We are each other’s angels November 25, 2008

Auntie J to the rescue!

Today my good friend Lady J came over and let me take a baby-free nap for over 3 hours… it was HEAVEN. She also changed diapers, folded laundry, washed all the dishes in the sink, and held and soothed the baby while I cooked the shrimp alfredo I had been craving. And then poof! She was gone. Luckily, I have evidence of her passing (not just that the black circles under my eyes have faded to light grey). Don’t let this hard-boiled broad fool you – she is wonderful with babies.

Thanks to Auntie J for contributing to the sanity of Amelia’s mother! I was nearing the end of my rope, and now my head is above water enough to mix a metaphor or two.

On a different note, see below for what I find when trekking from our bedroom to Amelia’s nursery (where the diapers live) in the middle of the night. The glider may belong to Amelia and me during the day, but we can’t hog it 24 hours a day it seems…

where have all the swaddles gone? November 24, 2008

Mere days ago, Amelia would get swaddled within an inch of her life, with the patented Mexican Swaddle technique taught to us by our midwife, and slumber for 3 whole hours at night before waking us up for a feeding.

Mexican swaddle

But on Thursday night, the power of the swaddle failed us. We were thrown, bereft of any strategies other than nursing, upon the rocks of late night wakefulness. Amelia would sleep for an hour, tops, before waking up and nursing for another hour, only to sleep that milk off in less than 30 minutes. Other nights she would wake at midnight and not drift off again, fully, until 4 AM. She would require 4-5 diaper changes a night (all that nighttime feeding) and when re-swaddled, would scream bloody murder, arching her back and struggling all the while.

Last night I finally gave up on the swaddle altogether, as even nursing (panacea of panaceas) wasn’t assuaging her swaddle-induced torment. She had slept like a rock from 7-9 PM, and then when taken to bed at 9, wouldn’t sleep for 2 whole hours and 2 diapers – dear reader, let me tell you: there were tears, and Amelia’s eyes were dry. Tom made me promise to call people this morning and ask for help with the sleeping torture. Sniffling, I promised. Amelia dropped off the boob. I switched off the light, hoping her doze would hold for at least half and hour. I woke up again at 1 AM, only to find her still asleep. I woke at 3 AM, and she was STILL asleep. The world stayed upside down like this until 4:30 AM, when she needed a diaper change, and then dropped off again until 7 AM, when Tom went in to work. Miracle of miracles!

Of course, then I started wondering if she was sick or something…

I’m sure this is all par for the course and it’s just that I’m over-emphasizing the need for night-time sleep, right? That I have unrealistic expectations that she might sleep, reliably, for at least 3 hour intervals while it’s dark out? Do other babies reject the swaddle at 2 weeks? Am I swaddling wrong? Now that I’ve got some sleep under my belt, I’m much more able to stand the truth, so give it to me straight.