Family Friday (vol. 41): Hanging On By A Thread

I feel like my Family Friday updates have been really negative. I don’t mean for them to be, but man, parenting is not easy. Parenting + working full-time is loads of stress…and add to that a baby who gets up 2 times a night – yep, I’m hanging on by a thread. I daydream about sleeping through the night. Literally.

How is it that Piper slept better months ago than she sleeps now? I should probably sleep train, BUT…the only time she will breastfeed is in the middle of the night. Any other time, she refuses to nurse. I spend so much time pumping and seriously, is there anything more inconvenient than pumping to turn around and give it to your baby who is fully capable of nursing but chooses not to? The lactation consultant is fresh out of ideas for me, too. On the plus side, she will nurse while I’m half asleep, so there is that. In case anyone is curious why this happened, especially since for so many months we couldn’t get her to take a bottle (!), I think it was the combination of teething (she has her 2 front bottom teeth and has since ~4 1/2 months) and my going back to work full-time.

And it’s not just the pumping that is getting tiring, but Piper is so…different from Shea as a baby. Piper is on high alert at ALL times. She won’t be cradled and held for a bottle, but instead, she will take a few gulps before arching her back and wanting to sit up and look around, no matter how tired she is. Shea was like a wet noodle and just cuddled and enjoyed her bottles, start to finish. I remember not wanting to give up bottles because rocking her at night while she had her bottle was my favorite. With Piper, it’s a battle to get her to take much of anything before bed, and if she does, it’s with thanks to walking while bouncing and offering and offering again, sip after sip. It’s no easy task. Of course because she doesn’t take much before bed, she’s generally up before midnight for her first night feeding. You know, right about the time I’m hitting REM.

Piper is the reason toys come with straps/belts. She could wiggle and squirm her way out of anything. I think she will be one of those babies who is happier once mobile, and I suspect that means she will keep me on my toes at all times

Piper’s naps have gone to heck. When I pick her up at daycare, they’re quick to inform me that they tired to get her to nap more/longer…but with no success. By the time I get her home, she’s a MESS. I’ve tried moving around her bedtime, but even that hasn’t seemed to help. She has also matured in that she understands when we leave the room…and she protests with cries. Fortunately, she and Shea have a closeness that continues to grow and they have their little language that only they understand. If Shea’s laughing or looking at her, Piper is so happy. She literally lights up when her big sister is around and it is so, so, so, so cute <3

 

I know every situation is different, but as the saying goes, “One child is one child and two children feels like ten!”

I’m keeping my eye on the prize of warmer months coming, more daylight, and continuing to find our groove as a family of 4. Oh, and a trip to Cancun in just over a month. Hello, sleep and sunshine! This mama needs a recharge!

Be well,

from Prevention RD http://preventionrd.com/2017/02/family-friday-vol-41-hanging-on-by-a-thread/
via Heart Based Marketing