Saturday, March 21, 2009

"The New Normal"



A friend sent me a facebook message today, asking how my life has changed since Grace arrived. I really enjoy the little things now, like taking a shower, or having a coffee uninterrupted. I love being Grace's mom, of course, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't miss extended shopping trips followed by dinner out and a late night movie at home. Nonetheless, I'm getting used to this "new normal" and enjoying it. Soon enough, Grace will be able to accompany me on the odd shopping trip, or even out-of-town trip. I like traveling and sightseeing in Korea, and I'd love to take her with me some day.

Grace went to sleep at 9:00 last night! She slept from 9 'til 2am, then 3:30am to 10:00am. I just let her sleep in because it was obvious she needed the sleep. 9:00 is such an improvement from the previous bedtimes of 1 and 2 am.

How did I do it? I was desperate and stressed as evening approached and decided I needed to try a different method. I thought, "What would make Grace happier than anything in the world?" The answer is simple... for me to be her boob servant! So I got us all comfy in bed, propped her on her side with a pillow, put on some relaxing music with nature sounds, and nursed her 'til she fell asleep, which wasn't very long at all. She was soon in a deep sleep, so I removed the pillows and let her sleep. After she woke at 2am, I fed her again, changed her, and moved her to her crib. No problems. I'm hoping this works again tonight. I'm a little later getting her to bed, but I think this new method of starting her in our bed before moving her to the crib is going to work for the time being. It has to because I was getting a little too worked up about bedtime. Plus, it forces me to lay down and relax a little bit. I sometimes have trouble doing that.

Progress, one step at a time!

1 comment:

Mama Seoul said...

Glad things are going better. She's already so big! It goes by quickly.