I did it.

I bought the book.

The No Cry Sleep Solution by Elizabeth Pantley.

Let me tell you, I have read it three times already.  I feel like a weight has been lifted off of my shoulders.  No, Ronan is not sleeping any better at night.  Truth be told, it took Brock almost 2 hours to get him to go down tonight, and we had 5 wakings last night.  This book does not claim to be a quick fix.  It’s a process, a step by step guide to better sleep.  But really, it’s not all about what this book is – it’s about what it ISN’T.

This book is NOT a cry-it-out cop-out, and that’s exactly what we need.

I have learned so many things in such a short time.  I found out that Ronan should be getting 16-18 hours of sleep a day, and he’s getting around 10.  (Poor guy.)  I have a much better understanding of sleep, how Ronan perceives the world around him, and how he wants things to be.  I have a whole LIST of suggestions that I can try to get him to sleep longer, and better!

There is this one paragraph that switched the light bulb on above my head.  My Ah-ha moment.  Pantley said,

“Imagine this.  You fall asleep in your nice, warm, comfy bed with your favorite pillow and your soft blanket.  when your first night waking occurs, you may change position, pull the covers up, and then fall right back to sleep without ever remembering this happening.

What if you woke up to find yourself sleeping on the kitchen floor without blankets or a pillow?

Could you simply turn over and go back to sleep?  I know I couldn’t!  You would probably wake up startled, worry about how you got there, fret a bit, go back to bed, get comfortable and eventually fall asleep — but not too deeply, because you would worry about winding up back on the floor again.  This is how it is for a baby who is nursed, rocked, bottlefed, or otherwise parented to sleep.  She falls asleep rocking, nursing, sucking a pacifier, and so forth and wakes up to wonder, “What happened?!  Where am I?  Where’s Mommy and Daddy?  I want things the way they were when I fell asleep!  Wahhhh!”

Not only does this bit make me laugh, it also makes perfect sense.  And, really, I don’t feel bad for nursing Ronan to sleep, or for giving him a paci – that isn’t the idea.  The problem is allowing him to fall asleep always with something in his mouth!  Solution?  Removing the nipple/bottle/paci while he’s still awake, yet drowsy, and allow him to fall asleep without it.  We’re going to work on that for the next few days.  Wish us luck!

I have a friend at work that has an 11 month old that still wakes every 2 hours to nurse at night, just like Ronan.  I’m going to give her the book as soon as I’m done with it… she needs to get some sleep too.  And our poor, tender hearts can’t bear to cry it out. 

My next trip to the bookstore, I shall be buying a few more books.  Knowledge is power, and I feel better already.

Has it been a while since I shared a picture?

Avocado… yum.

You see all those teeth?!  4 on top now!

Love this boy.

By the way… you mommies, check out her website.  It’s fantastic.  http://www.pantley.com/elizabeth/