the kids are sick…again….

We just went through one round of runny noses and sleepness nights few weeks ago, and we barely catch up with some sleep; now, we are going through it again! Both our kids had their flu shots, and we hardly bring them to crowded places, or expose them to the elements, why are they sick again? First was Russell who came down with just a mild runny nose, 3 days later it was Netanya’s turn. She had fever for 2 days and mucus that won’t stop flowing, needless to say, she was fussy throughout the whole time. Just when she got better, Russell has a relapsed, only this time round it is worse than the first. He too has fever together with runny nose and cough. This is like an endless cycle! Oh please let it stop here, I don’t want Netanya to be sick again. Don’t think I can get through another round without falling sick myself. 

Thanksgiving crafts

We did this Turkey wreath a few days ago. The skills required are within his ability, but it takes a lot of patience to painstakingly paste this many paper rings. Nonetheless, we finished it together and Russell was extremely proud of it when I put it on our door.

Russell made this pinecone turkey in school. I really like it.

Happy Thanksgiving to all! 

Tackling sleep problems

When Netanya was born, right up till she turned 4 months old, I thought I must be really lucky to have an easy baby. She napped well during the day and woke up only twice every night between 8 pm to 8 am for milk and would fall right back to sleep after each feed. But everything’s changed since she was between 4 and 5 months old, she wakes up frequently, not just for milk, won’t stay asleep through the night and is wide awake every morning around 5.30 am! I was one desparate, sleep-deprived mom who did everything just to have a few more minutes of shut-eye. I did things that I knew I should not; running to her crib-side at her slightest whimper (for fear that she would rouse herself awake), rocking her for as long as it takes to get her back to slumberland, when all things fail, giving her the bottle to soothe her back to sleep. There were nights when nothing worked, and I stayed awake for one to three hours until she finally tired herself out and went back to sleep. This has gone on for the past 3 months, and sleep-deprivation is taking it’s toll on me both physically and emotionally.

So I decided, enough is enough, for the sake of the kids (they need a happy, energetic mom) and for the sake of myself and our family, I need to do something about Netanya’s sleep problems. I spent alot of time, reseaching the internet and reading articles on how mothers and sleep experts tackle babies’ sleep problems. The advice given are more or less similar:

*Establish a fix bedtime routine.

*Put the baby down sleepy but awake.

*Eliminate sleep crutches: pacifier, bottle, rocking etc.

*Help her to be attached to a lovey to comfort and soothe herself to sleep.

*Most importantly BE CONSISTENT!

Last Thursday, I started taking steps to help Netanya to fall asleep by herself. I placed her in the crib and sat on the floor to comfort her with my voice and pat her occassionally when her cries got louder. I removed her pacifier and kept offering her her baby pillow. For the first 10 minutes, she was pulling herself to stand up in the crib and was crying so bad I almost gave up. But I told myself not to give up now, or it would be harder next time. BE CONSISTENT! Then her cries became sobs, after 30 minutes, she finally lie down and was hugging her pillow for comfort, still sobbing. After another 10 minutes or so, she finally fell asleep! And she stayed asleep for 1 1/2 hours.

Over the next 3 days, whether it was nap time or bed time, I did exactly the same thing when putting her down. With each attempt, her crying time shortened by about 5 minutes. On the fourth day, I distant myself by sitting near the door and comforting her only with my voice when needed. Yesterday, I finally took the final step; I put her down in her crib, left the room and closed the door behind me. I stood outside her bedroom nervously listening  for her response. It was all quiet…..I couldn’t believe it. After 10 minutes, I opened the door and peeped into the dim room, she was fast asleep! YEAH, sleep success! I hope this is first of many easy nights to come for us.

Cold domino

5 days ago, Russell came down with cold. Runny nose, throat irritation and for the first 2 nights he was fussy in the night because of stuffy nose. On the 2nd day of his cold, I was down with cold-like symtoms. My dear hubby said to me, “Don’t fall sick, or I don’t know what to do (with the kids) when you’re down.” *sigh* You know what, even falling sick and having time to recover from it is a “luxury” when you have kids. I took medications and fortunately I got better the next day. Then yesterday, Netanya started having runny nose….NO!….I dread the little one not feeling well…which means days of fussiness and nights of sleeplessness ahead for me. Which was exactly happened yesterday, the poor baby was so uncomfortable and irritable, not eating and sleeping well. Ricky too was not feeling good and had to keep himself going with medications. The virus will run it’s course for at least 3 to 5 days, I’m mentally prepared for a long haul.

I’ll be really busy and guess no more blogging this week.

Fast and Furious

I only stepped away for 5 seconds and my little explorer was no longer at the spot where I left her, no where in sight! I went searching for her, she has found her way to the kitchen and was staring at her own image on the stainless steel trashcan. Phew….luckily she didn’t get into any danger. This girl is crawling fast and furious, especially when she sees something she wanted, which usually are not toys. Maybe forbidden fruit always seems more attractive, the very things that we don’t want her to touch are the things that she’ll go for. Among her favorites are wall sockets, wires, remote controls, stereo buttons, floor mop and anything that’s hidden under the coffee table, which means she’ll bump her head trying to reach for them. Now I need to keep an eye on her all the time, it requires more vigilance on my part, but I actually enjoy watching her exploring and discovering her world.