Things seem to be improving with Miya in terms of the fussiness (we are so thankful) and just taking it one day at a time. With many peoples advice and tips (thanks everyone!) we were able to implement some soothing techniques that really seem to calm miya when she hits the "witching hour" as we have grown to call it. It usually hits around 5 and lasts until she finally conks out around 9ish. She pretty much fights sleep the entire time and we have tried everything to get her to settle during this time. Usually she is ok with being held but really doesn't want to be put down, actually that is true of her most of the day. This evening time fussiness is usually the hardest part of the day and once she finally goes to sleep we are ready for bed too (it wears us out) We still aren't sure if this is officially colic, because she has stopped having the long crying spells (seems like they left as quick as they came) but one HUGE discovery was simply the fact that our girl gets VERY easily overstimulated and needs to nap frequently. She tends to wake up, eat right away, have about 30-45 minutes of awake time and then it's back to bed! One thing we realized is we were keeping her awake way too long, and way past her point of exhaustion. I had no idea babies this age need so much sleep...oops :) So much of her fussiness was us not picking up on her sleepy cues and what we learned is that once she becomes overtired, she is almost impossible to calm down at that point. So I have started learning her cues and watching for her getting tired and putting her right down to sleep, and amazingly she seems to be happier and calmer now! Don't get me wrong, she is still a little "diva" of sorts when it comes to making her preferences known (and trust me the girl knows what she wants!) but she seems to be easier to calm and sleeps better now, which has been great! Speaking of sleep....
Miya is finally in her crib full time! We couldn't believe how quickly and smoothly the transition took place. We started Tuesday night this week after a really bad failed attempt last week. I was afraid that putting her in the crib after she had gotten so snug in our bed would be horrible, but it wasn't! We started with naps first, then at night. I think the transition was harder on me than it was for her. I would make several trips (and still do) to peek in her room before I fall asleep. What really has helped is trying to give her a little routine that fits in with her sleep. So basically trying to be consistent so she knows what is coming next. So when she wakes I open her blinds, feed her, then change her diaper, then spend some "awake" time with her enjoying all the smiles she is starting to give us, then I basically watch for the yawing to start. Then it's right back to her room, close the blinds, turn on the noise maker (which seems to work like magic for her, but only on the rain setting) rock her for a minute, sing a song, then lay her down. The only hiccup we have hit is the whole pacifier ordeal. Our girl is totally hooked on her paci for sleep. How can something do so much good and so much evil all at the same time? :) Basically sucking on it is the one thing that soothes her gets her to that oh so happy sleepy state, BUT then once that sleepy state hits, the paci slips out and WAAHHHHHHHH. She is not a happy girl. So here come Mommy and Daddy running to pop that bugger back in. The first day we tried her in her crib I counted 35 times that I came in to put the pacifier back in so she would nap. Finally it worked and she slept for a good 2 hours! It is gradually getting better where it doesn't seem to wake her as often, which we are grateful for. She even has gone to sleep 3 times today without fussing at all! What a change from just a week ago.
She also has set herself on a nice little time schedule. She usually is awake for an hour or so at a time during the day, then sleeps for about 1.5-2. Then she is sleeping anywhere from 3-6 hours at a time at night which has been very nice. It's amazing to see how her body is setting it's internal clock for sleep. She is becoming more predictable with when she will nap and when she will wake. At night I can pretty much expect her to wake between 12 and 1 am and then again between 430 and 530am. Not too shabby! Sometimes she will even surprise me and skip one of them, I like those nights :)
The hardest thing that we are dealing with now that she has gotten used to her crib as the place for sleep, we can't get her to fall asleep as easily other places. But, no complaints, we are just happy to see her getting some sleep and finally liking her crib!
I can definitely say I am learning a lot about dependence on the Lord right now. There is nothing more humbling than being a mommy. I love it, it challenges me and stretches me like never before.
Miya is starting to do a lot more smiling and cooing which has been so fun. She makes you work for those smiles though. She also has decided she hates her carseat. Yikes. She really is a WAY different little girl then she was the first 3 weeks. She would pretty much go with the flow and was happy and content all day. Loved the car, loved her carseat, loved just sitting in her little seat (or anywhere we set her down for that matter) but she is a different girl now! When we would take her for car rides this week she screamed so loud and so hard that she actually ended up drenched in sweat. It was so sad because it usually happened when it was just me in the car so there wasn't much I could do to help her. Eventually she cried herself to sleep...but I am hoping to find a solution to the car screaming, maybe she will outgrow it? Fast I hope :)
Unfortunately I didn't take too many pictures this week...but here are a few!
Walks and getting fresh air have been SOOOOO good for us lately. She loves getting outside and usually sleeps great after getting outside. I love this little hat on her
These little smiles make me melt.
snuggles after bathtime. Sorry it looks like I accidently cut daddy out of most of these pictures. Oops!
bathtime makes her sleepy
haha this is one for her wedding slideshow many years from now :)
Her cute "I love my Auntie" jammies from Auntie Cherai
I love you Auntie!
her and hippity.
she's growing :)
The End.
2 comments:
Wow, Miya is so cute and growing so fast. I got to see her soon so give me a call if you ever want a walking buddy or whatever. Sounds like her personality is a nice mix of you and Lew. I can't wait to see it come out more with time. Miss you all. Remember we're right next door.
Adorable.
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