Oh, little sleepy girl

Last night was the first night in over 5 months that I have gotten a full, uninterrupted night's sleep.  Well, it wasn't completely uninterrupted, since I kept waking up in a panic to check her breathing (when will I ever stop doing that?).  But she slept 9 hours straight, all on her own!  Thank you, my Lilah love!

My parental musings:

I decided before Lilah was born that I was going to try to follow her lead as much as possible.  With Ethie, I had read many books and talked to many people and I tried hard to do what everyone said was best.  That meant that I put him in his crib awake at night and let him cry it out while I listened to him and cried in my bedroom.  I was trying to train him to sleep on his own, which worked.  It was not, however, pleasant for either of us.

This time, I decided to not read so many books and we've been trying hard to do what works best for our family.  I guess it's more like attachment-style parenting, which tends to follow the baby's lead rather than the parents'.  I knew it was worth it to me to get up with Lilah as many times as she needed me to be there for her.  I also felt better about her being in bed with us so I could be more immediately available to her.  It's been wonderful and I actually look forward to being with her in the night!

This week, it's seemed that she was waking up more in our bed and more restless and none of us were getting much sleep.  So I tried putting her to sleep in her crib and then bringing her in bed with us when she wakes up.  I guess last night her little body was just tired enough to stay asleep all night!  I love feeling so flexible and free to try different things to do what's best for her.  I love trying to read her cues and letting her know that we are there for her, no matter what.  It's different for every parent, but this is working great for us!