I Don't Want to Forget....

....sleeping pattern. 

We swaddled you from day one, and I am so glad we did!  You were so active from the start, always kicking those little feet of yours, and the swaddle calmed your little body down so that you could rest and sleep soundly.  From those first days on our own, we started a night time routine.  Each night at your 8 o'clock feeding, we would swaddle you half way through and would hold you close immediately following your feeding.  You would fall asleep almost instantly, and we would lay together on the couch in the basement until it was time to go to sleep.  Most nights you would wake as we went up to bed around 11-11:30, in those first weeks, and then again at 3:30.  You fed for about 20-25 minutes each time, and I would often play Phase10 on my phone while dad laid half awake next to me ready to put you back in your cradle.  You always went straight back to sleep, and I was so extremely thankful for your kindness in the nighttime routine department!  By four or five weeks you would stay asleep until 1:30-3 after your 8 o'clock feed, and then wake again around 5:30-6 and other times 7:30 to feed.  I didn't mind, as you would always fall right back to sleep which meant we would sleep in until between 9-10am most days.  I felt guilty, but at the same time felt so thankful to be getting the rest I needed.  Aunt Erin and Grandma D said to take advantage of this little fact, as it would be the only time I would ever get the luxury of following your schedule, because with the next baby I wouldn't have the same luxuries!  I stopped feeling guilty :)

In the beginning  you would sleep anywhere, and it took very little to get you to sleep.  We would snuggle you close, shhhshhh in your year in our own special rhythm with your bunny close to your cheek and nuk in your mouth and within minutes you were out!!  It was wonderful, but by five or six months this was no longer the case, and you definitely preferred your bed or carseat.

On the night you turned 7 weeks, you slept for 9 hours straight!  I thought it was a fluke, but indeed it was the start of a whole new routine.  At this point, we started swaddling you and putting you down for bed in your cradle at around 8:30.  It was so hard for me to leave you in the room instead of holding you for hours on the couch, as you would sleep so sweetly on my chest.  You would sleep until around 5-5:30, eat, and sleep again until between 8-9.   On May 21st we put you in your crib in your own room for the first time!  I was a mess, but it was time.  You woke up three times that night, and I felt so bad!  The next night you slept great, and my mind was put at ease once again.  I had started putting you down for naps in your crib a couple weeks earlier to get you used to the room and mattress, and I think that helped the transition process.  I'm not sure exactly when you dropped that 5-6 am feeding, but it was right around 2 1/2 months.  At that point, we started moving your bed time up closer to between 7 and 7:30 so that we could start getting into a more set routine that would be more feasible for our days.  You would sleep until right around 7:30-7:45, which was perfect for your dad as he was able to see you quickly before he would leave for work most mornings.

The morning after your first 9 hour stretch!

It was a wonderful night time schedule, but your naps became a point of frustration right before you were two months!  You were a 40-minutes-on-the-dot napper for what seemed like forever, but in reality was probably the better part of a month.  I tried everything, from feeding you immediately upon awakening for a week straight to see if it was a hunger issue.  It wasn't.  I would let you cry for a while to see if you were transition between sleep cycles.  It wasn't.  I shortened your awake time after feedings to make sure you weren't over stimulated.  You weren't.  It was just a phase, and I learned to get used to the short breaks in the day to get what I could done!   The day you finally took a 2 hour nap was right around 3 months, and I had to go peek at you to make sure you were still breathing! :) You were, and I was elated with the huge jump in your sleep schedule and freedom to actually get something done while you rested.  You took three naps a day until you were around 7-8 months, most days, and slowly transitioned to a long morning and afternoon nap.  You are still taking two naps, and for the most part they are still close to two hours each.  Some days one of them is significantly short, but you are so content to just stay in your crib talking and entertaining yourself, and that is fine by me! :)

When I started putting you in your crib for naps, I started a "sleep routine" each time I would put you down for both naps and bedtime.  I would swaddle you, put your bunny up next to your cheek, give you a Nuk, and sing to you.  It set the tone for sleep time, and I think it really helped your body to relax and get into a sleepy state.  I would place you in your crib while you were still awake, and I would sneak out while listening to you moan and soothe yourself to sleep.  I was extremely blessed to get by without having to listen to you cry it out (until 8 months and only for a night or two--so hard!), as sleep was something you thoroughly enjoyed.  The routine was great, and truly helped both of us stay joyful through out the day!  You are a little lady of habit, and like your routine, just as much as I do.  It helped us know one another and be comfortable and flexible.  I never felt clueless as to what was wrong when you would start fussing, as you always gave me a clear sign of what you needed, and it always coincided with our schedule.

You truly have spoiled us immensely and we are so grateful for the sweet little girl you are.  By no means are you perfect, and there have been a few rough moments (God bless your father in those moments for being the peace I was lacking), but even in those times that you are a little "off" we consider ourselves beyond blessed by your happy little demeanor.  Dad keeps reminding me that our next baby might be completely different, and may cry much more than you ever did, but I know it will be just fine no matter what, because we will learn and discover new things with the next one the same way we did with you Zaylee girl.  It will be a new normal, and if things are hard, I will just call Grandma D and Aunt Erin like I did all the time with you!! If you had a day of unusual fussiness, I would call and be frantic and they would laugh and think I was crazy.  It's all a learning game with the first baby, and I am so thankful to have two older sisters and a sister in law that had let me be a part of their families in their baby rearing days and taught me so much!  No matter how much I knew or learned through so many experiences, when you came and I was responsible for your life, it was a whole new world and I needed encouragement and guidance a whole heaping lot! :)

Thank you for being so wonderful my darling girl!  We love you and your good sleeping habits!