Night 5 - No Cry Sleep Solution

I learned the hard way that consistency is IMPORTANT. On Sunday our routine was very different from what it had been and Charlotte made it clear that it wasn't working for her.

Anyone who saw us before 6 pm on Sunday thought we had the world's best baby. She took almost a 90 minutes nap while we were eating dinner to give Mommy and Daddy a chance to eat and socialize. But once we got in the car to go home - someone swapped my baby out for one possessed by a demon.

It took us more a little over 2 1/2 hours to make the 1 1/2 hour trip home. We stopped 2 times. Granted, one of those stops included a new Target, but that was only to give her a chance to get out of her baby bucket (aka car seat) since we thought that might be the cause of her unhappiness. Turns out we we wrong.

All of that to say that Sunday night was one of our hardest nights ever. She cried the entire way home, except while we were stopped. Then, once we got home, she refused to sleep unless she was latched on to me. Right now, I am okay with having to nurse to fall asleep, but needing to nurse to STAY asleep? C'mon Charlotte, give momma a break!

This morning all I could say was, "thank God for Dr. Pepper!"

Erica made some great points in her comment below which I agree with wholeheartedly. Charlotte stopped taking a pacifier sometime around 5 months and will only use them as a teething toys now. I would be forever grateful if she was on a consistent schedule. Unfortunately, I don't think that will ever really happen until I am a stay at home mom. Fortunately, in 7 weeks school will be out for the summer and I can test that theory.

As for fussing-it-out, I am with you all the way Erica. I wait to go to her at night until it becomes a cry, though I might stand near her crib while I wait to figure it out. I've also learned that sometimes Daddy can get her down better than I can because she knows he can't nurse her. :)

I also had a productive conversation with my friend Tess. Well, it was productive if you count the fact that at least 3 separate times she told me she never slept more than 2 hours straight for something like 6 years?! Oh my goodness. Now, she has 3 kids, all 2 years apart so that might have something to do with it... but she is a stay at home mom too.

And then today I chatted with another friend Dawn who said she used No-Cry Sleep Solution on her 12-month old several years ago and it worked. The only catch was, it ended up with her weaning from the nursing completely at 13 months. I am not ready to wean yet, but will be seriously considering it when we hit the 12-month mark ourselves. Only 4 months to go.

My goals for this week are:

• Nurse her during the day as much as she will let me so that I know she is getting enough to eat,
• Start her bedtime routine at 7 pm every night (even though this means we will miss revival services at out church).
• Try 4-5 times to do the Pantley Pull-Off each time Charlotte is done nursing, even if it doesn't work. (slipping Charlotte off while she is asleep to help her realize she doesn't need ME to fall or stay asleep).