Piper is 15 months today. She’s also currently my favorite child.
I’m kidding! But, 3-year-olds? It can be the pits to parents a 3-year-old. Good thing she’s cute. If you missed my gushing on Instagram, here’s the latest school picture of “Shea Bug”. No one at her school calls her Shea, including her teachers. It’s always “Shea Bug”. Adorbs.
It’s Miss Piper, however, that I’d love to share more about today. Knowing that her 15 months well-child appointment is coming up and the pediatrician will be asking about the cessation of bottles, I stopped daytime and middle-of-the-night bottles, cold turkey, last Wednesday.
Wednesday night (Thursday morning, I guess), she was up at 12:20am wanting a bottle. As usual. Or maybe I shouldn’t say as usual, because she has full capability of sleeping through the night and did so 50-60% of the time, I’d say. The bottle was a habit…a habit that was keeping us BOTH from sleeping well. Piper would wake-up and scream her VERY LOUD screams and I’d give in too quickly. I’d prepare the bottle in the hallway bathroom, let her suck it down in my arms all limp noodle-y across my lap, and she’d be back to bed. It wasn’t ever THAT disruptive…other than the fact that it was in the middle of the night.
For so long I had resigned myself to not consistently sleeping through the night until breastfeeding or bottles were no more. And I’m not quite sure why last Wednesday was the night I decided enough was enough, but she SCREAMED BLOODY MURDER for 1 1/2 hours. I went in to check on her, offered her a bottle of water which she promptly showed her distaste for, and I returned her to her crib. SCREAMING resumed.
The baby monitor had already been off, but the SCREAMING (OMG, so loud) could be heard all the way down the hallway, through her closed bedroom door, and through the shared wall of her bedroom and our master bath. I proceeded to close our bedroom door, close the master bath door, layer a pillow and my arm over my head, and desperately try to get some sleep. I believe the SCREAMING stopped around 3am.
Thursday night came and we were exhausted, but committed. Were we through the worst of it? Lord almighty, I hoped so. She slept through the night, every night, ever since (8 nights…and counting). Her only bottle is before bed. Which, yes, needs to go. But, but, but…she’s my last baby and I’m we’re not quite ready just yet to be done-done with bottles. Forever. But soon. I think… 
There are definitely moments through the day, especially when she’s tired and when I pick her up from daycare that she reeeeeally wants a bottle. At these times, I’m especially grateful that she’s so attached to her lovie. Even still, it can be a challenge to distract her from the fixation on wanting a bottle. Every day is getting better, though.
I’d like a few more weeks under our belt to say, “Yep, my kid sleeps through the night!” but this is HUGE progress. We’ve never seen this level of consistency before. Even better, we’re both in better moods because of it! She definitely didn’t need the bottle and has very strong self-soothing skills, and I’m getting a more restful night of sleep.
Everyone wins!
Brunch with Santa tomorrow – can’t wait to see the girls with the big man. Should be a fun weekend, but a chilly one here in Michigan.
Be well,
from Prevention RD http://preventionrd.com/2017/12/family-friday-vol-61-buh-bye-bottles-hello-sleep/
via Heart Based Marketing
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