An extra hour of sleep?

Not a chance.

While most of the nation got to relax for an extra hour Sunday morning, Amanda and I didn't have that luxury. Nathaniel woke up when his body told him to wake up (actually, he slept a little late) -- 6:30 a.m. The thing is, that 6:30 translated to 5:30 a.m. after Sunday's time change.

So we spent the rest of the day trying to slowly move all of his naps and mealtimes back to get him used to the new schedule. It worked fairly well, but it did not make for a very relaxing day.

What fun.

Fall back

Sunday will be Nathaniel's first experience with daylight saving time. He was too young and slept too erratically in the spring for it to matter.

I hope it doesn't cause problems with his sleep schedule, which finally seems to be calming down (if you ignore the fact that I was up at 1:30 a.m. today to calm him down).

Fingers crossed.

Fewer shots, it seems

After Nathaniel was born, he got some Cynagis shots, which protect against RSV (which appears like a common cold in most kids, but can be much worse if you're working with a depleted immune system, which Nathaniel was).

The shot is given monthly in the winter months ... and it costs the insurance company something like $1,000 per shot.

So last spring, I think the pediatrician said we wouldn't be doing Cynagis this fall/winter. But then, last month, the doc's office says we are going to do it. Fair enough, we figure. Something to protect him from colds means he's less likely to get more ear infections.

But then the insurance company calls to say they're not going to approve it because the little guy is too healthy.

So now we don't know what to think. We love that he's healthy enough that he might not need the shot ... but is the insurance company just playing the odds to save money (technically, that is their business, after all). Or was the doctor's office unnecessarily calling for Cynagis for an easy paycheck (10 minute visit = good money from insurance company).

Then there's Nathaniel. Would it be better for him to have some help with dealing with RSV? Or is it better for him to get the immune system working 100 percent without help? Not to mention getting six fewer shots is probably something he'll be happy about.

It's all so confusing. I think, in the end, I'm OK with him not getting Cynagis ... but I hope I feel the same in another few months.

The magic of white noise

For about two weeks, inexplicably, Nathaniel had been waking up three to five times a night and needed to be held to go back to sleep. It was amazingly stressful and exhausting.

But it stopped (still knocking on wood) earlier this week. We didn't know if it was the salt-water drops we'd been giving him, the humidifier in his room, that we were feeding him some more or something else.

After last night, I'm going with the humidifier and the noise it makes. Last night, I forgot to turn the humidifier on when he went to bed. I noticed I hadn't turned it on when I went to bed, but it was too low on water and I was afraid moving things around to refill it would make too much noise.

Then, about 45 minutes later, Nathaniel woke up crying for the first time this week. I calmed him and decided to take the time to fill the humidifier.

And that was it. He slept through the rest of the night without a problem.

White noise. It's a life saver.

Torturing the baby

How is it that the worst torture you can visit upon your child, it appears, is to wipe his or her nose?

Nathaniel's nose has been runny and he's had numerous ear infections. We're hoping to avoid another, so we've been wiping his nose like crazy. And he screams like we're trying to do serious harm to him. Almost nothing else brings out this kind of response. He's as agreeable as can be otherwise.

But just show him a tissue, and the screaming starts.

What a kid.

Sorry for the delay

In addition to Nathaniel deciding 4 a.m. was a great time to wake up (along with 2 a.m., 1 a.m., 11:30 p.m., etc), Amanda and I have been really working on a kitchen makeover.

Might I suggest new parents never - ever - try to do some home redesign at the same time? I've been sleeping 4 hours or so most night for that last two weeks. And that sleep has been interrupted by Nathaniel's newfound joy in waking up at all hours of the night. He just wants to be held -- so much so that, when you lay the sleeping youngster back onto his crib, he immediately screams. Fun, let me tell you.

Random screaming couple with no running water in the kitchen, no washer/dryer for the past two weeks, a refrigerator that was outdoors for four days and more makes this a really rough couple of weeks.

But at least Nathaniel seems pretty happy. Laughing like crazy, cruising along holding to table and furniture for support, grabbing everything in reach. That part of things is going great.

Finally!

For the past week, Nathaniel had not been sleeping well. It started with waking up at 4 a.m. or so, instead of his usual 6 a.m.

Then there were the ear infection days, during which he was waking up every 90 minutes or so ... and then took 30 minutes to fall back asleep, if you could calm him down.

On Sunday and Monday night, neither Amanda or I slept for much more than 90 minutes straight. Finally on \Tuesday night, we got an amazing four hours of sleep in a single stretch.

Then came last night (Wednesday night). He slept through the night! Oh, man, that's a great thing. I just hope it continues.

In other news ...

Also, Nathaniel had a graduation of sorts Wednesday. He got moved "to the other side of the fence" at day care. Children 18 months and younger are in one area of the day care Nathaniel attends, but they further seperate those who move around a lot, stand up, etc., from those who tend to stay in one place.

As of Wednesday, Nathaniel was so active they had to move him to the mover area. He uses anything to stand up, apparently ... including walkers that other kids are using. Rather than risk toppling a younger/smaller child, they're moving him over.

(Both sides of "the fence" (a clear, plastic divider, really) have plently of caregivers on hand.)

ARGH! Another ear infection!

I've lost count at this point, but Nathaniel is suffering through another ear infection. He had a fairly low temperature Sunday night into Monday morning and didn't sleep well. I took him to the doctor and got some medicine again ... and phone numbers for ear-nose-throat specialists.

Sadly, Monday night was worse than Sunday night was. He had a higher temperature and woke up every 90 minutes or so. He went back to sleep fairly quickly, but that doesn't make things any easier for Amanda or me.

So we're both exhausted. Actually, all three of us are exhausted. Difficult times. Hope he gets better soon ... and stays that way. I don't want him to have to get tubes in his ears.