Success

I go through these spells, every couple of months, where I think I may fake sick for a few days so I can sleep all day.  It's then that I know, for sure, I am lacking in the sleep department.  As usual around here, when we have a good thing going, something happens to mess it up, I stop sleeping for whatever that reason was, and then I realize that we need a new plan. 

Last week, Isabella got sick. Sore throat, fever, and wouldn't eat.  It lasted a couple of days and then it was gone.  But the nights were bad. That's when her fever inevitably spiked and I would lay beside her small, restless body as every inch of her radiated heat. Even down to her little toes.  So there we had three nights of her in bed with us, me getting up with her every couple of hours for cold water, more medicine, or just readjusting.  We finished off the week with just one midnight tumble off the bed for her and we went back to the normal sleeping arrangments.  Then Declan got sick at the beginning of this week, same thing, same hot body, same restless nights. But for him, he didn't want the middle of the night cuddles. He needs his own sleeping space. He just replaced it with 5:30am wake-ups.  In the midst of it all, Quinn decided that she was going to start acting like a 15 month old, instead of a 10 month old. Our golden sleeper decided to fight going to bed, wake up countless times before we even went to bed, and would randomly decide that 11pm was a great time to flash her toothy grin at us and insist that it was time to play, not time to sleep.  Meanwhile, she also started cutting 4 new bottom teeth. All at once.  She wants to walk-bad.  She has a mind of her own. She likes to climb--as in, climb and stand in the middle of the picnic table in about 5 seconds flat. She needs to be wherever her sister and brother are and scurries along after them as fast as she can.  She has discovered stairs and that they lead to interesting places. She wants to eat--the girl finally wants to eat. 

So last night I decided that Quinn was ready to move upstairs to her crib. She's had enough of the small crib that is in our bedroom, it's just not roomy or comfortable enough for her.  She is fine in the bed with us, but getting her to sleep is the issue, and we can't leave Captain Climber alone in a bed for a millisecond.  Isabella still sleeps in our room also, in her own spot, but we have left her there so that I don't have to go upstairs 3 times a night when she wakes up. She sleeps better knowing we're close by and when she wakes at anywhere between 4-6am, she just climbs into bed with us for the rest of the morning. So yesterday, we all talked about sleeping in our own bed, teaching Quinn to sleep in her crib just like Declan, and showing Isabella that it's just fine to stay in her big bed all by herself. She obliged, since we told her that we would stay just down the hall, in the guest room.  All the kids went to bed at 9, Quinn was back up at 10.
 I went up and held her for a little bit, she fell back asleep, and I put her back into her crib. Not another peep from her until 7:30 this morning. Heaven I tell you.  Isabella still woke up twice, but I've hung that towel up. She wakes up in the middles of the night. Multiple times. Always has and maybe always will. But getting up to deal with one kid is much easier than two.  Which also meant that this was the longest night stretch Quinn has gone without nursing.  And yes, I was paying for that this morning...
I felt confident that she could sleep through without nursing since she had finally started eating more solid food. She ate a big dinner last night (mushrooms are a new favorite of hers) and then proceeded to eat a pre-dinner snack of a large bowl of cheerios and milk.  Followed by a long nursing, I knew she was good to go. 
And to top off my good luck--knock on wood--Isabella is also going to sleep solo lately. For naps and bedtime. I have dreamed of the day I could put our kids to bed and actually just leave the room. No laying there for an hour. No trying to sneak away (and failing miserably). Just read some stories, kiss, hug, tell them I'll be back soon to check, and we're golden. 
It's a good feeling.
Hopefully we can get this new routine set into motion and see success.  Meanwhile, teaching my four year sleep deprived body, what it's like to sleep for more than 3 hours at a time.  This is all looking very good. Just ask Ryan. I think I actually smiled at him this morning before he went to work.

Dedication. Quinn is so dedicated to figuring out this whole walking thing, and I am loving the determination. Story time at the library is a whole new ballgame when Quinn is there. She stands in the middle of the floor, bounces up and down (dancing) and screeches, I mean practices talking, as loud as she can.  She is dedicated to learning how to walk. She wants to be down, not in my arms anymore. My baby is growing up. Again.