids after dinner, which meant he stopped wetting the bed; but now he likes to sneak cups of water from the bathroom after we bring him up there, which means he pees in the bed usually once a week. MiniWolfette (13 months old) doesn't seem to want to give up crawling. It's still faster for her to crawl than walk, so she prefers that as a mode of transportation. She's getting sturdier, though, so I don't think the crawling will last much longer.

Vic Sage Feb 23 2010 11:15 AM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

I'm crossing every set of appendages I have right now. that's a good way to avoid this whole parenting thing in the first place. But what Soupy said: ditto.

metsmarathon Feb 23 2010 11:37 AM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

[quote="LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr":28fb2xqi]Where d'you all stand on the motorized-swing issue?[/quote:28fb2xqi] minimm loves his motorized swing. its generally where he takes his daytime naps. it does a good job of calming him when he's just a little bit too fussy to fall asleep of his own accord, or when he wakes a little bit after being put down. he is not, however, a fan of tummy time. but we're working on it. little guy's working on holding his head up when he's on his stomach, and does good until he starts to lose control of it, and starts hitting his nose. but its better for their core, so i've heard, for them to get good tummy time and learn to crawl before they walk. plus, it makes us feel like good parents, torturing the kid for his own good.

themetfairy Feb 23 2010 12:35 PM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

Wow - go away a couple of hours and miss the whole discussion.... Congrats on the walking Methead - that's excellent :) MiniWolfette will walk when she's ready. MK didn't walk until he was almost 14 months old. He was a week away from living the commercial of taking his first steps to get to Mickey Mouse (but he wound up taking them a week before the trip). I agree with irish - you know your own kids better than anyone else, and you have to do what works for you best. I have no problems with swings or exersaucers. We actually used baby walkers (with the older two we were in apartments without steps, and for MK we just kept it in the sunken family room). My daughter had night and day reversed - she wouldn't wake up for the day until 10:00 pm. We had to let her cry it out because we were the walking zombies after a while. Even now, she's a night creature. My older son, OTOH, only woke up once during the night from the time we brought him home, and slept through the night at six weeks. MK kept us hopping - he'd be up three times for feedings, and just when I'd adjust to that he'd make it twice a night, etc. Grimm is right - whatever stage you're going through, this too shall pass. And quickly. It seems like yesterday when we were going through all of that, and now my oldest is 20!

metirish Feb 23 2010 01:15 PM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

it's funny at times the carry on when it's bed time, some nights he just goes right to bed. Other nights like last night Lorcan did everything to stay up , wanting to play with his train set , then wanting to watch movies, The Polar Express is the new fave...much crying going on , in his room wanting to read every book there even though his eyes couldn't stay open. Wanting me to draw with him on his blackboard. Finally he wanted his baseball cap which he has not worn since Puerto Rico , he fell asleep wearing it.

themetfairy Feb 23 2010 03:33 PM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

On the subject of backpack carriers (the baby needs to be about 6 months old before you can use it, because he/she needs to have good neck muscle control for those things) was a lifesaver when we lived in the City. Ours had a little pouch where we could stick a diaper, some wipes, etc. That was great for running around the City, getting onto buses and the Subway, etc. Incredibly convenient. We didn't use it much for MK - he was born after we moved to the 'burbs, and he was brought up in the car lifestyle. Here I am in 1994 during a tour through the short-lived Nickelodeon Extreme Baseball at Shea experiment. My daughter was four at the time, and my older son was about 17 months old.

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Feb 23 2010 03:46 PM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

TMF, looking all young-mom fly. As far as carriers, we had ErgoBaby recommended to and purchased for us (think BabyBjorn, but wearable on back or hip as well as chest) though I still wanted a Bjorn. Then I tried it... and kinda wanted to fall asleep in there. Pillowy straps, even easier to open/lock up than the Bjorn, and disperses the baby's weight a little better than most upright carriers (because it holds the baby in a seated position. Good show, ErgoBaby, you comfy bastard.

seawolf17 Feb 23 2010 06:48 PM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

Wow, MK looks a lot like D-Dad in that shot.

themetfairy Feb 23 2010 06:54 PM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

That's not MK. That's pre-MK. MK was born in 1996. But yes - MK's older brother (the one who was so good with MiniWolf the time you visited our house) looks very much like D-Dad and his side of the family.

Fman99 Mar 11 2010 10:32 AM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

Saw the pediatrician, got an appointment with the ENT specialist to find out if large tonsils are the culprit. In the interim, the doctor theorized that she may be suffering from indoor allergies and suggested we try giving her childrens' Zyrtec before bed. We did, and she slept through the night for the first time in 4 weeks. So that's a plus.

themetfairy Mar 11 2010 10:59 AM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

I'm glad to hear that you guys finally got some sleep!

Fman99 Mar 19 2010 10:37 PM Re: Hey, Look at Me!

I am at my wit's end. This is now, essentially, 21 months without a real stretch of sleep. And with no relief in sight. "This too shall pass" isn't doing it for me.