Sleep training - again

Since Payton had that nasty cold a couple weeks ago, her sleeping has not been the greatest. She got used to us coming in when she cried - but that she's healthy, that had to stop! She would only wake up once and would go right back to sleep after snuggling for a bit but she was clearly not in any pain and i think the disruption in sleep was contributing to her crankiness in the morning - it was definitely contributing to mine! So we decided to let her cry...the first night, it took about 45 minutes, then the second night it only took 30 minutes at most...i'm happy to report that last night she went to bed at 830 and didn't make a peep until 900 this morning! Hopefully that wasn't just a fluke. We'll be glad to have our sweet, funny babe back and say goodbye to the monster she was becoming! Although, i'm guessing that has a little something to do with her age - so I'm sure we haven't seen the last of that little monster. She has some new "tricks" lately, one of our faves is when we sing a song that goes "it's freezing, it's freezing, I hope I don't start sneezing - achoo!" - I was singing it the other day and when I got to the "achoo" part, Payton said "ohh-two!". I almost peed my pants...who knew she was actually listening to us when we sing?!?! they're always listening, and learning - so fun! Payton moment(s) - Brian picks P up from school most of the time, and when they're walking to the house from the car Brian always locks his doors and the horn beeps. The other day he forgot to do it so P pointed to the car and said "beep beep!" - how she remembers these things blows my mind.

A new day

Ahhh. That's what my first thought was this morning when I woke, after sleeping 8 hours straight, uninterrupted. After a rough couple of weeks, with Payton not sleeping well b/c she had a cold, then trying to get her back onto a schedule during her recovery, last night was the first night in what seemed like forever, that she slept without waking up at least once. For the last week at least, she would wake up once, we'd go in and cuddle with her, she'd fall asleep on one of us, and then she'd be good for the rest of the night. We were planning on breaking that habit last night, but maybe she sensed it b/c she didn't wake up once. It was getting pretty tough to be exhausted and then deal with her morning tantrums. I could definitely tell the difference in both of us this morning, she wasn't as cranky, and when she was, I was ready to deal with it calmly. I'm hoping this is the start of her being the awesome sleeper she was before she got that horrible cold.

Since Payton does so many things lately that make us laugh, i've decided to add a "Payton moment" to the end of my posts. This mornings moment was when I was washing dishes and heard "mom, mommy, mom!" I turned around and she was standing at the recycling bin making her fish face and pointing to the empty goldfish carton in the bin. I love that she knew to do the fish face if she wanted fish - makes sense i guess!!

Determined...

Ok, so after talking to my BFF's sister Emily, it's now clear to me that I really need to keep up with this blog. She made me realize if for nothing else, I should do it so that I have it to look back on - not only for other people to read. So Em, I thank you!

Well here's what's going on in our crazy lives these days. Payton is growing up so fast, walking/running everywhere, repeating everything we say, and definitely developing her own little personality. It's blowing our minds how much she is talking - when we asked her if she wanted to take a bath tonight she said "bath"; it sounds like a simple word but when she said it Brian and I both looked at each other with shocked looks on our faces because we realized that she is now going to start repeating EVERYTHING. Better watch what we say! She began daycare last week, after a few rough drop offs things are finally getting easier. She doesn't scream when I drop her off anymore which helps me a lot. I've finally stopped calling half way through the day to check on her. She brought home her first "art project" the other day, a felt collage - very cute. That reminds me, i need to get a frame. We're surprised at how well she's napping there, at least an hour and a half nap every day, and she eats EVERYTHING. Even the veggies she won't eat at home...works for me! Some of her fave foods are bananas, toast, pb&j, and eggs. Her stuffed animal "snuggle pup" has played an important role in helping her adjust to school. I guess it is important for a baby to have that special item!

This weekend went by way too fast but it was good - we actually went out on friday night for a bit, sans baby, that was nice. Although, we left after she went to bed so we didn't miss out on any quality Payton time. Last night friends of ours hosted a playdate/bbq with some of the young babes on campus. It was great to see all of these little guys that were born the same year, now running around and playing together. Payton is pretty lucky to have so many playmates, and so are we! Today was a good family day, after church we went to visit my Memere in the nursing home. It was a great visit, it's great to see Mem's face light up when she sees Payton. i got some great pics :) Then Brian's parents, sister, and shan came over for our first "cookout" of the year; I say "cookout" b/c it was more of a cook-in since it was freaking freezing outside. Payton was in a great mood after her THREE HOUR NAP. But then we had the audacity to change her stinky diaper and that threw her off a bit. It's so strange how that happens - she could be in a great mood then we changed her diaper and she's angry and cranky for the next hour or so. Such a bummer. I'm not sure I'd be happier sitting in my own poop, but somehow, she is. She's really been throwing tantrums like crazy lately. towards the end of last week, i was exhausted by the time i dropped her off at school at 1130 b/c i was constantly battling with her. She wants to be held, but i have to get her ready, me ready, and her lunch ready - she doesn't understand this yet so she flips out. I've just been making sure she's in a safe area, and letting her scream her little heart out. Not much else i can do - i have to get that stuff done so hopefully she'll figure it out fast b/c it's not fun to listen to her be that upset. Anyway, I got side tracked a bit - i started talking about tantrums b/c tonight, for some reason, she wouldn't sit in her high chair unless we put on her winter coat. WHAT?! She's never done anything like this before - it was pretty weird. After Brian put it on her, she was totally fine. She sat in her high chair and ate her dinner...with her coat on. She kept it on up until bath time. This was a battle that wasn't worth fighting - i gave brian some slack for giving in to her but he's right, it wasn't hurting anything - we're really going to have to start picking our battles I suppose!!