Broke In...

Noah definitely broke us in as parents. We didn't want to go anywhere or do anything without making sure he was full and asleep. We would feed him and drive around until he fell asleep before going into a restaurant. I rarely took him to the grocery store, and never by myself. I felt like people would look at me annoyingly if he ever was crying in public. Nathan was very uncomfortable at first. He freaked if Noah was crying. I would have Noah at work all day and then all night. So, I would ask Nathan to watch him (you know because Heaven forbid we let him sit and cry for a minute) while I got ready for bed or did the dishes and he would literally follow me around holding Noah, Noah is screaming and he is saying "he just likes you better, hurry up!" It drove me nuts, but he didn't have much baby experience and he was right, Noah was more comfortable with me at that time - we spent alot of time together. Nathan volunteers to hold and take care of Ryan all the time - I will be holding her and he will ask me to bring her to him. It is amazing how much different and more comfortable we are with her.

Thankfully it didn't take me long, a few months or so, until I was less worried about Noah crying or feeling the need to constantly watch him. I remember I would take Noah and put him in a baby seat in the bathroom while I showered and got ready because I was afraid to leave him alone in our room - and now, for the life of me I cannot figure out what I was so worried about. I leave Ryan in our room every day while i shower and get ready - and even better, when/if she wakes us crying, Nathan will get her and take care of her until I am ready. I love it.  We rarely cook, so Ryan has been to restaurants almost daily. Noah is now at the age where he is doing fairly well at restaurants and Ryan is sleeping alot or is content with me holding her so it is working good for now. We all seem calm and happy when we go to eat or to a store together (seem to me, other people may look at us as chaotic).

As far as sleeping goes, Ryan and Noah are different sleepers. Noah was very consistent (best I remember) and he was up every 3 hours, then extended it about 30 minutes to an hour at a time until he was four months old and he would sleep 8 hours a night consistently. Ryan was sleeping 6-7 hours in a row at 5 days old - not every night, but often. She is now sleeping 5 hours and eating then sleeping 4 more, eating again, and sleeping anywhere from 3-4 more hours. So, she is an amazing sleeper (minus the fact that she grunts and chokes in her sleep every night)! However, this is not always the case -some nights I have trouble getting her to sleep the first time, it make take a few hours, but usually by midnight she is out. I know if flies by and before I know it she will be sleeping good like Noah. I know this is just a season of life and it will change. I have to pay my dues as a mom and not get a full nights sleep for awhile. With Noah, Nathan and I were used to sleeping alot more - even to noon on the weekends! For the past two years we have been up by 8:00 a.m. at the latest so we are up before Ryan! Our bodies are not used to sleeping in and sleeping all the time so it just seems easier this time.

So, I don't know if either kid is getting better or worse treatment from us - one more worried over and the other less fuss about - but it seems to be working for us! Who knows what we will do if we have a third child!

Thank you Noah for breaking us in!

Thank you Ryan for going with the flow!