Cry Baby

I said I would never do it. I SWORE adamantly that I would never let MY baby "cry it out". But on this, week 50, of my little baby's life, I let him cry it out. I had no choice. Monday night, he wouldn't go to sleep. It was 11:30pm and Jackson was completely overtired and he would not go to sleep. We resorted to David driving him around in the car until he fell asleep and then we quietly transferred him to his cot. On Tuesday, he would NOT go down for a nap. Finally, with 30 minutes of nap time left, I drove him around till he fell asleep. That night he would NOT go to sleep. David was at rehearsal; I tried EVERYTHING. Nursing, music, video, sitting in his room with him, laying down with him, singing, walking, patting, rocking, nursing while watching a video, singing while rocking, patting while nursing while singing, and any other possible (and impossible) combination of the above... and there was Jackson - rubbing his eyes and refusing to go to sleep. I was not about to drive him around - no way were we going to get into that habit. So I put him in his cot, told him I loved him, and left the room. SCREEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAM! He was crying; I was crying. My heart broke in a million pieces to hear him so upset. I had Fantasia 2000 on full blast. I called my mom. She reassured me I was doing the right thing (thanks, Mom). David finally got home and got me a bowl of ice cream (ice cream fixes everything). After an hour, he stopped. I stopped. And we went to bed. And slept all night. I was so frightened that Jackson would be really mad at me in the morning. But he gave me the biggest smile and hug. So for both of Tuesday's naps I put him in his cot. 20 minutes of crying for each and then sleep. Tuesday night - 30 minutes. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday nights - 15 minutes. Last night and tonight - 3 minutes at most. And we found Jackson prefers to hear noise (i.e. the TV going) so we don't have to creep around the house anymore. He has woken up once during the night from a bad dream, and I went into him for that, but other than that, if he wakes during the night, he whimpers and goes right back to sleep. We are sleeping through the night again! I swore I would never let him cry it out. It was hard. But I'm glad I did. And I have tweeked our bedtime routine to suit. We now start at 7:30 (instead of 8:00) and have bath, quiet play, boob, book, then bed. He gets to sleep with his pacifier (which he chews on instead of sucks). And it gives us a chance to tuck him in so he is fully aware of where he is and what is going on. No surprises when he wakes. I think we are all happier because of it.


With the hard part out of the way, Jackson and I enjoyed our last week together before I start teaching again. We tried to make the most of it by playing lots.

PLAYING IN THE KITCHEN


PLAYING BEFORE BED


PLAYING THE GUITAR



Jackson's favorite book is Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See:



We went shopping for supplies for Jackson's 1st birthday party next weekend (the Australian one of course; we'll celebrate American style in June). The invitations were sent out last week.




And I made a practice cake.

I had so much fun decorating the cake... I felt like a kid doing crafts. The real one will be bigger and square. We've already eaten this one. And it tasted good.


Jackson has been cracking us up with this big cheesy smile thing he does. He knows that when he does it we laugh. So he does it a lot.

No clue where he gets it. But it is irresistible!


He has been playing a lot with his walker toy. He has figured out how to back it up and turn it so now he can drive it all over the house.
Stopping, of course, to say hello to the baby in the mirror:


They shared a joke I am not privy to:


And there's that big cheeky smile:



On Friday as we were shopping for birthday supplies, we stopped to ride in the Jurassic Park Jeep outside Toys R Us:



Did I start him on any new foods this week? I don't think so. He has been eating more and more off of our plates during meals. He's still a big fan of toast with strawberry jam, banana bread, and watermelon.

And he loves his new toothbrush. With 8 teeth and lots of grownup food, he needs to brush 'em brush 'em brush 'em!



On a sad note, a woman who had a profound influence on my musical development and piano skills died this week. Cindy Farmer Wyatt (my piano teacher during most of the 90s) lost her battle with cancer this week. My heart goes out to her family. And though she will be missed, she will not be forgotten. Her legacy lives on every time one of her students tickle those ivories. Thank you, Cindy.

Thanks for reading. Looking forward to the Big 1 Dinosaur Party! How did you celebrate your child's first birthday?