Sleepy Time Hell
Yes, this is a dramatic title for a post but its nothing compared to how I feel right now. I am SOOO tired. I can't remember the last time I was so tired in fact. I think its because Emily has been so demanding and her usual predictable bedtime routine has gone completely out of the window and has been replaced with an unwillingness to even try to sleep.
I think it stems from some nightmares she had a couple of weeks ago, where she dreamt there was a doggy in her room sniffing. Ever since then she has become super clingy at night time and she grips onto you so tightly when you put her in the cot saying 'please don't go mommy/daddy. Stay here with me'. This is then followed by hours of calling and crying to go up, including her saying things like 'Mommy! Where are you, you silly billy?!' Which is even cute despite the circumstances.
Then yesterday she had a bit of a tummy bug and a very high temperature. When added to the sleep problems it meant a night of almost sleeplessness (well at least it felt that way to me!) with Emily up and down looking for us. At one stage we bought her in our bed but even that didn't work and we had to put her back in the cot. I am no longing for her to get over this situation as we all desperately need peaceful evenings and full night sleeps. I have tried talking to her about it but she is only 2.5 after all and so it doesn't really go in.
Wasn't Cordy about this age when she had the problems Steve & Lydia? That was caused by fireworks wasn't it? I will have to have a chat with you about it to see if you have any pearls of wisdom. Meanwhile, fingers crossed for tonight.
Yes, Cordy went through a period of not sleeping when she was coming up to 2 and a half, caused by fireworks ("There are noises in my bedwoom, noises in my curtains!", to be precise). We hate fireworks and on every big fireworks-type situation since we've let her stay up, generally playing Monopoly. Sleeping was a nightmare for a while after that. We did a few things - stayed in the room with her, on the floor, slowly backing away (and then the following night started by sitting on the landing, with her door open so she could see us), bought mightlights etc. After a while this didn't work and we just let her cry herself out. Until (a couple of weeks later) she learnt to climb out of her cot (still in her sleeping bag) in an amazingly hazardous fashion, which invariably ended up with her falling the three feet to the floor with a big thump. That's when we bought a bed. All went well for a bit and then she refused to sleep in that either, would want either to come into our bed or one of us to go into hers, or to have the light on (still frightened because of the memory of the fireworks). We still have the light on in the hall outside her room at night to this day (hurrah for those low energy light bulbs). This went on for a while, not every night but every night if she woke up and wanted some company (or refused to go to bed in the first place)
In the end, by January (and anyone reading this that doesn't agree with sleep training should look away now) we drew a line in the sand and said to each other that if she woke up in the night we would just let her cry herself out, not get in her bed or vice versa. The next night that she woke up and made a fuss, FROM 1AM TO 4AM, NON-STOP she cried, pleaded, cajoled and generally made merry hell ("Mummy, Daddy want a cuddle", "Mummy Daddy I'm cold [she was in our room on the floor at the side of the bed at this point, and we were refusing to let her climb in and she was refusing to go back to her room]" and so on) until eventually she gave up and went back to bed. The next day we were all zombies (I get up for work at 5.30am) and all had a good night's sleep. The following night she chanced her arm for half an hour or so of crying and then, ever since she's been fine touch wood (other than last night when she woke up a few times). Every so often she'll say she's not tired and want to stay up but we can handle that.
The moral of this immense post (if there is one) is that you can turn young children round into good sleeping habits but you have to sacrifice at least a night's sleep to do it!
I'm sure if I've got any of the facts wrong (I was sleep-deprived, after all) Lydia will post too
Thanks for taking the time to write such a long and detailed post Steve! We had a good night last night but I am almost scared to mention it just in case I jinx myself! We are just about ready to Em into a bed and only have to construct the bed and buy a mattress, which is any day now. It will be interesting to see how the sleep thing goes after this.
Yes, remember when you visited and Cordy wouldn't go to bed but instead fell asleep on a cushion in the living room? It was around that time.
What you do have in your favour is that Emily has always been a good sleeper, so it should be easier to steer her back into her good habits and keep her there. Cordy is more like me - she wakes up and wants company, so we have had to be more hardcore to keep everyone in their respective beds!
Keeping my fingers crossed for you.