I have basically been feeding Gwen whenever she shows signs of wanting to eat, not knowing that really she just wanted to pacify on something to relax her. I just figured that out yesterday while Matt and I were sitting in the exam room at the pediatrician with Gwen. So, I thought I was doing great because she was only waking up 2 times at night to eat. Apparently she should have only been waking up one time at night to eat. Now, the doctor told us yesterday that she can go through the night without a feeding, so from 11 p.m. till 7 a.m. she should sleep without eating. I am freaking out! How am I supposed to all of the sudden go from 2 feedings in the night to none. The doctor said it is time to just let her cry it out. She will eventually go back to sleep. The last thing any mother wants in the world is to sit here and listen to her beautiful little baby cry. I know it is for the best because a well rested baby is a happy baby. Plus, she needs to be able to find a way to relax herself rather then me getting her to sleep then putting her in her bed. Trust me, I've seen kids that are 2 years old and still have to be rocked and tip toed around in order to fall asleep and stay asleep and that is not what we want.
It is going to be a struggle, but I am told that it only takes them a few days to get into the new routine and when you let them cry it out, they figure out how to relax themselves. I do have to say that right before I started typing this I went and set Gwen in her crib because she was looking rather sleepy and knew she was going to scream but I did it any way. She cried for about 15 minutes and fell asleep on her own. Praise the Lord. It is hard to sit here and listen to my poor baby cry though. Pray for strength for me!
Shiloh still eats at like 730pm and doesnt eat again til about 1-2am. I can usually just lay her down after she eats and she falls right to sleep. Then she will eat again about 3-4 hours after that. What Dr did you go to? We have never been told to let the baby cry it out that young. Nathan was easy and always slept good, even with a ton of noise. But Ben...he is a different story. He just will not go to sleep with out a sippy cup with water. He wakes up at night because he wets through his diaper. He is more difficult that Shiloh :) If it doesn't feel right, don't let her cry. We were always told you can't spoil a baby that young. (I hope I'm not being pushy or sounding like a know it all. I just wanted to share with you :) She is such a cute baby and I can't wait for our girls to play together one day!
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