Its been a rough couple days--Stetson is going through a new phase I think. He's taken to hitting and taking things from others for whatever reason, I'm not sure. I'm looking for some expert advice from you mothers on how to best discipline (if you even do) an 18 month old. Besides that, he's not been sleeping well, which means mom and dad aren't either. Last night he went to bed o.k. at about 9, then just kept waking up at random times VERY upset. At about 11pm we decided a nice ride in the car would do the trick...well not really. It helped some of the time, but sometimes he just wailed, so we considered taking him to the E.R. (I know, we're classic first time parents) because he was just unconsolable, which isn't really like him. Well we decided to get him some cough suppressent at Walgreens, but the pharacist said its not recommended for those under 2 yrs. So we get home about 2am, Michael sits in the car with Stetson 'til he wakes up(at this point we'll just take what we can get) and I catch some zzz's. Michael eventually came in and laid Stetson in between us which worked for a little while, then we took turns (mostly Michael) rocking him 'til he woke up for good at about 6:40. Rough night. Through all the insanity though, I've learned 2 things. Hard times bring me and Michael closer and I realize how much I love him. Two, there's no place like home. I know I would be WAY less stressed if I was in the comfort of my own home, minutes away from MY pediatrician that I know and trust, and I know Stetson could sleep better in his own crib. We're wondering if its allergies, or the fact that his mollers have been coming on for the last 3 weeks or so. What do you think? Is it pretty typical to get a cough/cold when teeth are coming in?
This afternoon Stetson struggled falling asleep, which is sad because I know he's exhausted. When he woke up I decided to take him on a walk to help get him in a better mood, but he just fell asleep, so that explains the picture.
Anyway, we're excited for happier days and a happier baby. Hope everyone is having a fun summer!
10 comments:
Emily, as for the hitting I just say try to catch them when they do it and do timeout or whatever your choice of punishment is. SOmetimes if I am somewhere else I just say no at her level and tell her if it happens again we are leaving. For the no sleep, I have heard and read that teething can give children all kinds of cold like symptoms, best chances are he is teething, just give him Motrin. I hope that helps, and just know that the hitting thing is a phase they go through I am still going through it. SOme kids bit and others hit and if you are lucky they won't do either. As hard and embarassing as it can be, just try to be consistant with catching the hitting and letting him know some way that it isn't acceptable. And if he ends up hitting you guys, try lightly hitting him back and tell him see its not nice to hit, that worked for Paiglee unless she is really mad. Also she likes to wrestle and we had to stop that for a while to get her to realize what is play and what isn't. Sorry so long hope this helps.
Sorry it's so hard Emily. Have you ever been to nursery? That is what kids that age do. When he gets old enough to reason with you can help him return to that sweet little boy that we all know and love. But it's going to be awhile. He's probably confused about why he isn't at his own house with his own stuff. I'm sure he'll adjust, the most important thing is he is with the two of you, you guys are his security. He'll get those teeth through and things will get cheerier. You two are great parents, it will be ok. Hang in there!
Hang in there! Things will get better!:)
Now that Jenna's little girl is over a year old she gives her a spoonfull of honey when she has a bad cough and she says it works wonders. Since we moved Jay has given up his normal sleep routine too--you could try playing some soft music in Stetson's room at night to drown out new noises that might be waking him up that helped us a little. As for your other problems I am too inexperienced to help. But I know you are a great mom and things will get better.
Oh poor little mommy! Isn't motherhood so funny? One week it's the most tender, wonderful experience, and then the next it's like, "Dan, please switch me jobs!"
Bryson has also been in funny phase of hitting and testing his freedom. Lots of deliberate disobedience where he does something he's not supposed to and says "no, no, no!" all while doing it.
In terms of sleeping, Bryson has had a few weird bouts where we finally determined it was night terrors. I mean, he was completely distressed for no apparent reason. Just a thought...
Good luck with cute little Stetson!
Definetely keep the motrin up. If it doesn't seem to be helping, you can do a motrin/tylenol thing at the same time... just remember- motrin every 6 hours, tylenol every 4. The music in the bedroom, like Shay said, should help a little... but just getting used to a new place is hard. We have moved three times since we had Kies... and it takes him a while each time. Every time we come back to Wyoming it takes a while to get into the swing of things. The hitting thing is hard, but hang in there, it's just something little boys have to go through. Once he knows it's not nice to get hit by someone else, and you explain it to him, he'll start to get it. I would also look into the allergy thing. Brensyn had/has allergies and it can totally mess them up in more ways than just sleeping. They finally put him on a perscription. Also- if he's got a runny nose, you might want to have his ears checked at a Dr. near you. Sometimes when they have a cold or allergies, they can get an ear infection from the fluid not draining properly... so let me know what happens!
Have you tried asking Michael to give him a blessing? Or better yet have him give you one. I know it really helped me out alot when things got a little over the top and stressful.
Hey Emily, it's Maria. Just a thought, Will was SO fussy one day, crying about everything and not sleeping well. The next day, I ended up taking Rosie to the doctor for a cold and I asked the doctor about Will. The doc checked him out and it turns out he had a raging ear infection. Who knew? He never once complained about his ear. Anyway, after we started his medicine, he was back to his old self. So, to make a long story short, maybe Stetson has an ear infection?
I agree with a lot of the comments. But mostly I know that my kids get very irratable every time they move or have a big change in their environment. Hopefully it is just that.
So, I don't know if you will even read this comment since I am a little behind the times. I am having pretty much the same issues with Matthew. He is hitting me and just very very ornery. He likes to throw little tantrums about everything and tells me "DON'T" or "NO" all the time. Since I am just as experienced as you are, well, I can't give you much advice cause I have no idea what to do with Matthew either. But just know that you are not the only one that has to go through it. Hopefully he starts sleeping better. I know that is very frustrating too.
Post a Comment