On Babes and Sleeping

I never thought I'd be one of those "Cry It Out" mamas.  Then life happened.  From about Leilani's 4-month birthday, we have been victims of unintentional co-sleeping.  Honestly, we didn't really mind it.  It was nice to snuggle up to her chunky body and be there to nurse the second she needed a night feeding.

Then she turned a year old.  The co-sleeping honeymoon was over.  We were at a loss as to how to transition her to her crib.  Every single nap and every single overnight sleep has been in our bed for MONTHS.  How do you even go about doing it? 

Our attempts were a comedy of errors, but they always ended in the same place.  Bunny in our bed, kicking, head-butting, and fussing through the night while MM and I tried in vain to get a decent night's rest. 

Then one day, MM went out of town.  And Mama decided that enough was enough.  (Plus, making the bed after a middle-of-the-night diaper leak is no fun.  Especially when you're such dedicated co-sleepers that you have bed rails installed on your queen size "family" bed.  So serious.  Not even joking a bit.)

Mama was all ready for a showdown.  Well, not really.  This Mama was terrified that she wasn't going to be strong enough and that poor Bunny was going to suffer indefinitely for a few nights and then end up back in the "family" bed.

Well, Bunny had other plans.  Bunny, you see, has "grown up".  Her first time in the crib was an afternoon nap.  She fussed for about 12 minutes, with Mama going in at regular intervals to reassure her and love her a bit, of course.  But then, she was out.  And out she stayed.  For 1 hour and 45 minutes.  Alone.  In her crib.

Then came the first nighttime try in her crib.  Now, nights are usually a huge fiasco.  There is fussing, playing, talking, and general "what-can-I-do-to-stay-up-as-long-as-possible" techniques.  The bedtime routine at our house usually starts around 9 pm and has even, inexplicably, lasted up to 11 pm.  That's right.  Some nights she's up until 11.

But then, she went a grew up.  My sweet, little snuggly baby turned into a sleeping-on-her-own toddler in a day.  For bed that night, the usual nighttime routine of bottle, then story, then lullaby was executed and then Bunny was gently placed in her crib.  Mama said, "Good night, Mama loves you," and then walked out.  Bunny whimpered for 3 minutes, then Mama checked in again with a pat and some more "good nights", and then walked out.  And Mama waited and waited for the fussing to begin.  It never did.  And Mama cried.

But, I know it's all for the best.  MM and I will once again get to cuddle at night.  And we can probably take the bed rails off the bed now since neither of us has fallen out of the bed in a very long time.  And, most of all, we can tell our girl how proud we are of her and how grown up she is. 

And then tell her to stop it right now.  No more growing up so fast!!