You know how a while ago I said I'd decided I was going to go to bed at the same time as the girls... or at least earlier than now? Well I didn't. I tried a few times, but it just didn't happen. I couldn't sleep hearing Nick downstairs (on the XBox) or just generally not hearing him breath I think. So that didn't happen. I can't do it now that I have students to teach in the evening, plus we have a good few DIY items we need to get done asap.
I've been wanting to post about sleep-related issues for a while. Probably mainly because I know as soon as the baby arrives things will be up in the air for a good long while, and I'd like to be able to look back and know that things will gravitate towards an acceptable norm eventually!
Our bedtime routine is great at the moment. From about the time she was 12mths old, Willow suddenly decided that she didn't want me to feed her to sleep anymore. In fact I was rendered completely useless, and Nick took over there. For a while I would feed her in the bed and then Nick would come in with his super-magical powers and get her to sleep. Then one night I decided to feed her downstairs and Nick took her up to bed. This meant I didn't have to lie down and probably almost fall asleep, which is a bonus. Apparently all he does is take her upstairs after kisses and cuddles and waving goodbyes to us, puts on her pyjama Tshirt, potty break, night-time nappy, and lies in bed with her until she goes... he says she rolls around a bit, then cuddles in, and eventually falls asleep. Sometimes they have a bit of a giggle-fest which is nice to hear.
Once Willow goes to bed I start getting Eve prepared to go to bed. We dash upstairs for pyjamas or whatever before Willow goes, and then once she's gone I read her a few stories. Sometimes she has 3 books, sometimes it's just one. If it's particularly late she'll just go straight upstairs. We brush teeth, toilet, get her drink, switch the light off, turn her music on, and get in for a brief cuddle. Sometimes she'll go straight to sleep before I even manage to get out. Other times she'll stay in bed and talk to herself, get out to use the toilet again and we assume she eventually goes to sleep.
So evenings are pretty free at the moment, which is just as well. There's a lot to be done!
Mornings are a different story. Willow has decided that 5:20am forward is an acceptable time to be awake. Clearly it's not. The saving grace is that since I've been a couple of months pregnant, Nick has been bringing the girls downstairs to let me sleep a little longer. I think it started when Willow was up in the night a lot and I just couldn't cope. But he's kept it up, and it's honestly one of the few things keeping me going. Nick is an ΓΌber star! He says it's in his best interests since I'm like a bear with a sore head if I don't get to wake up gently. He's right, and it's taken him a lot shorter time to work this out than my mum (who actually never did to be fair)
Nap times are a little more hit and miss. Lately since she's been up so early Willow has wanted to nap earlier too. This means I don't get to nap because she generally won't want to nap when Eve has her nap after lunch. Sometimes I can stop it, sometimes not. Today we all had a gorgeous nap. Eve woke up first, and started fidgeting, rubbing my side with her finger... (gah!!) ... so I sent her downstairs to watch the end of Sleeping Beauty. Willow slept on for another good 20min, so I dozed with her. I feel nicely replenished this evening. I'm still tired though.
Bed-wise, Eve sleeps in the bottom bunk of her bunk-beds. She loves them. We now have our king-sized mattress on the floor, which I love, and a cot bed mattress next to us (in case Eve wets the bed, plus it's nice to roll out onto) I seem to be getting cold a lot, so I keep a spare double duvet next to the mattress, and pull it over me when I do get cold. I find it really weird because ever since I was pregnant with Eve, and all through breastfeeding and being pregnant again and more breastfeeding I've been totally centrally heated. I've never really felt the cold in those 4 years. Maybe I've finally acclimatised. Who knows?
I have a feeling when the baby arrives, we might steal the mattress from Eves top bunk and perhaps turn the room into a bed-zone. I'm worried Eve might feel a little sensitive about being the only one in a room on her own. I'm pretty sure that as soon as the baby is 6mths old s/he'll want to go to bed in the evenings, just like Willow did, so I'm planning on having Willow move into the bedroom with Eve at this point. She will be 2yo by this point, so hopefully it will all work out well, otherwise we'll work out some sort of musical-bed type arrangement.
This is all assuming we haven't completely cacked up the sleep routines by moving by then of course... gah!
I've been wanting to post about sleep-related issues for a while. Probably mainly because I know as soon as the baby arrives things will be up in the air for a good long while, and I'd like to be able to look back and know that things will gravitate towards an acceptable norm eventually!
Our bedtime routine is great at the moment. From about the time she was 12mths old, Willow suddenly decided that she didn't want me to feed her to sleep anymore. In fact I was rendered completely useless, and Nick took over there. For a while I would feed her in the bed and then Nick would come in with his super-magical powers and get her to sleep. Then one night I decided to feed her downstairs and Nick took her up to bed. This meant I didn't have to lie down and probably almost fall asleep, which is a bonus. Apparently all he does is take her upstairs after kisses and cuddles and waving goodbyes to us, puts on her pyjama Tshirt, potty break, night-time nappy, and lies in bed with her until she goes... he says she rolls around a bit, then cuddles in, and eventually falls asleep. Sometimes they have a bit of a giggle-fest which is nice to hear.
Once Willow goes to bed I start getting Eve prepared to go to bed. We dash upstairs for pyjamas or whatever before Willow goes, and then once she's gone I read her a few stories. Sometimes she has 3 books, sometimes it's just one. If it's particularly late she'll just go straight upstairs. We brush teeth, toilet, get her drink, switch the light off, turn her music on, and get in for a brief cuddle. Sometimes she'll go straight to sleep before I even manage to get out. Other times she'll stay in bed and talk to herself, get out to use the toilet again and we assume she eventually goes to sleep.
So evenings are pretty free at the moment, which is just as well. There's a lot to be done!
Mornings are a different story. Willow has decided that 5:20am forward is an acceptable time to be awake. Clearly it's not. The saving grace is that since I've been a couple of months pregnant, Nick has been bringing the girls downstairs to let me sleep a little longer. I think it started when Willow was up in the night a lot and I just couldn't cope. But he's kept it up, and it's honestly one of the few things keeping me going. Nick is an ΓΌber star! He says it's in his best interests since I'm like a bear with a sore head if I don't get to wake up gently. He's right, and it's taken him a lot shorter time to work this out than my mum (who actually never did to be fair)
Nap times are a little more hit and miss. Lately since she's been up so early Willow has wanted to nap earlier too. This means I don't get to nap because she generally won't want to nap when Eve has her nap after lunch. Sometimes I can stop it, sometimes not. Today we all had a gorgeous nap. Eve woke up first, and started fidgeting, rubbing my side with her finger... (gah!!) ... so I sent her downstairs to watch the end of Sleeping Beauty. Willow slept on for another good 20min, so I dozed with her. I feel nicely replenished this evening. I'm still tired though.
Bed-wise, Eve sleeps in the bottom bunk of her bunk-beds. She loves them. We now have our king-sized mattress on the floor, which I love, and a cot bed mattress next to us (in case Eve wets the bed, plus it's nice to roll out onto) I seem to be getting cold a lot, so I keep a spare double duvet next to the mattress, and pull it over me when I do get cold. I find it really weird because ever since I was pregnant with Eve, and all through breastfeeding and being pregnant again and more breastfeeding I've been totally centrally heated. I've never really felt the cold in those 4 years. Maybe I've finally acclimatised. Who knows?
I have a feeling when the baby arrives, we might steal the mattress from Eves top bunk and perhaps turn the room into a bed-zone. I'm worried Eve might feel a little sensitive about being the only one in a room on her own. I'm pretty sure that as soon as the baby is 6mths old s/he'll want to go to bed in the evenings, just like Willow did, so I'm planning on having Willow move into the bedroom with Eve at this point. She will be 2yo by this point, so hopefully it will all work out well, otherwise we'll work out some sort of musical-bed type arrangement.
This is all assuming we haven't completely cacked up the sleep routines by moving by then of course... gah!
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