It’s been a couple months since Gwen’s sleeping habits went off the rails, and I’m THRILLED to report things are finally almost back to normal, at night at least. We have our routine down and most of the time it’s a success. After dinner she has her bath, then drinks her milk while we watch youtube videos either on the couch or in our bed. Then she gets her nighttime diaper and pajamas on and brushes her teeth. We read one story in her bed and then tuck her in sitting up. She hugs us and hugs the dogs and then we turn on the Sleep Sheep and turn off the light. After we leave the room she lays down and probably 95% of the time goes straight to sleep and stays asleep through the night.
A few notes:
• She has her bedtime milk in a bottle, but with a sippy lid on it. I found that the sippy lid valves tend to collapse on themselves and make it hard to drink so I leave the valves out and keep my fingers crossed that she won’t spill milk all over herself/the couch/my bed (spoiler alert: she usually does).
• Her youtube faves: Yo Gabba Gabba clips, Vet Ranch, Demolition Ranch, and Cats 101.
• Either Taylor or myself or most often both of us have to brush our teeth while she brushes her teeth.
• I bought some little light switch clips to try and stop her from turning on the light on the rare nights she doesn’t stay in her bed, but she figured out how to work them, so we actually have to loosen the bulbs in her room every night.
HOWEVER one thing we don’t have back to normal yet is naps. Gwen still needs a nap, if she doesn’t have one she is ABSOLUTELY DEMENTED by about 5 o’clock. After a few failed naps where she made assorted messes in her room (clothes, books, poop D:) and kept her lil friend awake I stopped trying to get her to sleep in her bed in the afternoons. I found that the only way I could get her to take a nap was if she fell asleep in her stroller. Every day I take her for a walk around my block, and once she’s out I pray I can get her back to the house before some loud noise (sirens, construction, garbage trucks, just loud people or dogs) wakes her. Back at the house I very carefully roll her stroller down the stairs and into the foyer. She’ll sleep in her stroller for an hour or two, then wake up all sweaty and cranky.
Sometimes she’s so grumpy and fussy after her nap I’d have to cuddle her on the couch for hours afterwards. I hate that she’ll only nap in the stroller because I just don’t think it’s that comfortable- she always has her head cranked way over to one side. Last week she started falling back to sleep once I moved her too the couch and napping for longer, and then yesterday she actually fell asleep on the couch before I even took her for a walk. She woke up from that nap without any fussing or crying at all, it was kind of amazing! I mean, it’d be MORE amazing if she would nap in her bed, but I’ll take what I can get.
