Sleep training... again!

Jack has been a very difficult sleeper. I honestly feel like it is karma. Before kids I judged people who didn't have their kids perfectly sleep trained. Now I feel like sleep training is all I do. After a crazy busy start to the year Jack had become more un-sleep trained than ever (if that is even possible). I was rocking him for hours and he was up multiple times a night crying and not going back to sleep. Tim and I were both exhausted and ready to throw in the towel. Because baby was coming we decided to make the switch to a big boy bed and see what happened. 

Jack enjoyed putting the bed together buuuuut that is about it!

The first night I tried to just sit outside his room and with out talking to him would put him back in his bed. It was a disaster and turned into a game for him. 

The next night we decided to change things up. The routine is basically the same. We read stories downstairs and then head upstairs, cuddle for a minute in the rocking chair, sing the night night song which is I am a Child of God and then lay him down. He gets one chance and then the door is closed. 

 I am not opposed to crying it out but Jack has stamina. When he was about 9 months old he cried for 3 hours straight. I was having flash backs and had no clue what was going to happen. I was stressed so Tim let me leave after I lay Jack down. I went for a caramel apple at the mall and got a report that it only took 20 minutes for him to stop.  

On the third night I was able to stay home. My sisters and mom were asking how it was going. I sent this pic of his hand under the door. Not good but only took about 10 minutes for the crying to stop. 

 Each night gets better and now we can leave the room with out tears. I am hesitant to claim success because honestly something will happen and we will have to start all over. As for the night wakings, I lay in his room while he cried it out for 20 minutes. That only happened twice and he is back to sleeping through the night. We use the GroClock, it just shows a sun when the child is allowed to wake up. Jack has one serious internal alarm clock. We have now conceded to anything after 5:30 he can come snuggle in our bed and gets to check for the sun at 6:00. When the 'sum' is up it is very exciting as this is the time he can finally watch tv. 

He has never woken up happy from naps. On this particular day he came down crying, lay down on the floor and fell back asleep. Maybe one day I won't be consumed by Jack's sleep habits but that day seems very far away! 

April

For the most part April brought sunshine and outside play. The nicest weather seems to be during nap time but such is life.

This kid seriously gives me all the feels! I sure do love him!

Still obsessed with cooking. 

My sisters are the best. They keep me sane on the hard days of parenting via FaceTime. While I look forward to talking to them, I also love when their kids answer and I get uncensored stories. On this particular day Erin had worked a night and was taking a nap during quiet time. Scar provided some good entertainment and Jack is obsessed with his cousins. 

 Pregnancy continues to kick my trash. This time around I have decided to take all the meds. I am finally enough weeks pregnant that I can start taking Maxoran. It is seriously God's gift to pregnant people. It doesn't make me quite as exhausted as Diclectin so it is a nice change to not always want to nap. Maxoran takes away more of the nausea as well. Chicken strips and Diet Coke was my first meal on it. Needless to say that food was amazing. As the baby continues to grow I have found that I still need to watch what I eat but at least I can eat. I am really looking forward to the day when I can eat meat and drink anything with out worry!

 Best Costco date ever. He enjoyed his hot dog and but continues to love ketchup more than anything else. 

 Jack has mad love for Wrigley. Wrigley tolerates Jack's affection and usually runs away if Jack gets too wild but continues to be super protective of him.

Public Service Announcement: Did you know that McDonald's gives out free kiddie cones? We do most of our shopping at War-mart which has a McDonalds so if Jack is good he gets rewarded with an ice cream cone after. Sometimes we even will go on an outing just for a free cone. 

Our bestie, Scarlett Richards, moved away. We loved them and are so sad to see them go. Good news is that they are only in Lethbridge so we can get together for a visit. 

General Conference was a moderate success. I will definitely have to do some re-reading as I got a little distracted. We watched Sunday morning session with the Heyland's. It was so fun catching up and the kids kept each other busy so we could pay attention for a couple minutes. 

We celebrated the end of Conference with GF doughnuts. They worked really well. Jack enjoyed the frosting the most. 

 Jack loves his Daddy! He is always copying and following him around. Jack waits by the window and is always super jazzed when Tim pulls up after work. Tim always reads Jack a story before bed. Currently he is introducing him to Dr. Seuss. Tim is also the softer parent. With a few tears Jack can get all the treats and tv he wants. 

 Helping put together the new table we found at a super sketchy thrift furniture place. 

 With the nicer weather Jack is perfecting his strider bike skills. Our favourite is to ride to the train under pass and throw rocks in the creek. It keeps Jack entertained for a solid hour and I can just sit on my phone.