Happy New Year!

Goodbye 2008, Bring on 2009. We had a fantastic year and we're ready for another. We celebrated a little early as Dane couldn't last til midnight (he's such a baby). He enjoyed playing with his noisemaker, but not so much the camera. Still, we were able to snap a few final pics of 2008. We found a list of resolutions in Dane's pocket while we were doing laundry. Enjoy.

Dane's 2009 New Year's Resolutions:

* Talk

* Sleep through the night again

* Eat solid food (not that mush they call solid)

* Call my parents by their real names - Mommy & Daddy

* Train the dogs to keep out of my face

* Move to the big-baby nursery at church

* Put on weight to fill out my diaper a little more

* Toddle

* Put everything I come into contact with in my mouth

* Stay cute

FOOD!

Dane got his first taste of solid food on Christmas. We skipped cereal and Dane has been exclusively breastfed up until now. At feeding time, sweet potatoes beat pears by one vote and our little man loved his sweet potato, as we expected he would. A good typical first feeding for an infant is about half a tablespoon. Dane gobbled three tablespoons easily and would have kept going had we let him. The meal went beautifully and Dane was a natural. His excitement made for a little mess, as he moved too quickly into the spoon or decided we moved too slowly and grabbed at the food.We fed him sweet potato once a day for four days (as recommended to watch for negative reactions) and then moved on to pear sauce. He loves that too. We are not surprised.

Jackie's making all of Dane's baby food and she's hooked on this site: www.wholesomebabyfood.com/. It's got recipes, nutritional information, storage tips and more. Check it out if you're looking to make food for your little one.

Christmas: Wrapped Up

We had the best Christmas imaginable. In the morning we opened presents at home and Dane's favorite was all the wrapping paper. We went to Gramps and Granny K's to visit with some of Danny's family we don't see too often and we were fortunate enough to have a visit from Santa. He must not have worked too hard Christmas Eve because he was looking sharp! Dane got on Santa's lap without all the crying we expected and we got a couple of good shots.

After that we went to Aunt Jenny and Uncle Travis' to have Christmas with Jackie's family. When the madness of presents was over, Santa visited there too! I bet his lap was tired having to seat all those kids! Contrary to what we figured, they were on the nice list and Santa brought treats for all! If you haven't had the pleasure of meeting Santa, he is absolutely as jolly and fun as he is rumored to be. Should you happen to see him, please let him know that he made our day!

Dane got lots of great presents from everyone and we spent the whole weekend at home playing. Our first family Christmas was everything we could have asked for and we are thankful.

Picture of the Week

Christmas Edition

Picture?! Yeah, right! We had the best Christmas ever yesterday and we'll tell you now that a picture simply will not do. Pictures now, words next week. Enjoy.

Our Christmas Eve

We've all had a wonderful Christmas Eve and we're all TIRED! Here are a few pics of our day. We were not at a Blue Man Group concert, as it may appear. That's actually our Christmas church service. We rocked out Belk Theater at our Uptown Christmas special, worshipping and celebrating with more than 5,000 of our closest friends. We went to the 7:00pm service. 7 is Dane's bedtime, but when we picked him up from childcare, they said he had not slept the entire time. He's probably too excited about Santa! He's down now and we're praying for a silent night.This is Dane and his dinosaur ornament. He absolutely loves the tree. Can we keep it all year?

Help our little man eat!

The polls are open!

Feed the baby. What does he want? He actually wants everything, anything that gets close to his mouth is going in unless we take it away. But for fun we thought we'd let all the readers decide what Dane will eat FOR HIS FIRST FOOD! How exciting! There's a voting gadget that will be at the top of the page (it's hard to miss), your votes are totally anonymous...so Daddy can't track you down for picking avocados. Once you're done you can view the results, check back often, we will post the results!

VOTE SOON, he wants to eat on Christmas day!

Weekend Wrap-Up

Autumn has passed, winter at last. The weather outside certainly is frightful; nothing you want to take your baby last minute shopping in. So we spent the weekend enjoying Christmas preparations at home. We've thought about giving TDD the week off for Christmas, but then we wouldn't have an excuse to talk about how cute Dane is eating his feet! We might have discouraged feet in the mouth earlier on, and although he loves playing with his feet and putting things in his mouth, he really didn't combine the two much until this weekend. It's the stinkin' cutest thing ever, but of course when you grab the camera to snap a picture this is what you get:The ultra famous drop-what-you're-doing, deer-in-the-headlights Dane. Try, try again, Mom.

Picture of the Week

Video Edition

Dane attended his first concert this week, "Journey to Bethlehem", a Christmas production put on by Hickory Grove United Methodist Church's Pre-School. Between all of the beautiful decorations, the children's props and musical instruments, Dane had much to entertain him. His favorite though, was of course, the theater lighting. He spent as much time looking straight up as he did watching the show. But he enjoyed himself and told me that Tyler did a wonderful job.

Here's a snippet for those who missed it. Listen closely and you'll hear:
"Some gifts are big and some gifts are small,
Some gifts are short and some gifts are tall,
Big, small, short, tall,
They're all given with love,
And that's best of all!"

That IS best of all.

ONE WEEK

and counting. In just one week Dane will open presents for the first time. He'll get his first Christmas stocking. He'll meet Santa! I don't think we have to tell you just how excited we are. Dane's pumped too. It's all he talks about all day. It may sound like baby babble to you but trust us, it's Christmas chatter.

Could you even baweev it?

When Dane is cranky, a sure-fire pick-up is to get close to his face and whisper in a low, exaggerated tone "Could you even baweev it?". I have no idea where this came from, but we do it all the time to Dane. He giggles and grins. It's quite precious.

And speaking of "could you even believe it?",

how about Dane is 24 weeks old today. We can't believe it either, Dane. Our little boy is getting so big!

On A Roll

Several nights ago, Danny awoke, looked at the video monitor and in a panic rushed across the house to rescue Dane. He kicked out of his sleep positioner and rolled onto his tummy. He was waving his arms and bobbing his head like he was a turtle stuck on his back. Danny put him on his back, in the sleep positioner and returned to bed. But it wasn't long before Dane was "stuck"again.

The sleep positioner now does nothing more than provide exercise and entertainment as Dane wiggles out of it and kicks it around in his crib. We knew he was experimenting with how his body works by rolling. It took a little longer to discover he was experimenting with how WE work by rolling. During the day, Dane plays contentedly on his floor gym, rolling from side to side singing and playing. But during the night and naps, Dane flips onto his belly, gets stuck and wails. He's told on himself many times now. We walk into the room and say his name, and he smiles a huge grin and flips himself over. He isn't stuck; he's playing us! You had us going, Dane.

Women love babies.

First ever Daddy posting...

Well Xmas is rolling in around the corner, Jackie updates me hourly on how long it will be until Santa comes by. It's exciting. Dane's first Christmas, also his first time buying mommy a gift. So over the weekend we (Daddy and Dane only) set out to find a good gift for a first time mom. I think it went well, although I ended up driving...contrary to what Britney Spears thinks, babies can't drive...therefore they don't sit in the drivers seat. Anyway...So after arriving at what Dane thought would be the perfect spot to find a cool present I was instantly greeted by what seemed like every female in the Charlotte area. Dane was immediately the talk of the shop, and suddenly the 4 person table we sat down to rest at became a 10+ person table of all baby lovers alike. More than once Dane was voted the cutest baby ever by several teenage girls. I was asked about two hundred and eighty four questions about him. It was great to spend time with Dane and he was really happy to be out and about (no hussafusses) until he passed out while I was holding him and drooled all over the gift he picked out. We got home and tried to hide the evidence as soon as possible, but Mommy quickly caught on and I've been telling her that Dane worked very hard to pick out the perfect present so she's not allowed to guess what it is or even think about it. But in all I think this was good training for Valentine's Day gift hunting, so next time he won't be giving me any confused looks, wondering why he can't put everything he sees on the shelf in his mouth.

Picture of the Week

Dane loves the tree. He's fascinated by the lights, but then again, almost anything shiny can capture Dane's enthrallment. He enjoyed exploring the lights and ornaments (under a watchful eye)

as he helped us decorate this week.

Sleep Training Update: I'm a Believer.

A week ago we posted about Dane's horrible sleep habits (of NOT sleeping!). The past week we have been sleep training Dane and it has completely turned Dane's sleeping around. He got to the point where he was waking every 2 hours all night long! Now he lays down around 6:45pm and Jackie "dream feeds" him before we go to bed. He then wakes between 3 and 4 to eat. That's it! His day starts around 6:30am, but if Jackie's lucky, he'll eat and go back to sleep for another hour or two. Either way, we're just so happy to be sleeping at night again!

Another Rough Day

Dane wasn't feeling well today. He napped 6 times, but the longest nap was for 30 minutes! For the better part of the day he did nothing but alternate between nursing and napping. He wanted just to be held and with him feeling so yucky, we want just to hold him. No temperature, no gas, not too hot/cold/wet/bored/tired/hungry. Late afternoon he began feeling better and we even got some great laughs out of him. Dane feeling blah plus the cabin fever from the rain made for one lousy day.
=(

Favorite Things: Teething Tablets

Dane has been teething now for weeks and weeks, but his mouth is still empty. I am pretty sure that teeth are fast on their way. Today was pretty rough on the little guy. A slight fever and major clinginess! We know all the tricks, and are employing the age-appropriate ones. The best help so far have been these little mini-marshmallow looking homeopathic tablets that go under Dane's tongue and dissolve almost instantly. They're called "Hyland's Teething Tablets". I got them behind the counter at Target (because the pharmacy sells them, but not Target) and I paid $5.05 for 125 tablets. They settle Dane down pretty quickly and he takes them just great (although he gets uber-excited to put anything in his mouth). It's a nice alternative to Tylenol, which we treat as a last resort for now. This teething nonsense is a mess and poor little Dane is so uncomfortable. Here's hoping his tooth pops soon and this can all be over with.

Wait. What? This goes on for another 2 years?! Nooooo!

Weekend Wrap-Up

This weekend we got our butts into Christmas gear. Our tree has been sitting in our house all week - UNdecorated. We finally took care of that and got our lights up outside. A few presents are wrapped and under the tree, stockings are hung and cookies are baking. Not since we were children ourselves have we been so excited for Christmas. Dane isn't getting tons of gifts, but he's really going to love what he gets and we just can't wait to spend our first Christmas together as a family. And we're happy to be adding a couple of new books into the reading rotation. Now we can give Mickey a break (Yay!).

By the way, Daniel's first day at his new job was today. We want to thank everyone who congratulated him, wished us luck, and prayed for our family during this stressful past month. We really appreciate your thoughtfulness. God has provided, as he always has and as he always will.

Picture of the Week

You get two this week because we each liked a different one.

Tell us which one you like.

To celebrate Danny's new job, we thought we would post a pic (or two) of Dane at work. Here are a few of him at his desk, doing what he does best: playing and looking adorable. Dane's at such a fun age (albeit the sleep deprivation). He's so alive and fun. Every day is something new and we are loving being the lucky parents of this little munchkin.

Sleep Training: Round 2

In Dane's early weeks, he'd only sleep if we held him. We could eternally alternate sleeping while the other held Dane, or we would have to condition him to sleep in his bassinet. So we turned to sleep training. It took only a couple of nights (a couple of the longest nights of our lives) and we used a modified cry-it-out method called the Ferber method (Google it). It goes like this:
Get him drowsy and put him down. When he cries, wait 5 minutes to console him. Get him drowsy (but awake) and put him down again. Next time wait 6 minutes, then 7... until he's asleep. It took about 4 days and he learned how to put himself to sleep and back to sleep.

He started sleeping through the night at 10 weeks. When he turned 4 months old, and we were good and spoiled with sleep, he began waking again. He gradually woke more as the days progressed and before we knew it he was waking to nurse every hour and a half. He isn't hungry; he eats for a minute and passes out. Mommy is not a pacifier! And so begins our second round of sleep training. He will be fed once in a specific time window a night, should he need, and that's it. This time, we're going cry-it-out all the way. We have one of those super cool video baby monitors, so we don't have to worry about whether he is all right or not. We get to watch him kick and scream and pull at his crib bumper and push himself sideways in the crib without having to go in his room.

We've actually been sleep-training him for a couple of days before Jackie screwed it up. It was going very well until last night. We put Dane down as normal and when he awoke 30 minutes later Jackie figured "well, if I feed him now and get him full, he won't wake to eat later...". Whoa, wrong! He was up all night yelling. It was the worst it's ever been! So all that you hear about consistency being key is TRUE, as well as the fact that once you screw it up, the "sleep training week" resets itself. We'll stick to it (We will, we will, we will...) and hopefully we'll get some sleep in a week. Root for us. We'll keep you posted.

Built Tough

Dane's got a busted lip. We don't know how it happened and it's nothing so big that it would even show up in a picture. Our first instincts said to feel sorry for him, but it doesn't bother him at all. You could tell Dane was going to be fierce when you watched them poke and prod him when he was born. If you consider that in addition to the couple of times we dropped him (just kidding), his early defenses against ferocious(ly loving) dogs, and the way the repercussions of the wild flailing of his limbs go unnoticed, you know he's tough. All of this plus crazy, invincible, adventurous genes and we're all in for it.

Our Little BruiserHe's a stubborn, scratching, hair pulling, kicking ball of energy and his only mode is ON. Is this a curse or a blessing? Probably a little of both. If one thing is for sure though, it's that --- Ahhh! Dane, stop banging that on your head!!!

Done with Dane!

With his Christmas shopping, that is! We actually have been for a while. Dane has so much that we decided a while ago that we would only get him one big thing and a few smaller things. Our living room has been so overtaken by toys and baby play stations that to bring more in would mean we'd have to ditch the furniture. So we got Dane some books, a few necessities, a couple of small toys, and a very cool Santa gift (good luck getting this down the chimney, big guy!). We're excited for him to have it, although we can't really wrap our heads around him playing with something geared toward babies 6 months and up. He is 5 months old (today) and it just doesn't seem right.
We're spending some of the money we're saving not buying out Target's baby toy aisles by participating in the Salvation Army's Angel Tree, buying and donating a few toys for babies Dane's age that could really use them more than he could. It's a pretty cool way to give back, and we want to instill the values of generosity and compassion in our son. The rest of the money is going into the bank in an account for Dane.

Dane really doesn't need anything for Christmas, but we now understand the burning desire to buy things for the little ones we love. If you would like to get Dane something, he'd love a new book, a travel toy, or anything monkey. He does not, does not, does NOT need clothes, and while the thought is appreciated, it just doesn't feel right to accept clothes that many other babies actually do need. Maybe buy some cute things (or take the money you would spend) and donate them to a children's' charity, shelter or hospital in Dane's name. It's the thought that counts, and that would certainly be thoughtful! But please do not feel that you have to get him something. He needs nothing and wants for nothing other than membership into the "No More Naps For Life" Club (and don't you dare get him that!).

Weekend Wrap-Up

Thanksgiving has come and gone and we are geared up for Christmas. Here's a few words about Turkey Day before this blog becomes entirely about Christmas.

We went to Uncle Brian and Aunt Jeannie's in the morning. Sophie is really getting to be something. She gets cuter by the minute and she's definitely got spunk. I think we'll all be in for it when she and Dane start getting into stuff together. Dane was surprisingly mellow there, and for the rest of the day actually. Maybe he was just out of his element.

We next headed to Aunt Jenny's. It was pretty much a fiasco with a million kids in the (HOT) house and adults running in between trying to set things up. Dane did NOT have Mountain Dew (despite that it was diet. Somehow that makes it better for infants? No.), but this is why you may see a post soon about how WE are not feeding OUR child food yet. By the way, Danny and Bobby were both sick this weekend, Jen. Did you poison the turkey? I'm suspecting fowl play...

And then Jackie broke out at 3am to get in line at Wal-Mart for the sale. Her hurdling shopping carts and aisle navigational skills would have made you proud. She got what she wanted, then went home to find Danny desperate for the sleep he'd lost while Dane kept him up all night. Maybe someday, Danny.

That was Thanksgiving. It was fine. Now can we move on to Christmas already?!

Picture of the Week

Dane finally had his first big boy bath this week. He did so well and we were pretty surprised by how much he actually enjoyed it. We stayed in the tub until the water got cold, but we think Dane would still be in there if it were up to him!

Thankful

In celebrating Thanksgiving with our families today, we really see all that we have. We are thankful for each other and our beautiful baby, Dane. We are thankful to have everything we have ever wanted and more. We are thankful for our families and friends. And we're thankful that God saw it fit to take these two friends and make a family.

Turkey Tomorrow

The Howards have big plans for eating tomorrow. Two meals. Jealous? We're trekking out to Uncle Brian and Aunt Jeannie's to enjoy a Thanksgiving breakfast. We'll see Sophie, Cindy and Larry, Uncle Marcus and Aunt Trina. Then we're heading out to Aunt Jenny and Uncle Travis' to eat dinner (at lunchtime) with the Spicer cousins, J-Pa, Uncle Jeff, Bobby Pops, Granny K, Great-Grandma, Aunt Linda and Uncle Joe. We Howards have overtaken Jackie's family's Thanksgiving!

We'll probably head out early as we have big plans for the following day as well. Jackie is leaving Dane to play with his daddy as she braves the cold and crowds at the Black Friday sales with her sister. So while the boys are snug in their beds at 4 am, Jackie will be waiting in lines are running through aisles. Hopefully she will be home in time to join Danny and Dane at Uncle Mike and Aunt Joanne's for brunch. And this is the day we start celebrating the Christmas season, so I suspect there may be decorating of some degree. Gotta teach Dane the holiday spirit. Yay!

Calling All Grandparents!

Or more like what to call all the grandparents. See, Dane has 5 grandparents and in the 4 months he's been around already it's been a chore to understand who was meant by the all too common "Grandma" or "Grandpa". I can only imagine how Dane will feel when he starts to actually grasp who you all are. So here's the deal. We and Dane will be seeing you all this week and we expect to hear what you would like to be called. The only rules are it mustn't be "Grandma" or "Grandpa" and no duplicates. We have picked names for you in the event you cannot choose for yourselves and they are as follows:

Bobby - "Bobby Pops"
Karen - "Granny K"
Cindy - "Nana"
Larry - "Papaw"
Jim - "J-Pa"

Don't like it? Change it. But you've been warned.
We look forward to seeing all of Dane's grandparents this week!

Weekend Wrap-Up

This weekend we all met with Bobby Pops and Granny K to have lunch and do some suit shopping (I hear those sleigh bells ring-a-ling...). The rest of the weekend we did all we could to keep Jackie's sudden cold germs away from Dane (success, we think) and we cleaned our house which was long overdue.

The highlight of our weekend was a nap. Yeah, a nap. Don't get me wrong, we had a fine weekend, but you wouldn't believe this nap. All this talk about it and you would think it was Dan and Jackie that caught the Z's. Actually, we put Dane down for his second nap of the day and .... *drum roll*... TWO HOURS. This was literally the longest Dane has ever napped. We couldn't believe it. Now if only this would roll over through the nights. More to come on night sleep later.

Picture of the Week

"What, Mom & Dad? Chewing is not a spectator sport."

Look at that mouth!

Sleeping on the Job

Dane falls asleep while eating. He has always done this, since his days in the hospital. Only recently Dane's growing body requires more food. To get this extra nourishment, he could take in more food per feeding or take in more feedings. We would rather the first way but it seems Dane would rather the second. He eats for about 7 minutes, then falls asleep! He isn't tired, he's just bored. The only remedy to the frustration is this adorable face:On a side note, Dane's napping has improved immeasurably. Unfortunately the extra daytime sleep affords him the energy to awake at 5 in the morning, fresh and ready to start the day.

Awesome

Dane's Spicer cousins got a new puppy recently so we hit the road to meet her. I asked Tyler what they should name the pup and after a thoughtful moment, he replied."Hmmm... I think we should name her 'Awesome'." The rest of the family decided on 'Chips', but we're going to continue to call her Awesome.

Our dogs have definitely piqued an interest in Dane when it comes to animals. He took to this puppy almost as well as the puppy took to him. Here's a pic of them playing.

Only Mommy didn't think Awesome chewing on Dane was as cute as they did. Here are the looks she got when she told them no (Awesome in the background to the right).And yes, those eyes are still blue...

Breaking out the Bibs

Dane has (thankfully) never been much of a spitter-upper. You could count the times he has spit up on one hand. So what were we to do with the literally more than hundred bibs we have? Some have been packed away with the clothes Dane has outgrown because we could never need or use them all. The rest remain in a bin in the closet, basically untouched, unless one happened to belong to an outfit Dane was wearing.




Until now. Dane still isn't spitting up, but he's drooling like you wouldn't believe! His clothes are sometimes drenched in drool and since there's nothing there to catch it, that means our clothes get soaked with slobber. So thanks for all the bibs, people. We'll make use of them after all.Danny picked out this bib immediately after discovering we were expecting and even Dingo joined in our excitement. But now only babyfriend Dane wears it.

What's Dane Up To?

Dane had a neutral weekend. We mostly ran errands and relaxed. We could go through the mundane details, or I could highlight for you some tidbits about Dane, too random and minuscule to make it in posts of their own. He's really coming alive and this weekend we noticed so much. Sooo...

What's Dane Up To?

• He tries to sit up from a lying position, but his ab muscles need work and he accomplishes nothing but greater levels of frustration.
• He grabs and pulls at everything - hair, earrings, remotes, drinks, the dogs, clothes, beards, necklaces, baby wipes, Blue, glasses, car seat straps, signs, buttons, curtains, books, blankets...
• He is laughing quite frequently now. It's adorable when he does a full-on belly laugh, although a little sad because it rarely fails to give him an incurable case of hiccups. He does not like this.
• He talks all the time as, if you have called the house lately, you have undoubtedly heard. Odds are you thought this was hilarious. That's because you don't call at 6 am, and because you get to hang up.
• He is as sociable as any 4 month old can be. Aunt Jenny was the first to point out his tendencies to flirt. Then moms, our neighbor, waitresses, his doctor, nursery workers, friends, and strangers. He gets your attention and then plays shy. It is un-be-liev-a-bly precious. And while adults may give him the most attention, he absolutely loves socializing with other youngsters.

Every day is a new adventure in the world of Dane.

Picture of the Week

It seems that every leaf on every tree in our yard fell this week. All of the neighborhood kids had fun with the leaves, and we snapped some great shots of Dane enjoying them.

Bubbles, Books, and Babies

Oh my! Today Dane took Jackie to a Books and Babies event at Morrison Library. It's an adorable program geared for pre-walkers 3 months to a year old. We read a couple books, sang a couple songs, and Dane's favorite, blew bubbles! There was a community room full of women with babies on their laps, singing and dancing. Dane very much enjoyed, as he always does, interacting with other little ones. Next month, they're only having one Babies event, but it's a Christmas one!

Here are some of the other youngsters enjoying the bubbles.

Dane was in my lap, so no picture of him.

The Guitar

Dane has taken a liking to the guitar. Nope, not playing it; listening to it and watching it. Daniel has been playing for him since he was a fetus and now he plays for him as we get Dane ready for bed. Dane will sit contently watching, sometimes singing along and sometimes reaching for it. His interest in it is the cutest thing to see and it's such a great way for Dane and his daddy to bond. Maybe down the line he'll get some lessons

because I'm pretty sure 4 months is a little too young...Look at those little fingers next to Daddy's!

Favorite Things: Snacktime

Dane has quite an impressive cd collection for a baby. One of all of our favorites is Snacktime by the Barenaked Ladies. It's this great kids cd with music that adults can actually stomach. It's not just tolerable, it's enjoyable! Dane has two favorite songs because of the whistling in one track ("raisins") and the repetitive popping in another ("popcorn"). I don't care that you don't believe we could possibly know for fact that Dane likes them. HE DOES.
This is the opening track of the album, called "789". It's not long (less than 2 min.), but really cute and absolutely worth your time, so check it out. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x1cnJ_pOAdQ

Weekend Wrap-Up

Our weekend was pretty mild.
Daniel was laid off. Our GPS was stolen. We partied with a 3 year old. We visited Mom. We went to church. We were lazy.

Seriously, I think that's it. When there's nothing to say, there's nothing to say.

Picture of the Week

Did you even know it was possible to be this cute?!
This is where we are at right now. It's all about the feet for Dane.

Stop Scratching Yourself!

Dane has 3 boo-boos on his face right now, and he's gotten them all within the past week. The first one was the scariest. I look at him while he's playing (safely, of course), and notice a glob of blood on his cheek. As expected, I freak out. "Oh no! The dog ate his face! He's got a terrible flesh eating virus! His skin is literally exploding!".
It was just a scratch.
I clip his nails and go on about our day. A couple days later, Dane has a scratch between the eyes. No blood, just a scratch. Hmmm... I clip his nails again. Another couple days and there's a scratch on his other cheek! I go to clip his nails - but there's no more there to cut! A face so handsome shouldn't be a scratching post.

We may have to de-claw him...

Sleeping Through the Night: A Baby's Point of View

This is NOT an original Howard work. The author is unknown, but I am sure he is one adorable baby.

OK, here's my situation. My Mommy has had me for almost 5 months. The first few months were great--I cried, she picked me up and fed me; anytime, day or night. Then something happened. Over the last few weeks, she has been trying to STTN (sleep thru the night). At first, I thought it was just a phase, but it's only getting worse. I've talked to other babies, and it seems this is pretty common after Mommies have had us for around 6 months. Here's the thing: these Mommies don't really need to sleep. It's just a habit. Many of them have had some 30 years to sleep--they just don't need it anymore. So I am implementing a plan. I call it the CrybabyShuffle.

It goes like this:
Night 1--cry every 3 hours until you get fed. I know, it's hard. It's hard to see your Mommy upset over your crying. Just keep reminding yourself, it's for her own good.
Night 2--cry every 2 hours until you get fed.
Night 3--every hour.

Most Mommies will start to respond more quickly after about 3 nights. Some Mommies are more alert and may resist the change longer. These Mommies may stand in your doorway for hours, Shhh-ing. Don't give in. I cannot stress this enough: CONSISTENCY IS KEY!! If you let her STTN just once, she will expect it every night. I KNOW IT'S HARD! But she really doesn't need the sleep, she's just resisting the change. If you have an especially alert Mommy, you can stop crying for about 10 minutes, just long enough for her to go back to bed and start to fall asleep. Then cry again. It WILL eventually work. My Mommy once stayed awake for 10 hours straight, so I know she can do it. Last night, I cried every hour. You just have to decide to stick to it and just go for it. BE CONSISTENT! I cried for any reason I could come up with. My sleep sack tickled my foot. I felt a wrinkle under the sheet. My mobile made a shadow on the wall. I burped, and it tasted like pears (I hadn't eaten pears since lunch - what's up with that?). The dog said 'woof' (I should know. My Mommy reminds me of this about 20 times a day). Once I cried just because I liked how it sounded when it echoed on the monitor in the other room. Too hot, too cold, just right--doesn't matter! Keep crying!! It took awhile, but it worked. She fed me at 4am. Tomorrow night, my goal is 3:30am. You need to slowly shorten the interval between feedings in order to reset your Mommy's internal clock.

P.S. Don't let those rubber things fool you. No matter how long you suck on them, NO milk will come out! Trust me.

For The Record

Dane had his 4 month check-up yesterday. He cooperated very nicely for his doctor. He measures at a healthy 26 inches tall and weighs in at 14 pounds. He is a happy, healthy little boy.

He received his vaccines, and has certainly been irritable since. We were very unprepared for his crankiness because he has never really been a cranky baby. After his 2 month shots, he slept a little extra, so that's what we were expecting. WRONG. Today he was nursing, being rocked, or screaming for the majority of the day. We're really (really really really) hoping Dane gets to feeling like his old self soon.

Weekend Wrap-Up

What a fun weekend we all had full of Fall festivities. Saturday we trekked out to Derita Presbyterian Church to meet Granny K for a festival. Dane didn't partake in the activities, but he very much enjoyed being out in the nice weather and spending time with (and being shown off by) his grandma.
He was definitely a hit.
Sunday afternoon we met some family at a farm for some Fall fun.

Dane had so much fun visiting the animals in the petting zoo...

and riding on the hayride...And playing with Sophie in the pumpkin patch.

It was a long day for him and he was a trooper.

He slept really great after such a big weekend!

And today we'd would like to wish Aunt Jenny a very happy birthday. You've already done so much for Dane

and we love and appreciate you every day.

So Happy Birthday Aunt Jenny. 7 years and you'll be 40. =)

Picture of the Week

That's one hot little man.

Three Naps!

Huge napping success today. Dane resists his naps with the greatest determination you have ever seen in a baby. He doesn't even like his swing anymore, and I'm pretty sure it's because he knows it will eventually and inevitably lull him to nap. I've been putting him down in his crib at regular nap times anyway, hoping for the best. If he doesn't want to sleep, fine, but he'll stay in there for thirty minutes anyway. He has been playing the first half and crying the last. But today he took 3 naps in his crib! 2 thirty minute naps and a fifteen. Plus he napped in his swing for about an hour. I'm hoping that this is the beginning of a pattern and that this napping pattern will affect his sleeping for the better.

Could this be our nightlight at the end of the tunnel?

Rocked The Vote!

We packed up the stroller today and braved the crowd at the library to cast our ballot early for the 2008 Presidential Election. We waited in line for two and a half hours and Dane was a champ. He only got whiny when it was time for him to eat and he became the unofficial mascot for the precinct. It was important to us that he was there. He won't remember it when he grows up, but we will be able to tell him that we took him, that we voted, that it is not only a right but a duty. We were continuously reminded by fellow voters, campaigners and volunteers that if we could stand in line for two and a half hours with a four month old, then nobody had an excuse to not vote! So a big congratulations to Dane (like his "I voted early" sticker?) and Daniel today, as this was their first time voting. Early voting continues through Saturday in NC. Thursday and Friday from 11-7 and Saturday from 10-1. You can even register on location.

Better get out and ROCK THE VOTE!