I can't remember if I posted about it on here or not, but Persephone is officially "nini" free. Nini was our name for her pacifier.
The name actually came from the TLC show Toddlers & Tiaras. There was a little girl (drama queen) on the show who had her nini even at 4yrs old. It was hilarious, probably because she wasn't my kid to watch her throw fits and scream for her nini. So before Persephone was born my mom suggested we say nini instead of binky or paci. It stuck.
Here's a little video compilation of MaKenzie from Toddlers & Tiaras throwing fits and demanding her nini!
Lets get back to the point...I'm super proud to say she's been 2.5 weeks without it. She was getting over an ear infection right as we decided to let it go bye bye. You would think that would have been the worst time to do it, but I think it helped. She couldn't really breathe through her nose and using nini of course made breathing harder. She asked for it a few times that first week and we just responded with "I don't know where nini went, oh well"
Now...in this transition phase a new issue has risen. Her sleep routine is TOTALLY out of whack. School says she sleeps fine at nap time and is usually one of the first to fall asleep. At night at home, this is an entirely different situation.
She used to be a breeze to put to bed. Grab her blankies and babies, tell mommy and daddy goodnight and she would lay down with no issue. Now that nini's gone, she seriously cries before we ever take her upstairs for bed. She'll stand in her crib, scream, cry...jump. Hardy starts panicking...I get a little irritated, but I know she's not in pain or hurting she's just lonely.
I gave in pretty easily to begin with. I let her sleep in our bed because it was easier than fighting and I wanted sleep too. Now if you can, picture Hardy and I in a FULL SIZE because that's what we have. Sometimes add 2 cats...and now add in a 2yr old. This makes for a very crowded bed. Eventually Hardy got the boot entirely and started sleeping on the couch or the spare bed. As if there aren't enough daily stress trigger to put a strain on a relationship...try living like room mates and see how "married" you feel.
I've been asking friends/family for advice left and right. Most say to let Persephone cry it out in her bed, eventually after a few nights she'll get the hint that she can't always get what she wants. Now aside from her falling asleep issues, she also has staying asleep issues. She will wake up at least twice every night, crying. The first time is around 12-1am...but when I check on her, her eyes are closed and she'll stop after a few minutes. The second time is usually 3am and she's awake standing in her bed crying. During my "give in stage" I would just go grab her and put her in my bed...but this is getting really old. I LOVE love love cuddles, but I also love my sleep and my husband.
So this week, I switched it up. I started laying in the floor beside her crib and told her lay down and hold my hand. After she dosed off I would leave. She continues to wake up in the middle of the night. Hardy did floor duty on Monday evening and she went to sleep fine for him too. Last night though, it was my turn again and she just wasn't sleepy. I don't know exactly what was going on, but I could see her close her eyes and open them to make sure I was still there. She stood up and said "Mommy hold you", I kindly reminded her she needed to sleep in her big girl bed and go night night . When she started crying I kept my cool and "sweet tone" and left the room. It took her approx 25min of crying and jumping, but she finally fell asleep. I guess we'll have to stick with crying it out since it seems to have worked last night. Now if we can just solve the middle of the night crying.....
It is heartbreaking to hear your child yell for you or their Daddy. But I know she needs to learn independence and self soothing. It's just so dang hard. Here's to hoping this won't last long and we get our sanity back.
The name actually came from the TLC show Toddlers & Tiaras. There was a little girl (drama queen) on the show who had her nini even at 4yrs old. It was hilarious, probably because she wasn't my kid to watch her throw fits and scream for her nini. So before Persephone was born my mom suggested we say nini instead of binky or paci. It stuck.
Here's a little video compilation of MaKenzie from Toddlers & Tiaras throwing fits and demanding her nini!
Lets get back to the point...I'm super proud to say she's been 2.5 weeks without it. She was getting over an ear infection right as we decided to let it go bye bye. You would think that would have been the worst time to do it, but I think it helped. She couldn't really breathe through her nose and using nini of course made breathing harder. She asked for it a few times that first week and we just responded with "I don't know where nini went, oh well"
Now...in this transition phase a new issue has risen. Her sleep routine is TOTALLY out of whack. School says she sleeps fine at nap time and is usually one of the first to fall asleep. At night at home, this is an entirely different situation.
She used to be a breeze to put to bed. Grab her blankies and babies, tell mommy and daddy goodnight and she would lay down with no issue. Now that nini's gone, she seriously cries before we ever take her upstairs for bed. She'll stand in her crib, scream, cry...jump. Hardy starts panicking...I get a little irritated, but I know she's not in pain or hurting she's just lonely.
I gave in pretty easily to begin with. I let her sleep in our bed because it was easier than fighting and I wanted sleep too. Now if you can, picture Hardy and I in a FULL SIZE because that's what we have. Sometimes add 2 cats...and now add in a 2yr old. This makes for a very crowded bed. Eventually Hardy got the boot entirely and started sleeping on the couch or the spare bed. As if there aren't enough daily stress trigger to put a strain on a relationship...try living like room mates and see how "married" you feel.
I've been asking friends/family for advice left and right. Most say to let Persephone cry it out in her bed, eventually after a few nights she'll get the hint that she can't always get what she wants. Now aside from her falling asleep issues, she also has staying asleep issues. She will wake up at least twice every night, crying. The first time is around 12-1am...but when I check on her, her eyes are closed and she'll stop after a few minutes. The second time is usually 3am and she's awake standing in her bed crying. During my "give in stage" I would just go grab her and put her in my bed...but this is getting really old. I LOVE love love cuddles, but I also love my sleep and my husband.
So this week, I switched it up. I started laying in the floor beside her crib and told her lay down and hold my hand. After she dosed off I would leave. She continues to wake up in the middle of the night. Hardy did floor duty on Monday evening and she went to sleep fine for him too. Last night though, it was my turn again and she just wasn't sleepy. I don't know exactly what was going on, but I could see her close her eyes and open them to make sure I was still there. She stood up and said "Mommy hold you", I kindly reminded her she needed to sleep in her big girl bed and go night night . When she started crying I kept my cool and "sweet tone" and left the room. It took her approx 25min of crying and jumping, but she finally fell asleep. I guess we'll have to stick with crying it out since it seems to have worked last night. Now if we can just solve the middle of the night crying.....
It is heartbreaking to hear your child yell for you or their Daddy. But I know she needs to learn independence and self soothing. It's just so dang hard. Here's to hoping this won't last long and we get our sanity back.
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