Thanksgiving break

Oh what a glorious 5-day weekend we had! Filled with family, food, fun and relaxation.

For the first time in 5 years, we actually didn't put the Christmas decorations up the day after Thanksgiving, and I have to say - it felt pretty good! We plan to take our time with the decorations this year and will probably go pretty minimal. The energy it takes to put it up and down will be better spent elsewhere.

Instead, we spent most of our days lounging in PJs, eating yummy breakfasts, drinking coffee and playing with our BUSY BUSY boy! He's such a handful these days! It's so fun to see what he's learned and watch him grow. I love having Josh home to experience it with me.

In other news - I polished off the rest of the Thanksgiving leftovers for lunch today. It's always a good feeling to get that out of your fridge. But this year, since I'm breastfeeding and always SO hungry, I'm kinda sad to see it go.

Anyways, here's some fun pictures to recap our break.

Jacob's First Thanksgiving

Love this little boy....

My BIG boy!

Jacob is sitting up on his own!! He's been doing it for about a week now, and let me tell you - he LOVES it! He refuses to lay on his back now because he can't see everything! He loves watching me walk around, the dogs play, etc. etc. He can't get enough!

Apples!

We have a winner!! Jacob {loved} apples! Wowwy woww woww!! He was grabbing for the spoon, opened wide and gobbled it all down! I'm so excited we finally found something he loves!

Jacob - 5 months

Age: 5 months
Height: He hasn't been measured since his 4 month check-up. I guess I could measure him...
Weight: 19lbs 15oz (this is how much he weighed 2 weeks ago, haven't gone to the doctor since)
Milestones: Jacob rolls back to tummy easily, but can't seem to get back to his back...we're working on that!  He can sit up unassisted for several minutes before slumping forward or falling over.  He plays with his feet ALL the time, especially when I'm changing his diaper, and has even managed to get them in his mouth!
Sleep: Hallelujah!  The child finally knows how to sleep!  We did have to do some serious sleep training with him for about a week, but its made such a huge difference in my attitude and his!  I can tell he's happier, more alert and focused.  He goes to bed at 8pm, wakes once around 3-4am to eat, and then goes back to sleep until 7am.  The best part is that he puts himself to sleep, so there's no rocking on 1 foot while whistling to the tune of Yankee Doodle Dandee (not really, but really).  He's still napping for only 30 minutes at a time, I'm hoping this next month will bring longer, less frequent naps!
Eating: Jacob is still breastfeeding like a champ.  We've introduced solids: oatmeal, banana, sweet potato and butternut squash.  Of those, his favorite has been butternut squash.  He doesn't open his mouth and attack the spoon quite yet, but we're getting there.  I've been feeding him 1oz once daily, usually around lunchtime, but I'll probably increase to 1oz twice daily now that he's 5 months old.
Clothes size: 9 month onesies and 9 or 12 month pants.
Diaper size: Size 3
Best Moment: This month has been so great, I'm not sure?  But if I had to choose, I'd say when he rolled over.  He acted to surprised and confused - so cute! :)
Worst Moment: Going through the sleep training was tough, but we made it out alive and better!
Teeth: No teeth!
Looking forward to: The holidays! Thanksgiving is right around the corner, and I'm so so so excited to start special traditions and make memories with our sweet boy.  I'm hoping to introduce green beans soon, so Jacob can have a Thanksgiving dinner with us (green beans, sweet potatoes and squash).  For Christmas, we're converting the guest bedroom into a playroom for him, so I'm excited to start that transformation (after Thanksgiving) and to start Christmas shopping for our little nugget!

Ferberizing Jacob - summary

Day 1 - Weds, October 24
Nap 1 - 60 minutes of crying, no sleep
Nap 2 - 50 minutes of crying, 15 minutes of sleep
Nap 3 (emergency nap) - 0 crying, 2 hours of sleep
Bedtime - Squirmed/fussed for a few minutes, fell asleep.
Woke at 12:45am, cried for 60 minutes.
Fed at 1:45am, fell back to sleep immediately after.
Woke for the day at 5:50am (8 hours, 50 minutes nighttime sleep)

Day 2 - Thurs, October 25
Nap 1 - 30 minutes of sleep, 27 minutes of crying (in that order)
Nap 2 - 26 minutes of sleep, 27 minutes of crying (in that order)
Nap 3 - 11 minutes of sleep, 27 minutes of crying (in that order)
Nap 4 (emergency nap) - 0 crying, 1 hour, 50 minutes of sleep
Bedtime - Cried for less than 10 minutes.
Woke at 11:30, cried for 1.5 hours.
Fed at 3:30, cried for 5 minutes and fell asleep.
Woke at 4:00, cried for less than 10 minutes.
Woke for the day at 8:15am (10 hours nighttime sleep)

Day 3 - Fri, October 26
Nap 1 - 33 minutes of sleep, 27 minutes of crying (in that order)
Nap 2 - 1 hour, 5 minutes of sleep, 0 crying
Nap 3 - 35 minutes of sleep, 22 minutes of crying (in that order)
Bedtime - Cried for less than 5 minutes and fell asleep.
Fed at 8:18, cried for 10 minutes and fell asleep.
Woke at 11:38, cried for 1 hour, 12 minutes and fell asleep.
Fed at 3:37, cried for less than 10 minutes and fell asleep.
Woke at 4:13, cried for 10 minutes and fell asleep.
Woke for the day at 7:15am (10.5 hours nighttime sleep)

At this point, we changed our nap rules to a half hour instead of a full hour.  It seems that Jacob just isn't ready for a full hour, which is apparently very common for babies his age and was confirmed by his pediatrician. He's been going to sleep immediately for naps, with no crying, so we don't really have an "issue" there.

Day 4 - Sat, October 27
Nap 1 - 29 minutes of sleep
Nap 2 - 31 minutes of sleep
Nap 3 - 30 minutes of sleep
Nap 4 - 18 minutes of sleep
Bedtime - fell asleep immediately.
Woke at 11:50, cried for 32 minutes and fell asleep.
Fed at 4:11, fell asleep immediately.
Woke at 4:52, cried for 26 minutes and fell asleep.
Woke for the day at 6:45 (10 hours nighttime sleep)

Day 5 - Sun, October 28
Nap 1 - 30 minutes of sleep
Nap 2 - 34 minutes of sleep
Nap 3 - 31 minutes of sleep
Nap 4 - 1.5 hours of sleep
Bedtime - fell asleep immediately.
Woke at 11:16 and 11:55 and cried for less than 15 minutes each time.
Fed at 4:12, fell asleep immediately.
Woke for the day at 7:25 (11.5 hours nighttime sleep)

Day 6 - Mon, October 29
Nap 1 - 35 minutes of sleep
Nap 2 - 25 minutes of sleep
Nap 3 - 40 minutes of sleep
Bedtime - fell asleep immediately.
Woke at 11:48, 12:40, 1:08 and 1:34 and cried for less than 17 minutes each time.
Fed at 4:07, fell asleep immediately.
Woke for the day at 7:25 (11 hours of nighttime sleep)

Day 7 - Tues, October 30
Nap 1 - 31 minutes of sleep
Nap 2 - 38 minutes of sleep
Nap 3 - 1 hour of sleep
Bedtime - fell asleep immediately.
Woke at 11:52, cried for less than 10 minutes.
Fed at 5:03, cried for less than 10 minutes and fell asleep.
Woke for the day at 7:30 (11.5 hours of nighttime sleep)

Soo...after 1 week, we were down to 1 feeding per night.  We place Jacob in his crib drowsy, but awake, for all naps and bedtime and he successfully puts himself to sleep.  He still wakes up several times throughout the night and fusses, but typically its less than 5 minutes and he settles himself.  If he cries for longer than 20 minutes, it means he's hungry and I feed him (only if its after 1:30 - 6 hours after he eats last, or half way through "nighttime").

My advice for parents looking for a sleep solution:
1) Do your research, decide on a solution, and stay firm on your choice.  Do not deviate from the plan in the middle of the night.  Babies need consistency and repetition, its how they learn.
2) Make sure both parents are on-board and committed.  You cannot get through this alone.
3) Invest in industrial strength ear plugs.
4) Trust your instincts and know that you're doing what's best for you and your child.

Good luck!!
Kate