Jiggling

While I love my daughter to distraction, I can honestly say the evenings have been our most challenging time slot.

The calories that have been burnt rocking / jiggling our child to sleep or near sleep add up to the several bars of Green and Blacks white chocolate we have consumed to console ourselves.

I know you should always put your baby down awake and let her drop off on her own; I know by taking this short-cut now we are storing up trouble for later on; but, when Isobel has been unhappy for an hour or so we'll do anything to stop the pain. (And yes, I know it is our pain not hers.) In fact I know this so well I once included it in a post I had the good sense not to publish - a post about all the things I planned to do and not do when I had the baby. I was always going to put my baby down awake, I do often - in the mornings for example, my angel baby will go back in her crib and merrily gurgle her way to sleep.

Anyway, good intentions are always just that, 'intentions', reality has often been different.

Now, we are back on the no jiggling bandwagon. Quiet cuddles (maybe a little rocking) then down to sleep it is.

Our first foray into this zone found me standing over an unhappy Isobel as she lay in her crib; I stood there shushing and rubbing her tummy. It was a long fifteen minutes but you know what - it worked, she went to sleep and stayed that way for many hours.

I suspect we have a long way to go, but it's a good start. Last night Isobel just went down peacefully, but I suspect that has more to do with fresh air and a good nap, then me.

Tonight, well, Isobel is overtired (again), so maybe we'll be earning our chocolate, but I do INTEND to try not to jiggle or rock (well, not too much anyway).