Where's the Magic? How did you get your child to sleep through the night?

Usually I try to write about what is working for us, but now I need to know what worked for you!

Alright. Z turned one on St. Patty's Day! I have been anxiously awaiting him to start magically sleeping through the night.  Okay, I will even settle for him waking up once in the night.  But my wand must not be working.  I'm not sure that it ever worked. My daughter was 15 months old before she slept through the night.
Here's what I'm doing:
I lay Z down for bed about 8:30 (awake) with a pacifier and Spot (his lovey).  He falls asleep on his own.  We have a Cloud B Sleep Giraffe for white noise.

He usually wakes up again around 12ish, 2:00, and 4:30.  Then he's up for good at 6:30.  Did I mention that he is not a newborn?  I have tried to lay him back down at these times, and sometimes after long bouts of crying he will fall asleep.  But he will wake up 30 minutes later still hungry.  So usually when he wakes up, I will nurse him.  He will typically go right back to sleep.  I know it could be worse...he could be staying awake for an hour or more (but I'm so tired I kinda feel like complaining).

I was hopeful that I would get some tips or tricks from the pediatrician when I took Z for his 12 month checkup yesterday.  I asked the question and braced myself for some criticism.  I was ready to hear that I needed to be tougher, that I should try to cut back on the night-time nursing session, or that I just needed to be consistent.  I sat dumbfounded when the doctor told me, "Well, I think he just needs the calories.  Try to sneak-feed him before you go to bed and then feed him when he wakes up in the night."  What?!  He is one and a good-sized boy!  It makes sense though.  She said it isn't like he is nursing at night only to bulk up and be a chubby baby, so he must need the nutrition.  She also said that he probably needs more mommy-time and during the night is when he can have my undivided attention.

It is getting to the point that all the caffeine and concealer in the world can't hide how tired I really am!  Seriously, I need your tips!  Did you have trouble getting your precious little one to sleep through the night?  What did you finally do?

365 Day Scrapbook, A Picture a Day!

After Twiggy turned a year old, I made her a 365 Day Scrapbook.  Every day I took a photo of her or something of importance for the day. I journaled about the day's events. 

The scrapbook defintely was a labor of love.  In the first few weeks, I was so excited to snap the picture, jot down my thoughts, and upload the photos to be printed.  Well, as months went on...I began to struggle.  At one point I had 3 months worth of pictures on my digital camera and the only journaling I had done was on slips of paper in my purse.  I finally finished the book, and I am so thankful I did.  Twiggy loves her book.  It is amazing to see the changes in her from day to day, week to week, and month to month.  I think the age from 1-2 years is fascinating! This is the time when kids learn something new every day!

Almost as soon as the word was out that I was expecting Z, my coworkers made me promise that I would make him a 365 Day Scrapbook, too.  I vowed that I would start one after his first birthday.

Next Thursday is Z's first birthday...and this time I'm ready to tackle this scrapbook!  I think preparation may be the key! 

Today I cut out all my journaling cards.

I cut out and made tags for my Weekly Header cards.

I assembled all the supplies into a notecard box, so I can keep it in my nightstand.  Check up on me...but my intentions are to journal each night.  At the end of the week, I want to upload the photos to a file on my computer.  And the end of the month, I WILL get the photos printed!

My intentions are good...but even if I do get behind...I promise Z will have a 365 Day Scrapbook!

Losing our Marbles!

I knew it was time to begin using a positive reward system with my 3 year old daughter when my husband asked, "Jess this is what you do for a living! What would you do if she was kid in your class?" Our daughter was beginning to show her 3 year old independent colors.  She was throwing tantrums in order to get out of eating dinner, refusing to clean up her toys, and not listening.  My personal favorite new behavior is the hissing.  Yep, she hisses when I am reprimanding her for something.  We will be in trouble once she's a teenager!

That is exactly why we made a trip to the dollar store to buy some marbles!  First we started with a marble jar (it was actually a little glass salt shaker). After the first few days, we realized that this was a little too ambiguous.  It was hard to tell if it was "full."

 So we moved to using the jar to hold the marbles that were to be earned and pulled out a trusty ice cube tray.  This was much easier for Twiggy to manage.  She could tell how many marbles she still needed. 

  

This is how it works for us:
1. We made home rules. 
     ~ Listen to Mommy and Daddy.
     ~ Clean up after myself.
     ~ Be nice to others.
We wrote these on a piece of construction paper, drew illustrations beside them, and stuck them on the fridge.

2. If she did something nice or helpful, she earned a marble!

3. If a rule was not followed, she had to give us a marble from the tray.

4. Once all the spots in her tray were filled, she got a prize!

Now prizes consist of all sorts of things.  Some are dollar store finds: pads of paper, lipgloss, candy, fruit snacks, stickers, etc.
We try to mix in activity prizes too: Playing Candyland, painting with finger paints, helping cook lunch, going to the library, etc.

Sometimes the marble system works...sometimes she just has a rough day.  But when you are trying any new strategy, you have to give it ample time to work!  Sometimes things get a whole lot worse before they get better :) Consistency is the key!


Now there is a reason that I am the manager of the marble jar.  One night a couple weeks ago, my daughter slept in her bed all night long (this is becoming a problem in our house).  I told her that I was really proud of her and that she almost had all her marbles.  I asked her what she thought we should get her for a prize.  I would strongly suggest having a prize chosen before the first marble hits the tray (hindsight is 20/20!).  I half assusmed she's say "lipstick." Nope.  In her sweetest little voice she said, "Hmm...I want a bike." A bike?  That isn't exactly one tray worthy!!!

Well, as you can see Kee heard her.  After she filled up her tray, he took her to pick out a big girl bicycle.  Now we are just waiting for warm weather to ride it!

 Do you have a system that is working in your house?

Bathtime Help

My 3 year old daughter is becoming more and more independent everyday. Her newest venture is to wash herself during bathtime.  She likes to copycat while I wash her brother (for the moment they still bathe together...sure this will change soon).

Before even getting them into the tub, I am sure I have everything I need: washcloths, towels, cups for rinsing hair, soap, shampoo, lotion, rubber ducks, etc.  I put my daughter in charge of rounding up the jammies, pull-up for her (still wearing one at night), and diaper for her brother.

But perhaps the very best tip we have found is the Nick Jr song about handwashing.  Both kids love it!!!

 I couldn't find the song on Nick Jr's website, but did find a video on youtube of a child singing it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdydIP5-9A8&feature=related

She asks me to sing it everytime!  Not only is she learning precious adaptive skills, but her rubber duckies are getting squeaky clean also!

Do you have any bathtime tips that work in your house???