Thursday, January 12, 2012

Phantom Cries, Multitasking, and Sleep Training: Night 8

Night 8 of sleep training - Z put 'Rad down for his nap tonight.  I'm not going to say anything good, but I can't say anything bad about it either.  Let's just say we didn't have to watch the clock at all tonight and I'm becoming a more firm believer in sleep training, Ferber-style.  We even put him down when he was just fussy and not rubbing his eyes or yawning like he usually does.  *fingerscrossed*

I've become so attuned to listening for 'Rad's cries that I hear phantom ones when I'm in the shower, watching TV, or otherwise not right next to him.  Any unfamiliar sound is transformed in my brain so that all I hear is Connor in distress.  He's not really a "crier," but he has definitely become noisier in this fourth month.  He continues to babble in the middle of the night and about a half hour before breakfast; his little left hand sometimes scratches the crib mattress when he's in bed and you can hear it echo through our narrow hallway; I told you about his affection for and mimicry of Katy Perry; and he's become a more liberal laugher, which is awesome.  In 16 days he'll be five months old, and who knows what that next 30 days of his life will bring.  One thing I know for sure that will accompany that turn of the calendar page for him will be the introduction of solid foods.  Oh, the drama!

It snowed all day today.  In Wisconsin you'd think that wouldn't be a big deal, but it is, ridiculously so.  So, we were about 30 minutes late picking 'Rad up.  Amy and her family are awesome so it wasn't a big deal, but I realized what a huge bullet we dodged by having such a mild winter thus far.  That's not to say that more snow won't fall and there won't be other days where we'll be late, I'm just grateful that we've been so lucky to not have had to battle snow drifts and bad driving conditions (and bad drivers) to rush home and pick up 'Rado, because if that were the case I'd be a nervous, rushed mess.  Not a good thing to be on the road or in the car or in any enclosed space.

Speaking of being rushed, I'm in a constant state of rush that I just can't shake.  I rarely allow myself to do one thing at a time; all tasks have to overlap whenever possible.  If I'm brushing my teeth I might also be packing my lunch bag.  If I'm cleaning the bottles, there could also be something simmering on the stove for dinner.  If I'm petting the dog, I'm also shaking a toy or rattle for 'Rad's amusement.  I don't say this because I'm exceptionally efficient; I think I'm a bit cursed.  I'm not able to slow down and give full attention to any one task.  Is this the point where I should start meditating or doing yoga or some other similarly-mindful exercise?  I'm not sure if I'll have time.  Unless I can be folding laundry at the same time...


2 comments:

Tiffany said...

There are going to be tons of opinions that you get on starting solids. But this really made a difference for us... make your own cereal... rice, oatmeal, barley... whatever you choose. The stuff you buy in the store is DISGUSTING ( I tasted it, and can attest to this). I made my LO old fashinoned oatmeal, put in the food processor, after she wouldn't eat the baby stuff I bought, and she ate the real stuff right up. It even smelled like real oatmeal when I was making it.

Jojo said...

So good to know! When we start feeding him solids I'm going to need yours and everyone's help, so I appreciate the tip :-)