Tummy time appears to be one of the worst forms of torture to inflict upon your helpless infant. It is all for the good, of course, for strengthening those neck muscles in the hopes of gaining a bit of independence. But to put your baby on the floor and basically watch them eat the carpet is not a fun experience.
However, when your big brother joins you, it isn't so bad, is it? As soon as I lay Silas down, Caleb joins him. It is fun to see, and brings joy to this mama's heart. Caleb seems to really love his little brother.
This doesn't mean, however, that he has never hit him. He has hit him in the head with his hand, fist, and objects several times. I don't think it is out of jealousy, but rather to make me mad/get a reaction out of me, because he knows I will react. He's a stinker, this one. For the most part, though, he gives his brother kisses and lots of love.
I have been working hard on getting Silas established with taking his naps solely in the bassinet. I had a couple of rough days last week when he was so fussy he could not sleep any which way. Not in the bassinet, in the swing, nursing, rocking, holding, whatever. After that, I became more determined to get him to sleep in his bassinet. After all, he is getting older, and he is becoming more aware of noises. And let's face it, Caleb doesn't exactly tiptoe around here if Silas is sleeping in the living room.
I began putting him down in the bassinet, and only in the bassinet, except for when we have to go out and he naturally falls asleep in the car. (I only go out on weekends because I'm not supposed to be driving yet, since the seizure.)
Babies can only handle being awake for two hours at a time, so after he wakes up, he's down again between one and two hours, depending on his drowsy signs. I lay him down and yes, he cries. And no, I don't like it. The cry-it-out vs. no-cry theories are hotly debated. The no-cry people basically think the cry-it-out types are the most inhumane creatures on the planet. I tried the no-cry method with Caleb, and the poor baby was so overtired from lack of sleep. The time came when it was hard to get him to sleep with rocking and what have you, and he didn't know how to get to sleep on his own. I had to do cry-it-out so he could learn this lifelong skill. I decided to start with Silas earlier so we can avoid the drama that we had to endure with Caleb... Silas is doing fairly well. If he is in absolutely hysterics, I will try something else or try again later. However, letting him cry for a little bit and then falling asleep and getting uninterrupted sleep away from sound seems to be the best thing right now. He is sleeping better on his own then he does in the swing, for example, where Caleb's loud outbursts cause him to jump over and over again. Right now, Silas is having about five naps a day in the bassinet. He is still too little for a schedule- I just go by him and when he last wakes up as well as drowsy signs. A schedule will develop later, when his brain develops and matures.
I have read A LOT about baby sleep. And yet, people gave me so much UNSOLICITED advice with Caleb. I got picked on, so to speak, for working my day around Caleb's naps. That, folks, is what you are SUPPOSED to do. Sleep for a baby/toddler is as important as eating. That is not to say that you cannot ever take a trip somewhere and disrupt the schedule, but on a daily basis, mama needs to make every effort to make her baby's naps a priority. Caleb is now an excellent sleeper because I FOUGHT HARD to make him that way. It did not just happen on its own. For all the people who looked at me askew, I paid them no mind and went on doing what I knew was right.
Silas is sleeping reasonably well overnight, with usually three awakenings, maybe two. For now, since he is only two months old, I still feed him when he wakes up. In probably no more than two months, if he keeps waking up, I will solicit Brian's help in comforting him and putting him back down without food. By four months or so, maybe five, he should be able to sleep without as many feedings. We will need to train him to not expect those feedings, and that is where I will need Brian. If I pick up him, of course he is going to root and expect milk. Again, I did not do this with Caleb, and I was exhausted for months on end. The truth is, they don't NEED milk overnight (at a certain point), but have come to expect it.
Silas, Caleb, and I are trapped indoors these days, due to my driving ban. My license hasn't been revoked or anything like that, and the truth is I did drive one day. Brian was sick, down on the couch, and I needed a prescription that was becoming an emergency. I left the boys home with him and took myself on the ten minute drive down the street. So, in desperate situations, I'll go out on my own, but I won't bring the boys unless the house is on fire or something like that. I just had a second EEG on Friday, but I won't know the results for some time yet.
Is it hard being trapped in doors? Yes and no. It leaves me uninterrupted time to focus on Silas's sleep! But yes, it is hard to be stuck inside so much. No rides down the street for iced coffee at Dunkin Donuts, or just a drive to see something else besides these four walls. For a stay-at-home mom without family living close, it is tough. However, God is good. I have a warm house and food to eat, a husband to love me, and sons to love. I won't complain.
Here is a picture of Brian holding our Silas:
