Happy New Year!
I don't really 'do' resolutions. I always make some, in my head, but rarely, if ever do they get stuck to. So this year I am just not going to bother. It's funny actually, as I have read quite a few blog posts lately also declaring they aren't doing resolutions. Is it the mummy force that is making a stand against resolutions?
That said, there are things that I would like to change this year. However they cannot be started in one day or indeed, fulfilled in one day. They are goals I want to achieve and things I want to achieve, but they take time and therefore, are not 'resolutions.' Here is my list of wishes and goals and things I would like to achieve in 2014:
1. Take our first family holiday as a four. You may know, we live away from my family so we often take trips to visit them for a few days, but since Charlie was born, we have not been away.When I say holiday, I don't mean anything exotic like Barbados for example. Just somewhere modest, that has entertainment and facilities for a 9 year old and somewhere that we can relax and chill out for a week. I have been looking at Hoseasons. Hubby and I used to go to one of their get away lodges every Easter and Summer and we even went to one for our honeymoon. You know the kind - hot tubs, forest settings, adults only etc. But clearly, life is different with an almost one year old! So we are looking for something a bit more family friendly. Reading that back it looks like I am digging for a free holiday! I certainly am not, in fact we have nearly chosen the site we are going to and I very nearly typed in my card details this morning to pay the deposit.
2. Plan, organise and host my baby's first birthday. Coincidentally Charlie turns one the year I turn thirty, in fact he is one the day after My birthday! Therefore I am planning a joint birthday for all our family and friends. I am planning to bring in a hog roast company as food and make it dead easy, but still provide nibbles etc. I am also planning to make my own invites. Now this is not something I take lightly! If you know me then you know I am not very arty or indeed creative. I have been saying for three years I will make my own Christmas cards (incidentally this is my third wish for 2014, see below) but never get round to it, so this will be a big thing for me, if I can pull it off successfully that is! I am planning a few presents for Charlie at the moment - one in particular is a memory bear that I am very excited about. If you haven't heard of these, they are soft toys, made out of old baby grows/sleep suits or even baby clothing so that you have a permanent record or reminder of their tiny days. I have chosen a Lion for Charlie from www.babyforgetmenots.co.uk.
3. Make my own Christmas cards! This may seem a little early, but I need to get organised. As I said above, arty stuff like this is not my forte, therefore I need some time to think about this and get it right. I have saved all our Christmas cards this year and intend to use bits of those cut up etc to make my cards.
4. Keep my house tidier/more organised. Since we moved our house has been a bomb site. We are now slowly learning to find places for our stuff, but it's taken a while for things to feel like they are in their right place. I also want to make my life at home easier; I don't want to come home after work and spend hours tidying or cleaning. I want to be able to spend that time with Charlie, time that's precious. So I am following the Organised Housewife and have even started using some of her tips and organisational ideas. Her tip about how to clean the oven is this weekend's task! I've been really fed up at home, don't get me wrong, it's never dirty, but there's always a coat that needs putting away or mail that needs filing etc. I want to enjoy our new house; I love it, it's our family home and I want to get more on top of the housework.
5. Keep up with my blog. I definitely neglected this last year, but I had had a baby. But also, I have read lots of blogs of women just having babies and still blogging on a regular basis. I think I juts became lazy.
6. Budget better! Our finances have definitely seen a decline since we started paying for childcare. I always knew this would be the case, but once you actually hit the reality it is very different! I used to just buy something if I wanted it. Now I have to think carefully about if we can afford it and how much we have until the end of the month. I need to keep more careful track of our money and what we spend it on, so that it's not going on junk.
7. Curb my enthusiasm for sour skittles. This started in pregnancy, I loved them and whilst it wasn't a craving, looking back I did eat them a lot! However it continued after having Charlie and even now writing this, I am thinking about which shop sells them near my work (they are hard to come by on the Isle of Man for some reason). However, I don't eat many other sweets or chocolate, so I am not going to be too hard on myself if I fancy a bag now and then. Just not two share size bags over one weekend!
And that's it, I think. These are the things I hope I can achieve and the wishes I have. If they don't come to fruition, then so be it. I certainly won't beat myself up about it.
Are yo writing resolutions?
Tuesday, January 7, 2014
Tuesday, December 17, 2013
To Charlie. Now you're 9 months
Dear Charlie,
I cannot believe you are now 9 months. I know that's a bit cliched and all mummies say that, but I can't actually get my head around how fast the time has flown since you were born. You have now been out in the world for as long as you were inside me. When I was pregnant with you time dragged until I finally met you and now I feel like time is just slipping away!
So, in terms of your development and progress you are really amazing. You can now crawl very fast across the room and you can also pull yourself up on the furniture and walk along it. You have tried to take a few steps only holding on with one hand - you are certainly getting brave! Your Granny walked at 9 months, so I don't think it will be long before you are walking!
You are a really good eater and you eat almost anything! The only thing you seem to dislike is broccoli, which is odd as you loved it when it was pureed. You pick up the crumbs you've left on you're walker so we have to make sure you don't pick up anything that's on the floor. You love a roast dinner but you're favourite meal is definitely Dairylea on toast! Mummy now loves it too, which is weird as I used to hate it but now I have it for breakfast every day!
You are now really settled at the childminder's, not that we had any problem to begin with. But of course I was worried about leaving you. But knowing you are so happy to see Lisa every day really makes it much easier to leave you there. I still wish I was at home with you but I have to work so that we can all do things as a family. You also have a little friend there called Bella who adores you and you love playing with her.
It is nearly time for your first Christmas and I cannot wait! Your Granny has bought you a Santa's Little Helper outfit to wear on Christmas Day! I know you're Daddy isn't too keen but I think you're going to look very cute! We put our decorations up last weekend and you are so intrigued by the tree. I think you're getting a bit fed up with constantly being told 'No!' as you lunge towards the branches! However, you learnt your lesson when you pulled too hard on a branch and the whole thing toppled over onto you. Mummy wasn't happy as your broke the bauble which says 'baby's first Christmas.' However, your sister painted you your own special bauble at the weekend and it now hangs proudly on the tree. We are taking you on the Santa train this weekend and I am really excited; I know you won't understand it, but you'll still have fun and you'll get a little pressie.
We will be spending Christmas with my parents and they just can't wait to see you again; you are definitely going to be one spoilt baby this Christmas!
You are such a happy smiley boy and I am really proud of the little character that is becoming you. You always have smiles for everybody and everyone thinks you are such a charming little boy. Everyone tells me how cute and beautiful you are and I am very proud of you.
You're actually nearly 10 months old now and after Christmas it will be time to start planning your first birthday! I think mummy and you are going to share a party as mummy will be 30 the day before your 1st birthday.
Merry Christmas baby x
I cannot believe you are now 9 months. I know that's a bit cliched and all mummies say that, but I can't actually get my head around how fast the time has flown since you were born. You have now been out in the world for as long as you were inside me. When I was pregnant with you time dragged until I finally met you and now I feel like time is just slipping away!
So, in terms of your development and progress you are really amazing. You can now crawl very fast across the room and you can also pull yourself up on the furniture and walk along it. You have tried to take a few steps only holding on with one hand - you are certainly getting brave! Your Granny walked at 9 months, so I don't think it will be long before you are walking!
You are a really good eater and you eat almost anything! The only thing you seem to dislike is broccoli, which is odd as you loved it when it was pureed. You pick up the crumbs you've left on you're walker so we have to make sure you don't pick up anything that's on the floor. You love a roast dinner but you're favourite meal is definitely Dairylea on toast! Mummy now loves it too, which is weird as I used to hate it but now I have it for breakfast every day!
You are now really settled at the childminder's, not that we had any problem to begin with. But of course I was worried about leaving you. But knowing you are so happy to see Lisa every day really makes it much easier to leave you there. I still wish I was at home with you but I have to work so that we can all do things as a family. You also have a little friend there called Bella who adores you and you love playing with her.
It is nearly time for your first Christmas and I cannot wait! Your Granny has bought you a Santa's Little Helper outfit to wear on Christmas Day! I know you're Daddy isn't too keen but I think you're going to look very cute! We put our decorations up last weekend and you are so intrigued by the tree. I think you're getting a bit fed up with constantly being told 'No!' as you lunge towards the branches! However, you learnt your lesson when you pulled too hard on a branch and the whole thing toppled over onto you. Mummy wasn't happy as your broke the bauble which says 'baby's first Christmas.' However, your sister painted you your own special bauble at the weekend and it now hangs proudly on the tree. We are taking you on the Santa train this weekend and I am really excited; I know you won't understand it, but you'll still have fun and you'll get a little pressie.
We will be spending Christmas with my parents and they just can't wait to see you again; you are definitely going to be one spoilt baby this Christmas!
You are such a happy smiley boy and I am really proud of the little character that is becoming you. You always have smiles for everybody and everyone thinks you are such a charming little boy. Everyone tells me how cute and beautiful you are and I am very proud of you.
You're actually nearly 10 months old now and after Christmas it will be time to start planning your first birthday! I think mummy and you are going to share a party as mummy will be 30 the day before your 1st birthday.
Merry Christmas baby x
Tuesday, December 10, 2013
My beauty favourites at the moment
Since I had a baby my skin has definitely been different. It used to be oily all the time but now it is a bit of both. I cannot use thick, indulgent face creams as they are too heavy and clog up my face. I had been using Liz Earle before Charlie and then I was in Boots one day and wanted a cheapie one to tide me over for a bit. I found one from the Soap and Glory range which said it highlighted 'youth.' Sold it to me on that one! It was actually really good and it worked for my skin. However when I went to replace it, I couldn't find it on the shelves any more. I was really disappointed and so had to start looking around for another one. Once again, I didn't want a really expensive one as sometimes I use them for a few weeks and then have to change anyway as they don't suit y skin. Boots had an offer on their Botanics range and I picked up the 'Shine Away' Day cream and Night cream. I have to be honest, I am not keen on the smell, but as the product description says, it does banish shine and leaves a matte finish. I have found that by lunch time the skin around my nose can be a bit oily, but I have only been using it for a week or so, so I will see how it goes. It definitely seems to take the shine away though.
I kept reading about the Nivea in shower body moisturiser and I keep thinking 'what a swizz.' I had little faith in the product being any use at all, especially as a moisturiser. Oh how wrong I was. Again, it actually does what it says on the tin! It leaves your skin feeling as though you have applied moisturiser. However, the downsides are that if you don't rinse well, I feel like it 'sits' on my skin and feels a bit clammy. It also says to use your normal body wash first. Hmmm, I am trying to save time here and that doesn't feel like I am doing. I don't do that bit anyway. I just slather it on anyway. I didn't realise, but they also do a version for dry skin. I wish I had got that one, so I am going to try that when this one runs out.
Since having Charlie I have had awful skin on my hands. It started out like a bit of eczema just on one finger. Then it spread. It starts with little blister like bubbles which can pop and then the skin starts to split and bleed and becomes really dry and then flakes away. It got that bad that I went to the doctor about it as I have never had anything like this before. He called it something like 'popplits' or something and prescribed some steroid cream. But the cream says to still use an emollient. So I popped to the chemist one day to ask what they recommended for very, very dry skin besides E45 as that hadn't touched it. The pharmacist recommended something called 'Lotil' which I had never heard of. She couldn't find any and it took her ages and she had to go rooting upstairs but eventually handed me a tube of cream for which she asked the sum of 15p for! Yes 15p! She didn't know why either but she was happy to sell it to me for that. I used it every day and it really helped and if I miss a day, I certainly feel and see the difference immediately. I went back to get some more and this time asked for a tub and it came to £5.81! A bit odd, think Lloyds pharmacy have some pricing issues going on there. But anyway, it's worth paying that for as it is so good and is, so far, the only thing to help my poor hands. I've noticed that the more I wash my hands and get them wet the worse it gets. Cleaning products start peeling my skin away immediately, it's horrendous. I have had to start using rubber gloves to wash up and to clean up with. I need some dry soap - is that even a product yet? It should be.
As a new mum, who recently went back to work, I have developed big black circles under my eyes. Charlie's sleep pattern is still all over the place and I talked on here a while back about how we had done sleep training with him. Well, he still goes to bed as normal but can wake 2-3 times a night still. Therefore my eyes are not looking the best. The only concealer I have found to make any difference and actually last all day is Benefit's Erase Paste. It really is magical stuff and it is strong enough to take being rubbed into the skin (gently). Unlike some which start to rub off onto your finger tips even as you're still applying it!
The final product I am loving is Maybelline's Colour Show nail varnish. Dead cheap, but goes on like a dream and stays on for a few days. I love the deep purply colours and wine colours they have. I started wearing them at the start of Autumn as they are definitely a colour for the season.
I feel like, now I am a mum, and supposed to be a bit more grown up, that I need to be a bit more mature when it comes to my skin and start to look after it a bit more. I am (argh) 30 not long after Christmas and my skin is no longer fit and healthy and 20 years old. It needs some TLC and it needs looking after. I think skincare will definitely be a New Year's resolution for me!
I am now on the look out for a really good body scrub; a hair mask for dry and damaged hair and some fabulous rubber gloves to protect my hands from water!
Any products you recommend?
I kept reading about the Nivea in shower body moisturiser and I keep thinking 'what a swizz.' I had little faith in the product being any use at all, especially as a moisturiser. Oh how wrong I was. Again, it actually does what it says on the tin! It leaves your skin feeling as though you have applied moisturiser. However, the downsides are that if you don't rinse well, I feel like it 'sits' on my skin and feels a bit clammy. It also says to use your normal body wash first. Hmmm, I am trying to save time here and that doesn't feel like I am doing. I don't do that bit anyway. I just slather it on anyway. I didn't realise, but they also do a version for dry skin. I wish I had got that one, so I am going to try that when this one runs out.
Since having Charlie I have had awful skin on my hands. It started out like a bit of eczema just on one finger. Then it spread. It starts with little blister like bubbles which can pop and then the skin starts to split and bleed and becomes really dry and then flakes away. It got that bad that I went to the doctor about it as I have never had anything like this before. He called it something like 'popplits' or something and prescribed some steroid cream. But the cream says to still use an emollient. So I popped to the chemist one day to ask what they recommended for very, very dry skin besides E45 as that hadn't touched it. The pharmacist recommended something called 'Lotil' which I had never heard of. She couldn't find any and it took her ages and she had to go rooting upstairs but eventually handed me a tube of cream for which she asked the sum of 15p for! Yes 15p! She didn't know why either but she was happy to sell it to me for that. I used it every day and it really helped and if I miss a day, I certainly feel and see the difference immediately. I went back to get some more and this time asked for a tub and it came to £5.81! A bit odd, think Lloyds pharmacy have some pricing issues going on there. But anyway, it's worth paying that for as it is so good and is, so far, the only thing to help my poor hands. I've noticed that the more I wash my hands and get them wet the worse it gets. Cleaning products start peeling my skin away immediately, it's horrendous. I have had to start using rubber gloves to wash up and to clean up with. I need some dry soap - is that even a product yet? It should be.
As a new mum, who recently went back to work, I have developed big black circles under my eyes. Charlie's sleep pattern is still all over the place and I talked on here a while back about how we had done sleep training with him. Well, he still goes to bed as normal but can wake 2-3 times a night still. Therefore my eyes are not looking the best. The only concealer I have found to make any difference and actually last all day is Benefit's Erase Paste. It really is magical stuff and it is strong enough to take being rubbed into the skin (gently). Unlike some which start to rub off onto your finger tips even as you're still applying it!
The final product I am loving is Maybelline's Colour Show nail varnish. Dead cheap, but goes on like a dream and stays on for a few days. I love the deep purply colours and wine colours they have. I started wearing them at the start of Autumn as they are definitely a colour for the season.
I feel like, now I am a mum, and supposed to be a bit more grown up, that I need to be a bit more mature when it comes to my skin and start to look after it a bit more. I am (argh) 30 not long after Christmas and my skin is no longer fit and healthy and 20 years old. It needs some TLC and it needs looking after. I think skincare will definitely be a New Year's resolution for me!
I am now on the look out for a really good body scrub; a hair mask for dry and damaged hair and some fabulous rubber gloves to protect my hands from water!
Any products you recommend?
Tuesday, December 3, 2013
Project Shoebox
At school we always do the Operation Christmas Child shoebox appeal. If you haven't heard of it it's basically an appeal each year for a shoebox full of presents for a little boy or girl who is less fortunate than ourselves somewhere around the world. I'm a massive fan of this and really encourage my students to get involved and contribute.
So, I was really interested when I came across Project Shoebox through another blog. Basically Project Shoebox was set up to help vulnerable women at Bromley's Women's refuge by providing a box full of toiletries - items that would often get left behind when women have to flea from their homes because of domestic violence.
So basically, you send a box with lovely toiletries in to help out these women. The boxes can have all sorts in - cotton wool, tissues, shampoo, hairbrush, toothpaste, sanitary items, plus more luxury items too! Any items are gratefully accepted and are always needed. How many toiletry items do us women have in our cupboards that we don't need and aren't going to use? I know I have loads of extra bits and pieces, like packets of tissues and toothpaste etc.
The founder of the project originally had an initial target of 40 boxes. Last week the total so far rose to 45 boxes.
If you would like to know more or help out yourself then please visit Project Shoebox on facebook.
So, I was really interested when I came across Project Shoebox through another blog. Basically Project Shoebox was set up to help vulnerable women at Bromley's Women's refuge by providing a box full of toiletries - items that would often get left behind when women have to flea from their homes because of domestic violence.
So basically, you send a box with lovely toiletries in to help out these women. The boxes can have all sorts in - cotton wool, tissues, shampoo, hairbrush, toothpaste, sanitary items, plus more luxury items too! Any items are gratefully accepted and are always needed. How many toiletry items do us women have in our cupboards that we don't need and aren't going to use? I know I have loads of extra bits and pieces, like packets of tissues and toothpaste etc.
The founder of the project originally had an initial target of 40 boxes. Last week the total so far rose to 45 boxes.
If you would like to know more or help out yourself then please visit Project Shoebox on facebook.
Monday, December 2, 2013
My Christmas wish list
So December is here, at last! I love Christmas; I love the traditions, the festivity, the good mood people tend to be in. I love going around the shops with Christmas music playing in the background. It's my favourite part of the year. I also enjoy choosing presents for people and wrapping them up beautifully. Of course I also enjoy buying the odd thing for myself too!
However this year, I have less money than normal, what with childcare costs! So I have created a Christmas wish list in case Santa is reading!
1. A personal planner from personal-planner.co.uk.
I have admired these for quite a few years ago, seeing them first on another blog. You can totally customise your planner with pictures and different colours and dates etc. I 'may' have mentioned I want one to my mum!
2. Chanel Chance.
A girl's gotta have some Chanel, right? Not cheap enough to buy throughout the year really. I always have this on my Christmas list, it's my signature scent and I have worn it since I was about 18.
3. Clinique Take The Day Off Balm.
I went off Clinique for quite a while as it really didn't do anything for my skin. I discovered Liz Earle and jumped on the hot cloth cleanser wagon. But actually, I've gone off it a bit. To be honest it's a bit of a faff to do that twice a day. I'd rather just swipe my face with a cream and some cotton wool. I've heard great things about this from quite a few bloggers so I am willing to reacquaint myself with Clinique again.
4. Chanel Vernis nail colour in Rouge Noir.
What can I say? Perfect colour for the Christmas season!
5. Boden Easy Pocket Dress.
I saw this dress on Avril, from School Gate Style and thought it was fabulous, but a little pricey when I've got a eight month old baby! However, it's got 30% off at the moment so it is very tempting. This would sort my Christmas Day outfit out!
So Santa, I have been really, really good this year....
However this year, I have less money than normal, what with childcare costs! So I have created a Christmas wish list in case Santa is reading!
1. A personal planner from personal-planner.co.uk.
I have admired these for quite a few years ago, seeing them first on another blog. You can totally customise your planner with pictures and different colours and dates etc. I 'may' have mentioned I want one to my mum!
2. Chanel Chance.
A girl's gotta have some Chanel, right? Not cheap enough to buy throughout the year really. I always have this on my Christmas list, it's my signature scent and I have worn it since I was about 18.
3. Clinique Take The Day Off Balm.
I went off Clinique for quite a while as it really didn't do anything for my skin. I discovered Liz Earle and jumped on the hot cloth cleanser wagon. But actually, I've gone off it a bit. To be honest it's a bit of a faff to do that twice a day. I'd rather just swipe my face with a cream and some cotton wool. I've heard great things about this from quite a few bloggers so I am willing to reacquaint myself with Clinique again.
4. Chanel Vernis nail colour in Rouge Noir.
What can I say? Perfect colour for the Christmas season!
5. Boden Easy Pocket Dress.
I saw this dress on Avril, from School Gate Style and thought it was fabulous, but a little pricey when I've got a eight month old baby! However, it's got 30% off at the moment so it is very tempting. This would sort my Christmas Day outfit out!
So Santa, I have been really, really good this year....
Tuesday, November 12, 2013
On being back at work
So, I really thought that, by now, I would have got used to being at work and leaving my boy with the childminder. Turns out, I'm not. I miss him terribly. Someone please tell me that it does eventually get better?
I so desperately want to be a stay at home mum that I am lying awake at night trying to find a way around it. You see, I am the main breadwinner in our house. We just could not afford to live without my salary. It actually really really makes me mad that there are some people on benefits out there that can afford not to work and yet still live in luxury. Don't get me wrong, I am not criticising anyone on benefits who really need it or for those that it tops up what little salary they do get. But those that are on thousands of pounds worth, living in a council house and living a more luxurious life than I am, on what is actually considered a pretty decent salary. It's just not fair. I would never give up my job and expect the country or the government to support me. I would only ever do it, if we could afford to live off one salary.
Anyway, I am missing my boy. He goes to bed earlier now too, so when I pick him up at 4, I only have about two and half hours to actually spend any time with him and that time is normally taken up by making tea, putting a wash on, giving him a bath etc, so I don't feel like I spend any quality time with him until the weekend. He's happy enough to play around me and follow me around by crawling, but I don't sit down and play with him that often.
I do like my job, and I know I want to continue to work. I just have to get used to missing him. I feel really sad for my old, albeit brief, life of being a stay at home mum whilst on maternity leave. I miss those lovely, long luxurious days we had together.
I suppose I need to focus and wise up. Realise that this isn't going to change. Unless we win the lottery of course. Which isn't about to happen anytime soon!
If you have any useful ideas of businesses I can run at home then do get in touch! Ha!
I so desperately want to be a stay at home mum that I am lying awake at night trying to find a way around it. You see, I am the main breadwinner in our house. We just could not afford to live without my salary. It actually really really makes me mad that there are some people on benefits out there that can afford not to work and yet still live in luxury. Don't get me wrong, I am not criticising anyone on benefits who really need it or for those that it tops up what little salary they do get. But those that are on thousands of pounds worth, living in a council house and living a more luxurious life than I am, on what is actually considered a pretty decent salary. It's just not fair. I would never give up my job and expect the country or the government to support me. I would only ever do it, if we could afford to live off one salary.
Anyway, I am missing my boy. He goes to bed earlier now too, so when I pick him up at 4, I only have about two and half hours to actually spend any time with him and that time is normally taken up by making tea, putting a wash on, giving him a bath etc, so I don't feel like I spend any quality time with him until the weekend. He's happy enough to play around me and follow me around by crawling, but I don't sit down and play with him that often.
I do like my job, and I know I want to continue to work. I just have to get used to missing him. I feel really sad for my old, albeit brief, life of being a stay at home mum whilst on maternity leave. I miss those lovely, long luxurious days we had together.
I suppose I need to focus and wise up. Realise that this isn't going to change. Unless we win the lottery of course. Which isn't about to happen anytime soon!
If you have any useful ideas of businesses I can run at home then do get in touch! Ha!
Sunday, November 10, 2013
Sleep Training. How I got Charlie to sleep
As you may know, I went back to work at the start of the new school year and all was well for a few weeks; Charlie continued his one night time wake and it was manageable. And then we moved. I gave him a few weeks to settle into being in his own room and in a new house as he was waking a few times, but then he got worse and was going down at 7.30 and waking up between 10-11 and then again between 12-2 and then again nearly every hour or so after that. I was exhausted and I am sure hubby was too. The final straw was when I got ill. Properly ill, as in spent three whole days in bed sleeping and not eating. Ask my mum or the hubby - I never do that when ill! I think the lack of sleep had really taken its effect on me and I knew it was time to do something. Loads of people had mentioned controlled crying or sleep training and I was completely dead set against it. I think I have even said on this blog I couldn't leave my baby to cry without comforting him. But I was at my wits end. He is nearly 8 months old now and he is waking in the night for a feed completely out of habit. It also coincided with the health visitor coming and suggesting sleep training that I decided that we needed to give it a go, not just for our sake, but for Charlie's too, as he can't get himself to sleep at night and only sometimes during the day.
So on the first day of half term, we began 'sleep training.' As I said, I'm not a huge fan of the whole concept of controlled crying or whatever you want to call it, so I modified it to make it work for us. Here's how I did it:
- Bedtime routine started. This involved PJ's, sleeping bag and then I fed him and read him a story. He was still quite awake after this so I fed him again for a few more minutes.
- Took him upstairs, kissed him and put him in his cot, awake and said goodnight. I already had music playing and his nigh light was on.
- I went out of the room and sat on my bed!
- Charlie played happily in his cot for about 10 minutes. I don't mind this, as long as he's quiet and eventually goes to sleep then I don't see this as a problem.
- After 10 minutes, he started to whimper.
- The whimpering turned to crying.
- Crying turned to screaming. The screaming got so bad at one point that he was coughing and making himself choke.
- From the moment I put him down awake I checked on him every 4 minutes for 20 minutes. After that I extended it to 5 minutes.
- After 48 minutes his cries became a whimper and within 2 minutes the whimpering had stopped and he was quiet - I couldn't believe it but I didn't dare go in to check him this time as I didn't want to disturb him if he was just in the process of falling asleep.
- I waited another 5 or so minutes, checked him and he was asleep!
- So the whole thing took about 55 minutes. It was hard hearing him cry like that, but it worked - he fell asleep.
He slept until 5am! I couldn't believe it! Night two, I did exactly the same thing, he went down awake and it took 12 minutes for him to fall asleep. Night three and four was twenty minutes and since then he goes down awake and within 5 minutes, he is generally asleep. Coincidentally this has coincided with him starting to crawl properly - so I am not sure if he was in the middle of a sleep regression due to trying to master a new skill.
What we still need to conquer is that he is still waking around 1am and 5am for a feed. 5am I don't mind so much, but I really want to phase the 1am waking out. I'm going to give it another week or so and see how it's going and then make a plan from there really.
So all in all, it definitely worked for us. So far anyway. We're not completely there yet, but the situation is so much better now. I feel so much better too, less grumpy and grouchy and can actually concentrate at work and do something productive!
So yeah it was great!
So on the first day of half term, we began 'sleep training.' As I said, I'm not a huge fan of the whole concept of controlled crying or whatever you want to call it, so I modified it to make it work for us. Here's how I did it:
- Bedtime routine started. This involved PJ's, sleeping bag and then I fed him and read him a story. He was still quite awake after this so I fed him again for a few more minutes.
- Took him upstairs, kissed him and put him in his cot, awake and said goodnight. I already had music playing and his nigh light was on.
- I went out of the room and sat on my bed!
- Charlie played happily in his cot for about 10 minutes. I don't mind this, as long as he's quiet and eventually goes to sleep then I don't see this as a problem.
- After 10 minutes, he started to whimper.
- The whimpering turned to crying.
- Crying turned to screaming. The screaming got so bad at one point that he was coughing and making himself choke.
- From the moment I put him down awake I checked on him every 4 minutes for 20 minutes. After that I extended it to 5 minutes.
- After 48 minutes his cries became a whimper and within 2 minutes the whimpering had stopped and he was quiet - I couldn't believe it but I didn't dare go in to check him this time as I didn't want to disturb him if he was just in the process of falling asleep.
- I waited another 5 or so minutes, checked him and he was asleep!
- So the whole thing took about 55 minutes. It was hard hearing him cry like that, but it worked - he fell asleep.
He slept until 5am! I couldn't believe it! Night two, I did exactly the same thing, he went down awake and it took 12 minutes for him to fall asleep. Night three and four was twenty minutes and since then he goes down awake and within 5 minutes, he is generally asleep. Coincidentally this has coincided with him starting to crawl properly - so I am not sure if he was in the middle of a sleep regression due to trying to master a new skill.
What we still need to conquer is that he is still waking around 1am and 5am for a feed. 5am I don't mind so much, but I really want to phase the 1am waking out. I'm going to give it another week or so and see how it's going and then make a plan from there really.
So all in all, it definitely worked for us. So far anyway. We're not completely there yet, but the situation is so much better now. I feel so much better too, less grumpy and grouchy and can actually concentrate at work and do something productive!
So yeah it was great!
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