I'd like to thank everyone but Kanye West

It's 8:14 pm on a Friday night and I am excitedly blogging about, no, not the movie I saw or the restaurant that we ate at, but the fact that my son is asleep! I have always wanted to be a mommie. I suppose that I have led a pretty laid back / uneventful life, so such an evening is not extraordinary to me. That is excepting the fact that my son is peacefully asleep at 8:18 pm.

I feel as though I should treat this as award show; if I did, it would go something like this: " I'd like to thank my son for this wonderful show of gratitude. I'd also like to thank my husband and mother and father and all my dear friends for their support. Also, a shout-out to GF, DF, EF Koala Rice Krispies that keep the little tikes appetite satisfied. And, of course, the endurance and ever present support from Jehovah God, who has tirelessly put up with my tantrums, crying fits, spurts of anger, and insanity due to sleep deprivation."

Last night, after he had fallen asleep nestled next to me, I placed him on his mattress situated directly next to our bed. He fell asleep with much difficulty and awoke at 2 am. It was sooooo refreshing for me to have 5 hours of uninterrupted sleep. However, I did awake to the sound of his head thumping against our bedframe as he sleep crawled off his mattress. After that, I think he felt a bit traumatized because he'd only return to sleep after nursing.

Tonight, I thought ahead. I wrapped my gigantic pregnancy pillow around his mattress. He won't sleep crawl / escape so easily again!

Well, pray for us tonight. I think that we might have some resolution with regards to food sensitivities. Thanks again for checking in!

Murphy's Law becomes Mommie Mania

It is now Saturday, day 5 of our experiment. Things are going well. We have yet to see improvement in Sy's sleep patterns, but eating less processed foods can only be a step in the direction of a healthier family.

My greatest discovery since joining Mommie Mania, also called Murphy's Law, what is least likely and most inconvenient is most likely to occur.

For example, in the world of cloth diapering, leaks rarely occur. In an effort to downsize the load which we carry, I began eliminating the "spare" outfit. Oops! That was my first mistake... The CDs (cloth diapers) must have seen me take this action, because they are now less absorbent. Lol!

Next example, have a child with sleep problems who wants to sleep desperately? Have a million errands to run? As a mom, first priority is baby. As
usual, I spend hours trying to help him sleep. Finally, when we give up and decide to run errands, get packed up into the car, drive 5 minutes to the grocery store, and park the car just in time for those heavy eyelids to close. Poor baby.

So, with MM ( Mommie Mania) at its peak, at least we are adopting a healthier lifestyle which can only help us deal with stress more efficiently.

GF Oreos

There is something wonderful and comforting and almost divine about processed flour and sugar. The texture, the taste, the satisfying sensation they create when eaten. If it was for me, I would cope with the side effects of food sensitivities, but for my son, I would eat dirt. Yes, dirt would become my main staple in life.

As I scanned the shelves at Earthly Goods (a coy name for food that is not processed or bleached, in essence, dirt), I actually considered weaning. If we weren't still breastfeeding, I could still be eating normally while he adjusted to this realm dubbed GF, DF, and egg-free. He wouldn't know the difference, after all, he has only been eating solids for 6 months. On the other hand, I have been eating solids for 21 years (well, maybe not, but let's imagine that it has only been that long). So, as I worn my son cozily in our sling and reviewed the shelves contemplating whether to purchase snacks for him alone or for the both of us, it hit me.

I love food. I love Oreos and a tall glass of cold milk. I love iced lattes with lots of whipped cream on top. But, more than that, I love the feeling of my son snuggled tightly against me just before he dozes off at night. I love the ability to provide comfort for him while he is sick. I love picking him up after he has fallen from his wobbly legs and bumped his head. During those times, only mommie can provide what he needs. And, for that, I will make the sacrifice.

Once he weans, though, we are having a snack party with lots of goodies!

Sleep deprivation and food elimination

We have tried many methods with few results. We have even tried sleep behavior modification. So, starting today, we are looking into the possibility of food sensitivities. The nasty nine most common food intolerances are nuts, dairy, egg whites, gluten (the protein found in most grains), shellfish, soy, and I forget the rest. We are starting with the three most common in our house- dairy, egg whites, and gluten.

Today is our first day of food elimination. We usually start with scrambled eggs or oatmeal, but today, we are having rice and bananas.

This morning I realized that I had must have lost my mind last night. According to what my husband tells me, I did. Thankfully it is a new day-- one that I can anticipate such silly shananigans as this one.

So, for now, I will try to remind myself of the delightful boy that I enjoy during the day to appease this long journey through sleep deprivation and food elimination.

A tired mommie's journey

I am not much of a blogger. I don't enjoy hearing my voice inside my own head on a regular basis, nevermind seeing it in writing. But I need a place to let it all out. I'm not sure that it will be read by anyone, but I hope to enjoy my journaling time. So, here is our story:

My son was born in September 2008. He is a wonderful boy. His personality shines, as do his eyes. He gets more compliments on his eyelashes than any other person on the planet.

When he was born, he had some problems. Born 6 lbs 2 oz and only 5 lbs 10 oz two weeks after birth, we got a lot of grief from our pediatrician. But once he latched onto life, he made up for it quickly. With a little help from our lactation consultant, he gained weight rapidly and became a Gerber baby after all.

While new parenthood is always a struggle, he made life easy. He ate well, slept well, and giggled often. Then, at 4 months old, things changed. He had once slept for 5 hour stretches. Suddenly, he was sleeping for 30-minute intervals. He would wake hysterically. Something was wrong!

We spoke to our pediatrician and other parents and googled. With little result, we began to condition ourselves to the nights in store. We weren't happy about it. We struggled during the day to get by. We stopped discussing the matter, because it was constantly implied that we were at fault. You just need to let him cry it out was the most common response. Other responses included that he is manipulating you and it is because he is breastfed/co-sleeping. As intuitive parents, we knew that more was happening.

At 10 months, we finally found support. We took him to a local sleep clinic for an overnight study. Sure enough, he had moderate sleep apnea. The cause? The doctor's best guess was acid reflux or GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease). My husband and I were in a quandry. The symptoms of GERD usually appear much earlier and are more prominent in infancy. He had no symptoms during the daytime, so she emphasized that he likely had silent reflux. This is a condition that shows no symptoms. Besides his apnea and restless nights, we had little to go on. So, we started him on generic Zantac.

After about 4 weeks, he miraculously recovered. He began sleeping through the nights again! Then the other symptoms began. He began having loose stools, sometimes 3 per day. The sleep doctor said that it was unlikely that the medication was the culprit, so we continued him on it. He returned to the sleep clinic for a follow-up sleep study. His apneas had disappeared almost completely and his sleep was restful.

Until...

A week later, we were back in the same position as before. When we mentioned it to the sleep doctor, she said that the results were in and that he was fine. The implication, regardless of what we were experiencing at home during the night, he was fine. What?!?

So, now here I am...

He is now 12 months old. He sleeps for short intervals. He takes generic Zantac. He has loose stools. We are $3000 poorer.

And when people hear this, their response? Just let him cry it out.

Here is an idea, while I have some quiet, I am going to try crying it out.