I put a pillow (this morning it was three) over my head, placed so I can still breathe, to drown out the sound of his banging on the door and screaming "mommy" after the third waking (the second was at 6:15). All I ask is to be able to sleep until 7. I just tell him to play in his room but that doesn't work out.
The family upstairs gets up at 6:30. They have a three year old son but most of the time aren't that loud. Zach's room is right under the three year old's though and he can't cover his head with a pillow. He started using a firm standard sized pillow the night before last and isn't waking up every hour on the hour at night anymore, but he still wakes up.
It's a combination of things. Zach has General Anxiety Disorder like me. With GAD your mind doesn't shut off, ever. While I have learned tricks to sleep in spite of the (odd) dreams, Zach is too young to figure that out. He has his comfort objects. Sometimes he can put himself back to sleep but the strange dreams make it harder. We used to be better at letting him cry it out and put himself back to sleep, when he was in the crib. The mattress on the floor started in December. Maybe it's time for us to go back to making him fuss it out, it works at naptime when he's tired but fighting it.
The first thing he has wanted was to eat so I'm thinking tonight we'll leave a snack in his room for him to munch on when he's hungry. He has a nightlight and that helps a little. I've tried snuggling again, he's not interested in sleeping while snuggling.
His two year molars are comming in and until today, for the previous three days, he's been hot enough and in enough pain for Pedia Care's version of Tylenol. We have given him Baby Oragel every night before bed since he started teething at three months old.
Hopefully, between the snack and throughout the night making him fuss until he puts himself back to sleep will make a difference. Since I have him all day Josh takes him with night wakings. He used to sleep through the night but it's been a long time. Josh gets up for work at 5am.
We are transitioning to morning naps. We joined the pool again so he'll need to nap before we go. We'll have lunch there (we got a cooler) and swim a while planning a late nap after. I need a nap when he sleeps, I don't when he rests better after Daddy leaves. If I can nap in the morning when he does I'll be good. The big problem started shortly after daylight savings time when the sun's out early. Can't control that. I guess Winter has it's advantages.
Yesterday, he woke up early but fell asleep on a pillow and comforter Josh left in the living room. He was going to use them to sleep in Zach's room if Zach woke up too much. I woke Zach up for that. He was NOT going to get me wide awake around 6:00 (fighting to get back to sleep until 7:04) then peacefully fall asleep. He'll refigure this sleep thing, and putting himself back to sleep, sooner or later. In the meantime, Zach! GET BACK TO SLEEP!!!
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