Sleeping Better! (Knock on Wood)

So I think it is time to give a sleep update. I have been hesitant to do this because I don't want to jinx it, but since my last post on sleep we have made incredible strides. We haven't had any 12-5 AM wakings. There have been a few nights where he needed his pacifier around 10 pm but no problem there. He has woken up around 6 am but we have been able to tell him it is still nighttime and to go back to bed and after only a couple minutes screaming he does! For the last few mornings he has stayed in his bed until 8 am waiting for us to come in! Could we have turned a corner? Are we going to get to sleep through the night from now on? Only time will tell. Everyone knock on wood!!

Biting

We had the dreaded talking to at daycare a couple weeks ago about Hunter's biting problem. It seems when they are seated at the table either to eat or to look at books/play with toys at the end of the day and someone takes his food/book/toy Hunter will lean over and bite them. We have noticed at home that he will bite us when we are playing, but never out of anger. We have instituted the time out, where we put him on the rug in the dining room when he is bad, and daycare has the same time out policy.

I was giving Hunter his food one morning after the incident and he started saying "no bite Haskew" (a boy in his class). I then repeated that and said "yes, no bite Haskew." He proceeded to say the same phrase with all his friends names in the class, Miles, Sarah, Sorcha, Maddie, Favio, Jenna, Amelia. It was very funny but hopefully he is learning this is a no no. Kerry said that daycare told him it was getting better.

Just the Boys

Kerry and Hunter both had the day off for President's Day yesterday while I had to work. They went to the mall in the morning and came home for lunch and a nap. Kerry got the benefit of a 3 hour nap! They really enjoyed their time together, playing with every toy in the family room and doing a lot of coloring (mostly on the paper). This has become a new favorite of Hunter. He has to have all the crayons and markers out to choose from before he will begin. It usually ends with every one of them being tossed on the floor.

This picture was taken just before bedtime. We don't have many moments like this, with Hunter just sitting on the couch next to one of us, so I thought I would capture it on film to remember. He is at the phase where he likes his picture taken and says cheese. When I was done the shot he would say one more until I took another.

Sleep

I can hardly believe that Hunter is almost 20 months old. In that time he has changed so much, in all aspects except for one.....sleep! He has never consistently slept through the night. Yes, we have had a few nights where we didn't hear a peep from him and I would rush into his room in the morning to check his breathing, but never anything long term. We have tried most ever technique on the market, cry it out, sitting by his bed and comforting him, a lovey, multiple pacifiers, earlier bedtime, later bedtime, but nothing has worked. Lately it has gone back to the unbearable stage, multiple night wakings and then between around 4:30 and 5:30 he is standing in his crib screaming for you to pick him up and hold him so he can go back to sleep for another hour.

I think I have finally had it. New technique - when he gets up and cries. We go in once to say, it is still nighttime, lay down, mommy and daddy are still sleeping, see you in the morning. We are in day 3. Last night he woke at midnight, I went in, he cried for 30 minutes. Back up sometime before 6, cried until I went in to get him up for the day at 6:45. Hopefully he will learn in a few days that this is how it will stay. Tonight is dads night to get up with him, usually Hunter is better for him. Please let us get some sleep!

A Ladies Man

For about the last month it has become apparent that Hunter is learning many of the kid's names in his class. We typically go down the list of his friends on the car ride home. Lately, when we pick him up, there are certain kids (mainly girls) that he says goodbye to. There is one girl in particular, much bigger than Hunter, who needs to give Hunter a hug before he leaves. It is the cutest thing, when they hug they both turn their heads so they meet cheek to cheek. We are going to have to watch out for these two!

My 1st Real Haircut

We took Hunter for his 1st professional haircut this weekend and as you can see he loved it! Mark has been cutting the back for a couple months to prevent the mullet, but the top just was long enough now to warrant a real haircut. She kind of scalped him, but I think that is best since I don’t want to do this too often! He screamed bloody murder the entire time and even refused the lollipop at the end.