The Happiest Baby on the Block

Yesterday was Joey's happiest day that I can remember so far. He was just in a great mood, smiling, talking, and laughing at us all day. He didn't fuss or cry, he took 2 good naps, and went to bed at a reasonable hour (8:30!) He's actually still sleeping right now. (He was up at 2 and 7 to eat... then fell sound asleep again!) I guess all those toothless grins really took a lot out of him! :) I know I've said this before, so excuse me for being redundant but I absolutely love being a mom. I love being his mom. More than I ever imagined.

What's Wrong With This Picture?

"Something doesn't feel quite right...
Either my hat is too small, or my head is too big..."

Not to worry, Grammy is making Joey another hat now. Instead of 'infant' size she has moved up to 'toddler' size. She got a good laugh, and said that my Grandma had to make me a special hat because all the baby hats were too small for my big head too. Like mother, like son.

Sleeping Through The Night...

I found this online and thought it was pretty comical. It is nice to know these Joey has his own plan to contradict all of my hard work: (I know long posts can be annoying, but this is worth it, I promise!)

A Baby's Perspective on Sleep Training...OK, here's my situation. My Mommy has had me for almost 7 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 is only getting worse. I've talked to other babies, and it seems like it's 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 Crybaby Shuffle. 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, shhhh-ing. Don't give in. I cannot stress this enough: CONSISTENCY IS KEY!! If you let her STTN (sleep through the night), just once, she will expect it every night. I KNOW IT'S HARD! But she really does not need the sleep, she is 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. LOL.)
• 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 Mommies' internal clocks.

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.

Oooooooh... I play with these... I get it...

Some of you foul-minded readers may be deceived by the title of this post... I won't even go into what you may be considering I finally figured out... NOT THE CASE!

Joey played with a toy today for the first time. I put a rattle in his hand and he was so amused at the fact that he could move it to his mouth. He sat in his bouncy seat for a good 20 minutes moving it around and trying (most often missing) to catch it with his tongue. It was awesome to see him learning and growing right before my very eyes! Here he is so happy with his new toy (notice the substantial amount of drool on his shirt):

I am amazed at how much he has changed in just 12 weeks! I watched some of the video footage that we first took in the hospital and when we first arrived home, and it really takes my breath away at how quickly it all goes by!

A Full Night's Sleep?!?!?!

Joey wasn't feeling well yesterday and I was really beginning to think that he was coming down with something. He may still be... it is only 7:22 in the morning, and the fussiness doesn't usually kick in until about 12noon.

Last night in an effort to attain as much sleep as possible, I quickly rushed to bed when he went down (causing me to sacrifice the last 20 minutes of 'The Biggest Loser') because I didn't know how long I'd get to sleep before my little cranky-pants woke up. Imagine my surprise when that didn't happen until 5:30AM. That's right, folks... Joey slept for 8 straight hours! 8 hours! The last time I slept for 8 solid hours was probably around July 15th or sooner! I was so excited. I have to hide my excitement from Joey though... maybe if I act like it doesn't matter he'll do it again tonight. I'm trying reverse psychology on my 2 month old... a tad pathetic, I know.