Don't be fooled...

I love this picture. It makes our days look calm, quiet and structured and makes my kids look like perfect angels.

 

But don't be fooled. This is more what our days are like. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Last weekend Trent went on a deep sea fishing trip with some friends from high school. Check out the fish they caught.

 

 

While Trent was gone, Mom and Dad watched the Boys for most of the weekend and I got some much needed downtime as well as some one-on-one time with Brooks.  I can't get over how different they act when they are alone.  I didn't have to referee or be a short order cook and I actually got to sit on the floor and play with Brooks without being interrupted.  Next time it will be Jackson's turn.

 

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My favorite part of the day is checking on them right before I go to bed.  No matter how crazy the day was, seeing these two precious sleeping angels melts away the day.

 

 Until next time!

I'm Back

So I've been on a bit of a hiatus, ok a long hiatus but I'm back. So much has happened in the last year but instead of trying to recap I'll just start where we are now. More to come so stay tuned. In the meantime here are a few pictures from the summer. 

 

Big boy haircuts.
Little J cried and screamed the entire time so I didn't get to supervise Little B's haircut.  They chopped off all his hair, but it will grow back.  At lease this time maybe we can make it four weeks between haircuts instead of three.

The Boys love to push the strollers. 

Our new pet.

Little B and my nephew Blake

Bailey's new bark collar.  It's worked beautifully so far.  Why didn't I get her one a year ago?

No Tears

A couple of months ago the ear, nose and throat doctor told me that Brooks is tongue tied. He said that we could either get his tongue clipped now or wait until he gets a little older to see if it causes any speech difficulties. We decided to go ahead and do it now. So this morning at 5:30 AM we were checked in at Mercy Hospital. We got in and out quickly. Brooks was such a big boy. He never cried one time at the hospital. He did have a rough day the rest of the day but that is to be expected.

Wordless Wednesday

C.I.O. aka Crying it Out

Crying it Out, Controlled Crying, Tough Love.  No matter what you call it, it has worked (so far) on the Bridges' Boys.

Everything I've read said that it takes 3-5 days for them to realize that you aren't going to rescue/feed them every time they cry. It took us all 5 nights. Thanks to the kind words of my friend, Julie (see comment from previous post stating "you need to show them who's Boss") and Trent encouraging me not to rescue them, we started sleep training Friday night and here is how it went down.

Friday:  Around midnight Brooks woke and cried for 50 minutes then fell back asleep.  Soon after Jackson woke and cried/screamed for 2 (long) hours.  We were all tired and cranky the next day.

Saturday:  Both slept for 7-8 hours and didn't have to cry themselves back to sleep.  I think they were so worn out from the night before.

Sunday:  There was a little whimpering between 1:30 AM and 3:00 AM.

Monday:  They both slept about 8 hour stretches.

Tuesday:  Brooks slept for 11.5 hours.  I never heard a peep out of him.  Jackson slept for 8.5 hours, I fed him then he slept for 3 more hours.  It was glorious!

Sleep training has not only helped at night, but they go down a little easier at nap time, too.

All in all, it was less painful then I had anticipated.  The first night was certainly the toughest for me, but each one got a little easier. 

I'm sure there will be bumps in the road, but at least 8 hour stretches of sleep are way better than 4-5 hours.  Fingers crossed they continue sleeping well.  Hopefully, I didn't jinx it by posting about their accomplishment to soon!

Mom. Needs. Sleep.

Dear Little Boys,

Why won't you sleep?  I know I'm a lot of fun to play with, I give excellent hugs, I'm a great snuggler, and I'm the one with the bottle.  But, Mom needs sleep.  You need sleep.  So, please, please, please sleep like the good Little Boys that you are.  I promise you won't miss anything while you sleep; all your toys will still be here in the morning.

Love,
Mom

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I wish it was that easy.  To just tell them to sleep.  I'm constantly questioning what I've done in the past, what I'm doing now, what I should do differently.  I try different techniques, but just when I think I have it figured it out they switch it up on me.

I've tried an earlier bedtime, a later bedtime, one long nap, two shorter naps, rocking them to sleep only for them to wake as soon as I put them in their crib.  I've let them cry it out, but this just makes me feel like an awful parent and we all end up in tears. 

I'm sure I didn't do things right in the beginning.  If they made a peep I was there by their side trying to get them back to sleep because two crying babies is harder to get back to sleep then one at a time.  Sometimes one wakes the other and other times one can sleep right through the other one's screams.  I've tried playing soft music while they drift off to sleep.  I feel like I've tried it all.  I'm sure teething isn't helping the situation either. 

This weekend they are staying the night at Mimi and Grand's.  I hope that with me out of the picture they will do a better job at soothing themselves and getting back to sleep on their own.  Maybe if they don't sense my presence they will sleep tight for an eight hour stretch.  Fingers crossed!

If you have any suggestions for sleep strategies I haven't tried, I'm all ears.

Wordless Wednesday - Dinner