The Sleep Terrorists...

It's no secret that my kids don't sleep well. If you're my friend on facebook, you probably see my posts at 4am yelling at my son (like he has facebook in his crib...) to stop screaming and go to sleep. The Sleep Nazis, Sleep Bandits, Sleep Terrorists... that's what we lovingly refer to our children as after 8pm. Now we've always kept really good schedules with the kids... flexible schedules, but schedules nonetheless. They have always had a strict bedtime routine since birth.. bath, lotion, story/song, (Chase gets bottle), bed. Both have always fallen asleep easily. Going to bed and/or bedtime routine has never really been a struggle. It's from about 8:30pm-10:30 and sometimes midnight with Chase, and Leah wakes up usually around 3am and is in and out of my room and or in her room crying until about 6am. Sounds exhausting, right? Right. Especially with a husband who works 24 hour shifts. It's just me here by myself every other night getting tag-teamed by my kids. We just can't figure it out. Chase does fine after he FINALLY stops fighting it (the kid will literally scream for 3 hours straight... when you open the door he gives you this HUGE smile. it's ridiculous. he's beyond smart, this kid. the second you even think about closing the door he's screaming again.
And Leah wakes up to pee and then she can't fall back asleep because the SLIGHTEST noise she is flipping out and screaming for me "TRUCK mommy! MOTORCYCLE!" Her bedroom is in the front of the house and the street is right there... For Pete's sake I'm seriously considering switching their rooms! As a punishment for her, after about the 10th night in a row of her getting out of bed a billion times, I took binkies away for good. We took them away during the day when she turned 2, but has been allowed to have them at night because I thought it helped her sleep better. But since it didn't, she had to give them up. And truthfully she hasn't really whined about it as much as I thought she would. She asked for it like twice and now she has conversations with people (Daddy, Grandpat, Uncle Derek) on her pretend phone about how she's SUCH a big giwl (girl) and doesn't need a binky anymore. And then to put a positive swing on it, we made a sticker chart (at 4 in the morning because this just HAD to end) and she gets a sticker in the morning for every night she stays in her bed (with the exception to potty). She has been asking for a new bike so if she fills up her chart (I think it's 25 squares...might be a little much so I might give her a little prize after the first 5 so she doesn't lose sight of the goal) then she gets to go pick out her new bike. I did this 2 nights ago and she has 2 stickers! HOORAY! Now if only a sticker chart would work for Chase.... Chase if you fill up your chart you get STEAK AND POTATOES! lol!
I just keep telling myself that pretty soon these will be distant memories.. my kids won't need me in the middle of the night again... and I will miss it. RIGHT?



Leah's Lingo



Tucking Leah into bed last night, she was afraid because a truck went by, so I told her "it's okay, baby, you don't need to be afraid because God will protect you."
Leah: No, mommy.. DADDY protect me.
Me: Okay, God helps daddy protect you.

On our walk the other night, "MOMMY! LOOK! The moon! It's so pretty! (reaching her arm way up high and grunting) I can't reach it!"
Me: reaching my arm way up high too "I can't reach it either!"
Leah: "Daddy will get it for me..."


Are you noticing a theme yet??

I came home from the store today and I walked in and Leah says, "MOM! Daddy's Superman!"!