It was a good day. Emphasis on "was".
Aubrey went to school, and had a great time. I fixed the kitchen faucet, by myself. I cleaned and mopped. Matt got home early and we rode our bikes around the lake and played for a long time at the park. I fixed a fabulous meal that was enjoyed by all.
But.
But now it is 10:23 and Aubrey is still awake. We have been at this since 8:00. She won't go to sleep. She won't stay in her bed. She won't quit pulling the shades back to look outside (even though it is completely dark). She has been a rotten stinker at bedtime for weeks. We are at our wits end.
So then Matt and I argue because we have different ideas about what needs to be done. Let me tell you something, Internet. Arguing with your partner when tensions are already high? Not a good idea. Because it turns out that you both are already mad about something that has nothing to do with each other.
Also, you are partners. Use your power for good and not evil. I'm just saying.
Also, Stella is driving us crazy. I love her and all...but is it time for her to stop being a puppy already? Please? She is being naughty, and spoiled, and we have no clue what we are doing. We are fools.
Somebody please tell me something good. Like, Aubrey won't sleep because she is about to start talking and she's just too excited. Or, you want to adopt Stella from us. Oh, you are a dog whisperer and you want to train our dog for free? MARVELOUS! What? We just won a brand new laptop? EVEN BETTER!
Thanks, Internets. You always come through for us.
5 comments:
I feel your pain! I wish I had answers...but I find myself stumbling around in the dark half the time too. The other week I said to Neal, "Why does life have to be so hard!" Without missing a beat he said, "Because the Lord is trying to accomplish more than one purpose." I wasn't sure whether to be frustrated or inspired by his response...but I settled on the later. Sometimes everything is just so hard it's like trying to crawl up a extremely steep, pebbly hill...
Jonah did that to us for a while. He would come out over and over and over out of his room and I would sometimes loose it to the point of yelling very loudly at him--and he was only 2 or 3! I think we did what the Healthy Sleep Habits book says and just waited outside his room, turned him around when he came out and put him back in bed without saying anything. We had to do this for a while I remember and then it just passed. It never seemed to happen with Wyatt because we made them share a room and by that time Jonah was good at staying in bed so Wyatt did too. Anyway, super-frustrating in the moment but it should eventually change.
Sometimes (most times) it feels like everything is going wrong. Why can't things just happen exactly how we want them to? I guess because then it would be to easy.
As for sleeping, my boys tend to stay up playing in their room - sometimes for hours before they fall asleep. I just made it so their room was toddler safe and they have very little to play with, usually just a couple of stuffed animals. We lay them in their beds, tuck them in and say our prayers, then we close the door and let them do what they are going to do until they fall asleep. So I say just don't stress so much about Aubrey going to sleep at the exact time you want her to. Put her to bed and close the door and eventually she'll fall asleep. I've learned to not worry so much about it because there is no sense in worrying about them not sleeping when there is really nothing you can do about it but wait.
Good luck!
Total bummer about the whole sleeping thing. My honest opinion is that she may be getting too much sleep and you either need to get rid or really cut back on the nap. It will take some adjusting, but you will all get used to it. We have finally taken the light bulbs out of Spencer's room, and just shut the monitor off at night. He knows now that we won't come get him, so he just stays asleep. Plus, since the light doesn't work, he won't get out of bed because it's dark. Also, the black out shades are worth it. We just nail ours to the top of the window sill, and then I roll them up during the day so there's light. That way, the blinds are over them, and he can't look outside. Just some ideas....good luck. And No, I won't take your dog. Ask George.
It sounds like you had quite a day! The sleep thing is a constant struggle at our house. We finally just had to toddler proof Lucy's room and basically lock her in. We have a very consistent bedtime routine that we do and then we say goodnight and shut the door, sometimes she goes right to sleep and sometimes she is up there playing for hours. One poster suggested she might be getting too much sleep but in my experience the opposite is always true, she could be not getting enough sleep which is making it difficult for her to wind down at the end of the day...just a thought.
Don't give up on Stella! I know dogs can be a total pain in the butt but they are worth it and the bod that they share with your kids is totally worth it. Let me know if you need any training tips, I've got a few tricks up my sleeve. Hang in there!!
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