Sleep, the Elusive Mistress

I have lamented before about Ryan's sleep issues. They come and go, as phases are know to do, but we are now in the midst of another level of trouble. Summertime in the NW means that it does not get dark outside until after 9:30. This means all neighborhood children are still galavanting freely in the street, screaming and playing with all their might. You can't blame them, but when you tell a 2-year old that it's time for bed around 8:30, you are met with some mighty resistance. We have given up on early bedtimes for now. I haven't been working since late May, so we usually don't need to be up early in the morning. Today, we both slept until 9:30. (more on my troubles later).

We begin the bedtime process for Ry just before 8 PM, with a bath and teeth brushing. Then we move to the couch for a book or two, then into the bedroom for 2 more books, and talking about our day. Singing seems to be out for now, I'm okay with it. The problem comes when the parental unit attempts to detach from our leech of a boy and exit his bedroom. Ryan wants us to lay down with him (double bed, so totally happens). Last night, this was at 9:15. He screamed and cried about "Mommy holding his hand so he won't be scared" until after 10:15. Last night we let him go on, with check ups at 5, 10, and 15 minute increments to hopefully wear him down. It's really wearing us down. It's horribly unnerving to know that your child is scared of some unknown. I have told him that we are just down the hall, and that I will look in on him before I go to bed, all to no avail. Jeff gave in last night and retired with Ryan at 10:15. I stayed up until 11, then went to tug on his foot to signal that he could escape to our bedroom. The poor guy (Jeff) is getting up at 5AM to make the ferry commute and bank some time up for when Nugget gets here, and doesn't need to be fighting this sleep battle with the Boy. I don't have the energy either. So we are back to no adult alone time. :( How will we fit a newborn into this crazy dance? EEK.

Now my troubles. Temperature regulation, itching feet and hands (yes, I moisturize several times a night), bladder emptying, and a fetus who just loves to grind her head into my pelvic floor are just a sampling of the joys that I am currently experiencing. These are all pregnancy related and I have to wonder if it will be easier to deal with the baby than deal with all of this stuff! I will find out in 6 weeks.

I was WIDE awake from 3-6 AM today. I got up at 3 for Ryan's crying fit and lay with him for about 30 minutes. Then I was hungry, so I had Breakfast #1. Then I went back to my own bed and lay there. When I was finally dozing at 5, Jeff's alarm clock went off. So I got up again and made his lunch, and lay back down. Ryan called me in at 8 AM for a snuggle and we fell asleep together until 9:30.

What do you do for insane toddler sleep issues?

Swim Photo

I forgot to post this.

Chronicles of Ryan

Photo captions for above: crafts of the week, making a mockery of my body's condition 1 and 2, and 33 week photo (I'm at 34 weeks tomorrow, but this shows the hugeness of the situation well)

In these last few weeks of Ryan's fleeting only-childness, I need to document some of his sayings/doings so we don't lose it all in the fog of newborness that is about to descend. For the uber-pregnant me, the next six weeks will drag, but I know each moment alone with my little man must be cherished, even though some can border on the mind-numbingly repetitive.

• Quote of the week: "Mommy, did you SAW that?" (said after doing just about anything)
• There must have been some unseen growth spurt of 1/8 inch or something. Clothing still fits, but all of a sudden, Ryan can reach and use the pedals of the trike much better, and can reach the bathroom faucet with ease.
• Independent hand washing has ensued.
• Pulling down his own pants when time to change clothes. (assuming the Dictator has approved of the wardrobe selection and timing of change- translation- This has happened twice Ever).
• Previous two items are tell-tale signs of readiness to potty train!!!!
• Requested to "sit and make toots" last night before bed. Although this is just a new tactic in his repertoire of bedtime procrastination techniques, we are being indulgent, as maybe someday he might produce Something while on the potty. He sat for so long last night that the cushioned toilet seat was stuck to his bum when he arose.
• Bedtime is still a challenge, but got a little bit easier last night. Last parental entry into bedroom at 10:15 PM, and no one had to sleep over! (he's been having bad dreams, and wants someone to stay so he doesn't get scared). It's 8:20 AM, and he's still asleep. The only joy of a night-owl child is that he sleeps in. However, this puts a big damper on morning appointments, work schedule, etc.
• Ryan started swim lessons with Daddy last week. See photo. Gymnastics ended at the beginning of June, which I participated in, and I'm glad it ended when it did. Bending is not my current forte.
• Last weekend, Ryan pounced on his Dad post-Daddy nap and proclaimed, "Daddy, you're my Best Friend!". We both melted.
• Daddy worship is in full effect. Any exciting thing during the day is met with, "I'm gonna show My Daddy after-fore he gets home from work."
• We've become crafting fools, this week we produced two caterpillars, a snake, and a chicken. See photo.

Mama Bear Syndrome AKA Hormonal Overdrive?-32 weeks

I've reached a certain point in this pregnancy where I feel like an adult that has the ability (and uses it) to strike fear in the hearts of other people's children. I'm not doing it to be malicious, but being feared/respected?/and minded by other's is an empowering feeling, especially when my own offspring can be such a dictator. I call this feeling Mama Bear Syndrome. I've had two incidences in the last week, and am becoming fearful of waddling my wide load out into public, as I will act upon my thoughts immediately. Public be warned!

It first struck me at the Fourth of July celebration we attended, where children were playing on a huge playground waiting for darkness to fall and the sky to light up. Three girls, (ages 9-11?) were hanging out at the top of the tunnel slide and talking. One girl was hanging off of the outside of the slide and dangling her body dangerously over the ground. I heard another mother voice her concerns to her friends about the girl falling, but I'm the one who acted on it.

I'm sure the girl felt perfectly safe doing this and proud of her strength. However, I have a highly impressionable two-year old, (and there were MANY kids of ALL ages out there) who might think that he could do that move too. So, I approached the girl and asked her to please come down, as she was setting a bad example for the little kids on the playground. Her friends gave me a pre-teen sneer, but she came down. Triumph for Mama Bear!

The second occurred at my house at 11:30 last night. It has finally reached 90 degrees in Seattle, and most homes are not air-conditioned. Therefore, we were sleeping (not insomniac me) with our windows open to catch the night breeze. My neighbors (the good ones) have two kids: one boy age 10, and one girl age 17. These are good kids, we even hire the girl to watch our cat when we are out of town. Last night, the kids were playing basketball in the street at 11:30 PM. Mama Bear came out to tell them that it was time to put the ball away and go inside. I'm not sure if their parents were home or not, but they have air-conditioning, so I'm sure the repetitive sound of a basketball on asphalt was muffled by the closed windows and air compressor. I told the kids that I had a sleeping baby next door, and if he were to wake up from their antics, I would be VERY unhappy. I said that they could stay outside, but the ball needed to stop, and if they were setting off fireworks (someone in a mile vicinity was) that should stop too. I tried to be polite, but was up until 2 AM feeling like a mean old lady who yells at other people's children. I need some blogging love to know that my hormones have not driven me over the edge of socially acceptable behavior.

I am trying to raise my child(ren) to be respectful of others and conscious of their actions in public. So far, I hear that my little tyrant is very well behaved (for others) after two overnight visits with grandparents etc.

In other news, I've hit a milestone. With Ryan, I was in the hospital at this point, so I didn't have a chance to yell at other people's children! My biggest complaint is that in the photos, my body is growing and it seems that my head is shrinking! The bones in my feet hurt too, but since last pregnancy I was off of them at 28 weeks, it is a new feeling. I've only gained 20 pounds so far (with Ryan at 34 weeks, I hit 40- but water was to blame for the last 10).

Some Ryan updates:

Ryan had his first solo camping trip with his dad at the end of June. See photos. Very fun for both.

Yesterday, I took Ry to McDonald's for a "biggar" (hamburger) (very rare treat for him). He scooted into the booth after we had washed our hands. I said we needed to go order our food. He said, "No Mommy, the lady is coming." (the waitress?) I think we might take him out to eat a bit much if he is expecting a waitress to take his order at McDeath! So funny.

We've been crafting more. See the dinosaur to the top of this post. A fellow blogger suggested this website, which has been very helpful for finding age appropriate, learning type crafts. No Time for Flash Cards.

That's all for now, I'm off to take a nap! Only about 7 more weeks of baby cooking to go!