Misery loves company: to ride it out or Something Must be Done- pick your camp :)

[DreamingOfAFullNightsSleep]

Hello again all- may the sleepers continue sleeping, the new arrivals due or here get the idea very quickly and the rest of us see the light at the end of the tunnel!

Feeling better after the reassuring tales; thank you Elph and Hear.

It's really worrying when I hear all her peers chatting away, but I think I really need to chill with this one. She communicates brilliantly and is hardly ever frustrated, so time will tell.

The day DH and I decided to take her to an SLT, she repeated two sentences I had said, so we decided to sit on it.

So, guess what... we booked our chat with Ann for Monday and DS slept for 5 hours straight for the first time in his life! The toad!

Mamma raised no fool though - he will be cloned by Ann!

Peregrin was your DS lulling you into a false sense of security?

DH has gone to the rugby tonight so his mum is helping out by putting DS1 to bed. I can hear her down the baby monitor seriously paraphrasing Green Eggs and Ham. WIBU to go in and sternly tell her to read it correctly?

In other news, it would appear that DS2 is a fan of the dummy. I've been in denial a while and been giving him a finger to suck to stop him wailing and go to sleep for naps, but tonight I really needed two hands while making dinner. I chucked one of DS1's (resoundingly rejected) dummies into the pasta water to sterilise it and stuck it in his mouth once cool. After about 35 seconds of contented slurping, his head plopped down in my chest (he was in the sling) and he was fast asleep. Sigh. Another one to cross off my 'Things I will never resort to as a parent...'

elph as a vehement "my child shalt not have a dummy" member with dd and not so keen with the dts though I did try lots to try and get them interested I have changed my stance. DD sucked her thumb from.about 6 weeks old. Way before the books tell you they'll suck, I remember being surprised. She sucks her thumb just as much aged 4. The dentist, without being told or seeing her do it, commented on her being a thumb sucker and recommended we try and help her reduce it as her teeth are already affected. Nothing we do helps. I am trying to resign myself to orthodontic work in future DT2 is just a big a sucker but it's his fingers. I'm. finally glad DT1 doesn't suck anything. BUT if I had to choose I'd go dummy now. At least you can take it away.

No sleep progress to report. Dd2 and ds both ill with cough/cold. Up 8+ times last night between the two of them. Still waiting to see re: dd2's surgery so I don't have to listen to her struggling to breathe every night.

Congratulations on the job hear, sorry the bedtimes are still fraught with difficulty.

Elph if it works use it, none of mine have taken a dummy, would have been useful for ds when trying to cook dinner standing on one leg trying to rock him while he screamed.

Dreaming sounds as if some progress has been made even if there have been little set backs.

Poppy I have no idea how you are still standing, goodness!

Peregrin they do like to lull you into thinking things might be improving before reminding you who is the boss of night times.

scandi how are things?

Gawd stitch sounds dire.

There's no question that nights are transformed here. Totally transformed. We have some bad ones but we've had about 15 + now with all 3 sleeping through.
In all honesty I don't really need to hang out in sleep club any more but I like you all so hope to stay

Guess you'll just have another one now, Dreaming, to maintain membership.

My dd is right now discussing how she'd like a sister and so how one of the twins can sleep with her in a bunk bed so there will be a room for it.

Sowing the seeds of a plan there dreaming?

So the day after we officially ended the programme, DS fell asleep by himself in his cot

We made some adjustments that would have been Ann-approved, we just hadn't been exactly pursuing this line. What made the difference in the end was moving his entire cot next to my bed, so his mattress was level with mine, and instituting a night light with a warm glow that kept the room quite a bit lighter than before. I lay down in my bed right away and just rested my hand on his mattress, through the cot bars. He woke only twice after that, and out of those the first time he managed to fall asleep in his cot again, after I nursed him to the point of bursting.

It felt like Christmas. The kind I used to have as a child, with that hushed sense of awe filling one's insides and expanding into every corner of the room.

[I hope it was ok to go write this here. The precise suggestions came from my mother in the end - who staged an intervention together with my husband the preceding night, when I'd resolved to let DS cry as long as it takes in his own room, with me sitting next to him.]

YEAH peregrin amazing news!!! You've got a good mother and husband there it seems. It's always been me who's 'done something' or planned to here. Long may it last.

stitch I'd love one more. One being the operative word. We don't really have the money or the space. My dh doesn't want one though so every month I hope my coil falls out so I can have a happy accident

Yippee Peregrin! Did it last a second night or did the Curse of Sleep Club descend?

I was going to suggest, Dreaming, that you tell your medically trained DH, 'It just fell out, honey, honest!'

Despite being in the throes of newborn-ness still, I can't shake the feeling of wanting a third. It's nice to be able to try things over again and not feel like a complete panicked amateur. I'm also loving seeing DS1 interact with DS2 - he adores him. As an only, I've never seen sibling interaction close hand, so it's fun. However, we'd need a lottery win to have a third, so I'm busily putting baby clothes on eBay and constantly reminding myself of how much I HATE doing laundry to talk myself out of it.

Well, we had a minor trauma yesterday DS1 locked himself and DS2 into the car...with the keys inside and me outside. It was in the nursery car park, so we had a panicked half hour or so of the nursery nurses gesticulating through the window at DS1 to operate the key (I drive a Mini so if you're familiar with the key, it looks absolutely nothing like a key and has three buttons) while I tried to remain calm on the phone, alternately to DH and the breakdown service. DS2 was, of course, screaming his tits off the whole time as he loathes the car. By some miracle, DS1 managed to locate the key (after carefully tapping each of the normal-looking keys against the door handle, looking for a keyhole) and pushed the right button. Bloody miracle, but, if I was a drinker, I'd have had a double gin when I got home. Poor DS2 literally screamed himself hoarse. He had nothing but a raspy little squeak left when we got him out Suffice it to say, I shall be a little more careful with the keys when getting the kids in the car from now on.

Oh goodness Elph you must have been a wreck after that, glad ds1 figured out how to use the key in the end.

Woohoo peregrin and well done to your DM and DH :)

Just coming out the other side of most recent cold and bronchiolitis episode for ds. Only 5 wakes last night, I view that as progress

Well done to miniElph1 for the presence of mind to figure out the key (now don't go locking yourself and your little brother in the car again!)
What a shock it must have been.

Stitch bronchiolitis sounds no fun!

DS refused to settle in the cot the night after, then he settled again, and we have not had a repeat performance since. BUT he has kept on waking only twice a night! I am feeling like an actual human being.

DS1 and I made the Daily Fail! (Sort of - no sad face photo, sorry.)

Number 11 is DS's.

Wow, Peregrin! That's impressive. I wonder what's clicked? Or if he's just warming up to something epic

Bronchiolitis Stitch Was he able to be treated at home or did he go to hospital?

Oh wow that sounds stressful elph . I think he did very well to unlock it. Every other story I've heard of with a child locking themselves in ends in other half summoned from work to go and fetch spare or a windows being broken. I sold my lovely Mini for my current "fun bus" but it was a '55 plate so no fancy key.

Today I am mostly. trying to cope badly with D&V while DH is on a course.

Hello to everybody :)

Dreaming,sorry to hear about your sister

Hear ,belated Happy Birthday :)

Poppy nice to hear from you but…not nice that your DS is a non-sleeper.As for your DD-some kids don't speak until later age (even 4) but get her checked if you're concerned.

Elph you bad mother :D lock your offspring in the car!Maybe that's the good method to keep them quiet?Let them scream until they lose their voice only joking

Stitch hope DS will recover quickly

Hello the other fellow miserers!Sorry to see you here,hope you'll find this thread reassuring

Just popped in for a second,nothing to report-don't want to boast but both DS's sleep alrightish with few wake ups.DS1 dropped his daytime nap and is on the go 7:30 am till 9:30 pm (very boisterous),wakes up sometimes coughing as he uncovers himself during the night and our house is not very warm hence the cough.
DS2 wakes up a couple of times for a feed and yesterday decided to have a chatting session at 3:30 am.Bright eyes bushy tail,chattering and laughing.Feeds quickly and then takes about 30 minutes to burp dozing on my shoulder.Can't put him into the cot before burping as he pukes everywhere.He wakes up just before 6 am in a chatty mood,wakes up his older brother and goes back to sleep.
DS1 winds me up on purpose and then laughs.

I'm a bit tired,more mentally than physically (got used to that) and can't wait to come back to work.

Regards to all of you,sorry for not referring to everybody personally

Take care x

God, I wish DS1 would drop his nap. I'm fed up to the back teeth of planning weekends and petrol money around the bloody thing she says, blithely ignoring the fact that there will be a few more years of that left yet with DS2

DS1 home today with a temp, but looking very well and rambunctious for it. Dead. On. My. Feet. after DS2 up every hour after midnight for a feed.

Here here for the dts elph DT2 is fine without one. But if we went anywhere in the afternoon and I must, for my sanity he'd then fall asleep at 4:30pm in the car and be up til 10pm at least. DT1 is such a fireball of energy- he really does need a ferocious amount of exercise, and none of mine are sitting about types, but he's in another league- he still needs it. Hate planning everything around a nap. and yes- the petrol. Twas car naps today

Stitch how's your little one?

Bald long time no see, how's everything in the Highlands? Let me know if you're ever down the Central Belt; we can have some cake and exchange war stories.

Dreaming, I'm so pleased for you; truly hope it lasts. Ann was able to fit us in earlier than expected so I could potentially start as early as next week! Hurrah!

Elph, DH isn't getting an abridged version, he'll be in all the way or else...

Hear how's your little one? Can you believe our toddlers will soon be 3? Yours was a March baby too?

Two questions for the panel:

I'm considering nursery for DS (11mo); he's the most sociable creature in the world unlike me and DD and I feel he would really benefit from a couple of mornings. Do you think it's too early? Any experiences?

How on earth do you get them attached to a taggie/blanket/soft toy whatever?
I really feel it would help him sleep, so I keep introducing him to random crap stuff, but no luck. Is there a trick?

DD rotates her "transitional object" and routinely carries random stacking cups/bath plastic book/beaker (and a set of Ikea plastic toiletry travel bottles once) for days and sleeps with them until they fall out of favour and moves on to another thing.

Hello Poppy!

Too early for nursery? No. DS1 started part time at five months, then full-time from eight months. LOVES it. Went through a brief patch of separation anxiety when he moved up to his current room but was fine after two or three weeks of traumatic departures

Getting attached to a 'lovey' as Elizabeth Pantley would call it - I pushed that with both my boys from birth but I'm guessing it's the same process with an 11 month old. Pick one soft toy - stick with it. Maybe put a selection in front of him and see if he's particularly drawn to one. Sleep with it yourself for quite a while. I've got quite used to sleeping with a stuffed toy dachshund between my boobs If you're still BFing squirt it liberally with milk. I assume you're co sleeping to cope? Have it between the two of you every night. Try and have it nearby all the time and involve it in cuddles wherever possible. It takes a few weeks of persistence and consistency IF it's going to work. Don't keep swapping the toy or he won't form the attachment. That's how I did it anyway. DS2 isn't especially interested in his stuffed toy yet, but I'm definitely working on it.

DS1 has a core group of bedfellows these days - the ever faithful 'Baba' the brown dachshund (who got the above treatment from day one) a George Pig DH bought him recently and an enormous Peppa Pig my DM got him. This is supplemented at times with a variety of trains, cars and items of clothing he's feeling attached to that day. I usually go in and do a cull after he's asleep so we're not woken up with complaints of having rolled over onto a shoe in the night

Phew, I lost you all for a minute there!

Yes poppy she is march too. I think I joined this thread when she was on 9 month regression so that's almost 2 years now! I'm not sure I have ever managed that much dedication to anything else ever. :)

In my experience you will do everything elph describes with lovely toy of your choice and then your dc will inexplicably choose something else to attach themselves to

elph I have my very first ever driving lesson on Friday and you have now terrified my about dd locking herself in once I have learnt.

How's it going dreaming? sounds pretty impressive on the sleep front your way :o

dd's last teeth have finally come through. They have been the slowest growing teeth in all of history I am sure! However, things are now slowly improving. She is much nicer during the day and has gone back to walking happily through to our room in the night rather then screaming for hours. Bedtimes are a bit better to.

I agree about the toy, Hear - that's why I provisionally capitalised 'if'

It still flabbergasts me that DS1 managed to lock himself and DS2 in, and that we were then able to talk him into unlocking again. I kept hearing mutterings of 'fire brigade' and 'smash the windows in'. DS1 would be devastated to know that he'd missed out on the fire brigade being summoned. He adores fire engines.

I did the toy attachment thing with Ann and it did work. He never had any attachment to anything before, tool nothing to bed. It was being consistent with it like elph said though I held it I didn't sleep.with it and. had stopped bf. He was 26 months. Does like all. 3 we used now. So now at bedtime I hunt for the 5 DT2 wants with his core toy, the uber important one where he rejected the exact copy with seconds at a tender age- DT1 has that reject and 2 others. sigh.

Oh, and dare I confess it in sleep club? All 3 have slept through and are doing regularly. Not all every night and same nights but mostly.

You've done it now Dreaming...but isn't it interesting that the sleeping through consistently happened after Ann's programme for both of us? Have you sent her an update?

Not that I'm getting unbroken nights. DS2 is making it to around 11pm or midnight, then waking hourly for feeding. He's doing pretty well at falling asleep in the cot in what will be his own room for naps (thank you, dummy), it's just getting him to stay asleep longer than 40 or 50 minutes now that's the challenge.