Oh Those Sleepless Nights

I wouldn't exactly say I got a decent amount of sleep before Baby 2 came along. After all, Baby 1 was hit or miss whether he would completely sleep through the night or whether he would wake up once and need a soothing cuddle to send him swiftly back to dreamland. Not to mention the fact that after he went to bed I'd usually stay up a couple extra hours (or more) to have just a smidgen of "me time." But, I do have to admit I'd kind of forgotten just how "sleepless" the first few weeks (or months) of having a newborn can be. Because while it is possible to get some sleep, any rest you get is broken sleep, which is not exactly restful. In fact, I'm pretty sure it's been used as a torture tactic. Add to that an extra kid and I'm pretty sure I won't be getting any sleep for at least another two years....

Right now our nights go something like this:

7-8pm: Mom gets Baby 1 ready for bed (snack, teeth brushed, overnight diaper, and pajamas). Dad holds/attends to Baby 2.

8-8:30pm: Mom nurses Baby 2 one last time so he'll sleep in Dad's arms for a little bit without needing milk.

8:30-9:30pm: Mom gets Baby 1 to sleep. Yes, it really does take an hour to get this toddler settled upstairs. Don't let the movies fool you. His stall tactics go beyond just asking for extra cups of water or another bedtime story. He will climb in and out of bed, wander the room, request lights on, count his stuffed bears, jump on the bed, ask for the ABC song, ask to hold his bedside lamp, ask to open a new toy in the closet, tell Mommy to lie down, tell Mommy to leave the bed, request tickles. Roll away any time he gets close to the center of the bed, crawl out from under the covers, repeat as necessary, finally maybe lie down in the center of the bed under the covers, and then fall asleep if Mommy lies down next to him and doesn't say a word for 10 minutes straight. It's a little exhausting, but it works, right? Heh....

9:30pm-10:00pm: Mom cleans up any leftover food Baby 1 didn't eat or toys he left strewn about the living room in a hurricane of toddler short attention span. Dad ensures Baby 2 doesn't cry and wake Baby 1. Dad also changes all poop diapers.

10:00pm-12:00am: Nurse Baby 2 and take a 2-hour nap with him while Dad stays up to watch and ensure everything is safe (no rolling, no blocked air passageways). This guarantees at least 2 hours of sleep that night as long as Mom didn't have too much caffeine right before bed.

12:00-1:00am: Mom and Dad bring Baby 2 upstairs along with anything he needs (nursing pillow, wipe warmer, extra outfit, extra diapers). Mom nurses again if needed, places Baby 2 in bassinet once diaper is changed and tummy is full.

1-2am: Baby maybe sleeps in bassinet. Or maybe poops and needs another diaper change. Thus Mom maybe gets one hour of sleep. Or doesn't.

2-3am: Mom nurses again, gets Baby ready for bassinet again. Burps Baby and changes diaper to ensure he is as comfortable as possible when she puts him in the bassinet. Baby 1 sometimes wakes up calling for Mom and needs a little cuddle to fall back asleep. Mom rushes from Baby 2 to Baby 1 and back again. Dad ensures whichever baby is not requesting Mom remains calm if awake.

3-5am: Baby maybe sleeps in bassinet. Or maybe poops and needs another diaper change. Mom maybe gets one hour of sleep. Sometimes even TWO hours of sleep.

5-6am: Mom nurses Baby 2 one last time, making sure he's nice and full. Puts him in bassinet or hands him to Dad and goes to lie down with Baby 1 (whether he's awake or not).

6am-7am: Mom sleeps next to Baby 1 while Dad ensures Baby 2 doesn't wake up. Mom can usually guarantee about one hour of sleep this way.

And then the day begins.

I'm still hoping the newborn schedule shifts soon, as I recall Baby 1 did eventually sleep for stretches of four hours, then two hours (and a total of 6 hours' sleep broken up once would be a welcome blessing compared to 3-5 hours broken up three times).

The good news is that despite this newborn sleepless phase, Baby 2's sleep is actually a lot better than Baby 1's was. He is actually sleeping in the bassinet compared to his big brother who just...wouldn't for months on end. His day naps are also longer, compared to the uncertainty of Baby 1's nap-time roulette.

There are some other nice things about this newborn phase (while we still are in the newborn phase--just about one month left to go!). I've been able to drink coffee again, and it doesn't seem to affect baby sleep at all. I can sleep on my stomach even though I've had a C-section--that just wasn't possible for a while with my first C-section, which hopefully means I'm recovering faster and better this time around (which is kind of needed when you also have a toddler around to take care of). And oddly enough the (TMI?) leg hair that disappeared for a while continues to grow back slowly even though I'm not pregnant anymore, so my legs are still pretty smooth without me having to do anything!

We're still figuring out a lot about balancing schedules and getting enough sleep, but I do think things will continue to improve with time. In the meantime, I'm happy to celebrate the small milestones like a night where Baby 1 didn't wake up at all or a day where I was able to get in a shower and accomplish a few items on my to-do list. We also celebrated Baby 2's one-month birthday on January 30! I can't believe we're already one month in and going strong! Or going at least, even if it's not as strong as I'm used to. Check back with me when I've gotten a few extra hours of sleep....