Mommy Moment #2: Avonlea FINALLY sleeps all night!!

This was huge for us!  I mean tremendously huge...  Since the day Avonlea was born there has never been a night when she has slept from the time she went to bed until the time she was ready to get up for the day...until last night.  I have never, NEVER had more than 5 MAYBE 6 hours of uninterrupted sleep since a month or two before Avonlea was born (pregnancy discomfort).  She's always been up to nurse at least once but most of the time twice a night.  It has been getting old...

Finally getting around to finishing this post.  So far Avonlea has slept through the night for three nights in a row. She is napping now...going on an hour and a half which is a record for her.  I am one proud and well rested (at last) mommy!

Brief Intermission

I am working on several new posts...adding to them whenever I have a spare moment.  I am still here...just a little busy the past few days.  Today was grocery day.  I had a relatively simple list today and every intention to get it done early this morning...but sleep training is throwing a bit of a wrench into things.  Avonlea is getting better...crying less and less each time...but she hasn't been getting up as early as she normally does.  I'm sure all mom's would agree that trying to get your kids up and running on less than adequate sleep often means a stressful day ahead.  My point is...baby girl slept in today...grocery trip postponed till afternoon...grocery store was crazy busy...aggravation...etc.

Mommy Moment #1 Baby Girl Feeds Herself

I've been so excited to share this moment for the last few days but the internet has been acting weird here :(.  So, Logan and I both had a birthday over the weekend and as per tradition, my mom takes us out to eat for our birthday at the restaurant of our choice.  This year we picked the new Logan's Roadhouse in town. 

    Avonlea can finally sit in a high chair at restaurants as long as we tuck blankets in the sides to help her keep her balance.  It was about time for her to have an afternoon snack anyway so I got out her little baby cereal puffs and put a few out for her to attempt to pick up while I fed her a few.  I've been trying to work with her on the pincer grasp so she would be able to feed herself finger foods but up until then, she'd been able to pick up one but not been able to get it to her mouth on her own.  

     After a little help from Mommy and a few tries on her own, Avonlea managed to get a cereal puff into her mouth.  People in the restaurant probably thought I was nuts and it may not seem like a big deal to anyone else...but when your child does something new on their own it is very exciting, especially when you know they have been trying so hard for so long to accomplish it.  It is also a tiny bit sad, because it is a reminder that my baby is growing up.  

     Baby girl is getting restless....time for snuggling and her morning nap ;)

Happy Mothering!  

Mommy Rule #1 Start Sleep Training Early

FYI: Mommy Rules are not in a particular order...

...although this one is pretty important.  As I type, I hear the horrid sound of my 7 month old screaming her head off in her crib.  Yes, it's awful to listen to and makes me feel like a bad mom but it is necessary and I keep reminding myself that this is for her benefit.  Already, I have rocked her for a half hour and Logan took a turn as well before we laid our obviously exhausted Avonlea in her crib*.  Now we're waiting to hear silence coming through the baby monitor.
     Up until just a few weeks ago, Avonlea's bedtime routine was simple: Bath, Jammies, Swaddle, Nurse, Rock, Sleep. This has always worked beautifully for us, with very few exceptions...  Now, when she finishes nursing she stares up at me and cries.  I continue to rock and sing and she keeps right on crying with increasing intensity.  
     I suppose Logan and I could keep taking turns rocking her until she finally gives it up, but both of us agree that it is nice to have a little time after she's went to bed to reconnect, talk about our day and maybe work on a crossword.  Plus, I would like to get some sleep...and it doesn't really matter if she's been asleep since 8:30 or 11:30, I can expect Avonlea to wake up to nurse between 2-3am and then again at 6-6:30.  So we've decided that if she isn't asleep after a reasonable amount of rocking and singing (usually about 15 minutes), we lay her down in her crib and let her "cry it out."
     I suppose my point here is to not just suggest but beg you to start training your child to go to sleep on their own earlier than I have.  Avonlea can fight sleep a lot longer now at 7 months than she could at3 months.  For your own sanity's sake, just get it over with.

Happy Mothering!


*Tonight was not a normal night here in the Stewart home.  My mother stayed with Avonlea this evening while Logan and I went out for dinner and did some shopping.  It was past her bed time when we got home, but when I return after being gone for several hours she always wakes up to nurse...without fail.  As a result of our absence, we were a little more generous with our rocking time.

Origin of the Mommy Rules

Today is my 24th birthday.   To celebrate, I said "Farewell!" to Facebook, and, after much encouragement from my husband, said "Hello!" to the blogosphere.  What time I spend online, I want to be focused on what is really important to me.  I spent four years at university for a degree in social studies education and one year working in the public school system before having my first child, Avonlea.  They were great, and I loved what I was doing.  But as philosophic as it sounds, when my daughter was born and I became a mom, I feel like I finally found myself--the person God made me to be.

I titled this blog "Mommy Rules!" for two purposes:

1. Being a Mommy "rules."  It is the hardest work I have ever done, but I have never loved anything so much.  Through "Mommy Moments" I will share the ups and downs of my own motherhood experience.

2. Pregnancy and motherhood has taught me a lot.  No matter how prepared you think you are or aren't; you learn as you go, plain and simple.  However, various experiences have inspired me to compile a list of personal do's and don'ts that others may find useful and hopefully comical at times.  "Mommy Rules" are my anecdotes about these do's and don'ts.  

    From time to time I may also share my opinion on children's books I've read to Avonlea as well as some products we have tried.  And for those of you out there wondering, you may just find here that no, you are not alone...it happened to me, too!

Happy Mothering!