She did better sleeping last night because hearing people like Karen say it was okay to just nurse her for the sake of sleeping made me feel better because that is what I WANT to do. I guess I just needed someone to remind me it was okay to do that. Yes, in the long run? It may drag out her not sleeping through the night. But for now? It’s a good solution for ME. And that’s all I care about. ME. So, she woke up at one point and MrZ got up to rock her back to sleep for me. I didn’t fight it like I usually do (again – I feel GUILTY if I’m not the one soothing her – WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME?) but last night I was so damn tired I just let him take her. Of course, I woke up a little later because she was crying and I just thought “Screw it – she’s getting the boob.” So, I brought her back to bed, nursed her and we both went back to sleep. She woke up several times again but I just used the boob and she went back to sleep.
So – resolution? I didn’t do anything to really solve the problem of her waking up 18 times a night. BUT – she and I both slept better, and in reality? That’s what I wanted. Hopefully the problem will just fix itself and she’ll just stop waking up ever 90 minutes or so. But for now? I need sleep – so she’s getting the boobcifier.
Hee. I just made that up. Get it? BOOBcifier? Like Pacifier? But with the word “boob”? Because I stick it in her mouth to pacify her? BOOBCIFIER. Do you get it? DO YOU? Then why arent you LAUGHING? It’s funny, dammit.
(Maybe I’m not as well rested as I thought I was.)
Do what makes you comfortable. I had so many people try to “help” me when I was having issues with potty training my son and then finally a lady said to me it will fix itself he wont be 20 and in diapers it just wont happen so just relax and I did and then the kid potty trained himself it was amazing. So just do what feels comfortable you will do great.
I’ve used the boobcifier lots myself, and all my kids older than 3 sleep great anyway.
Do whatever it takes to get as much sleep as you can.
Mary, mom to 8
Boobcifier is very funny. A lot funnier than “human pacifier,” which was what I always called myself. None of mine took pacifiers (after my first downright refused one, I never even tried with the others), and it was nice having something so readily available that worked… something that didn’t get lost in the covers, or dropped on the floor (OK, they might come close if I don’t wear a bra. Heh).
Glad you’re feeling better about doing what feels right to you.
Sounds like a good resolution to me. 🙂 As long as you’re getting some better sleep, you’re both happy… sounds like a good deal to me. 🙂
And yes, I totally think it’s a growth spurt thing. I went through it, I’ve had friends go through it… you see that magical “four months” and there’s your answer. 🙂
Does she suck her thumb at all? I was THRILLED when mine found their thumbs!! A “binky” always fell out, but a thumb was always handy. Neither of them continued with the thumb once they got teeth, so it didn’t become any kind of a problem.
Hang in there! Your baby, your life, your choice!
I was a BOOBcifier for 2 years and 3 months with my oldest…everyone said I shouldn’t nurse him in bed, everyone said I should let him “cry it out’ everyone said, I should put him in his own room…everyone said that he would be sleeping with me until he went to college. Well, everyone but me and his dr. so I went with my vote and he slept with us and most of the time I wouldn’t even have to wake up to stick the BOOBcifier back in cause it’d still be out from the last feeding. I got much more sleep and was much more sane. Eventually I took one of the sides off his crib and set it up next to our bed, then he moved to his own toddler bed about 18 mos old, (with the occasional slip back into our bed, )then his own room at 3 and now is 6 and sleeps like a perfect little angel. And no he doesn’t still use the BOOBcifier. So bottom line is do what works for ya girl…it’ll all be fine in the end, sleep is very important for a working mother!
Love your blog…you are too funny : )
Elizabeth
I all I can think of is meet the fockers when Robert Denero wears the breasts device so he can feed the baby on their trips. It’s kinda nuts but funny.
Hello there! I’m right there with you…baby Zoe (she’s 7mos this coming week) was doing the same sleep patterns right around NikkiZ’s age, and the boob is wonderful for several reasons: more sleep, less crying/noise and more general contentment – so good for you, doing what works.
Because alas, what works now maybe won’t work next month and you’ll roll with that, too – cause that’s what mommies do!
Whatever you’re doing it’s clearly working – she is an absolute TREASURE, the cuteness is overwhelming.
Mine isn’t sleeping through the night anymore either- but that’s because he’s been up almost every night for the past 3 weeks scratching his mystery rash. It’s been fun. Loads and loads of fun. Wny is it that a rash on a baby is itchy at 4 am and not at noon, when he’ll sleep for hours at a time? It makes no sense.
Wanna know what I think? (Oh, God no, please…..)
They’re rising up against us! It’s a baby mutiny! They must be stopped.
I must get sleep.
for me, i was much more “stricter” with our first daughter 4 years ago, then 2 years ago when we had our second daughter, we tossed out the rule book…whatever i could do to get some sleep…i did. and here they are 4 and 2 and they sleep just fine all night in their own beds….so it’s a small amount of time in the big picture…just do whatever you want as long as you get some much deserved sleep.
My mother loves to tell stories of how picky I was. She couldn’t breastfeed me, and I wouldn’t take a bottle nipple. Finally they figured out I would only use the silicone preemie nipples, and so that is what I used until I was on solid food. I managed to survive till adulthood, despite screaming all night for the first two years of my life. Its a wonder my mother didn’t smother me, or drive off a cliff from sleep deprivation.
It’ll get better. She’ll either grow out of it, or you’ll use your magical mommy powers to figure out a solution. Good luck!
It sounds like she may be a lot like my baby was. She was also breastfed and she woke up 6 times every night until I went into the hospital for a week when she was 12 months and when I got back she no longer wanted boobie. Suprinsingly that first night I was home she did two first…She slept in her crib and she slept all night long. She just turned two friday and has slept through the night every single night since then. Its because you are nursing plain and simple. Nursing mommies babies use thier mommies boobs as a comforting device not just food. So no cereal will not make her sleep longer. We tried everything with Gwyn and nothing but weaning helped which I would hae given anything to have nursed her longer. I know it doesnt seem like it right now but it wont last forever and now with Gwyn at 2 I can barely remember those nights when I got NO sleep….I dont miss them though I will say! Hey atleast your kid will sleep somewhere but in a swing with it going. That was the only place Gwyn would sleep for the first year! Thank God for the electic swings that just came out cause we spent hundreds on batteries back then1 I hope you can find a way to get her to sleep longer but mine never did until she weaned. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news:(
Chloe slept with us for her first 6 months and definitely used me and only me to help put herself to sleep. But, then, when she went to her crib, she was happy as could be! She only in the last few months has decided she likes a pacifier (great, when the dentist says to get rid of it!). Bradley hates pacifiers, too. So, since the cereal didn’t work for you, we’ll just stick to boobing ouselves to sleep. 🙂
Yes, I get it. Around our house we called it “boobie foo foo” (foo foo is short for fooler, pacifier slang) Anyway, my thing was to do whatever gave me the most sleep. The bassinet was the first 3 months and we were on our way to sleeping in our crib at month 4 but guest came and I didn’t want to wake them up in the middle of the night so she went to bed with us. Was there until just 3 weeks ago. She started nursing more often and I couldn’t take waking up that much in the middle of the night anymore (old age) so we did a half way Ferber and half way Johnson method. Whatever, it works now and she sleeps through the night most nights. The first night? Hell! We spent 4 hours in the hall way laying there listening to her cry and soothing her every 15 min. After that, it was much much better. Do what is in your heart! It’s almost like they don’t sleep as well next to you either but I couldn’t give her up until she was 12 mo. old so I know exactly where you are coming from. Sorry So Long 🙁