Update - The Truth about Sleep (Or, I'm STILL $&%*#-ing Exhausted!)

It’s been two months since I last wrote about the sleep issues we were having and since we hired a sleep consultant.  I’m ecstatic to report that Baby O is now sleeping 12 hours straight without waking up or fussing and is napping 2 hours in the morning and 2 hours in the afternoon.  He’s a textbook case. 

And if you believe that, I’ve got a nice piece of swamp land in Florida to sell you too…

I think this post might be even harder to write than the first one was.  As you read in that post, admitting that we had sleep issues and talking about it was difficult.  But now after hiring someone to help, paying good money, and working very, very hard on sleep, admitting that O still isn’t sleeping well makes me feel like even more of a failure.

We have had some success.  There have been nights where O has slept 11 or 12 hours without waking and nights where he’d have a really good stretch of 7 or 8 hours.  The biggest success is that he is sleeping in his crib all night, and I can put him down awake and he falls asleep on his own.  Whether he wakes up in the night or not, this is a triumph.  Nap training proved to be EXTREMELY difficult.  I can’t stress that enough.  It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done, and it didn’t work very well.  After three weeks, we abandoned nap “training” and just let the naps fall where they may.  They have gotten better but there isn’t a whole lot of consistency.  Again though, the biggest triumph is that O will nap in his crib instead of in my arms or the stroller. 

About three weeks into the sleep training O started teething like a mad man.  When this baby gets a tooth they come fast and furious.  He got 3 teeth in 10 days (for a total of six teeth before he was 7 months old) and all the sleep training went out the window.  Right after those teeth broke through, he got his first cold which lasted 10 days.  There was no chance that sleep training would work again, so I waited a little while to try re-training.  It went pretty well the second time around (and I did it without the support of a consultant) and we had some success with a handful of nights with no waking.  

This week, O celebrated his 8 month birthday and he seems to have reverted back to all his old ways of not sleeping and I’m feeling exhausted, bitchy and very stressed out again.  He is having a very hard time falling asleep for naps and at bed time, is waking three or four times a night and is having very short naps again.  

I need to RELAX I guess.  Easier said than done when the above-mentioned money and time and effort have been spent and desperation for a good night’s sleep is still looming. I am trying to accept the fact that this sweet, adorable baby of mine is just not meant to sleep through the night.  I am  also trying to take comfort in the knowledge that other moms with babies of similar age are going through this too.  Some had babies that slept through the night early on and are now not sleeping, some are going through the same challenges that I am.  I have not heard of ANY babies that actually have the textbook naps of two hours in the morning, two hours in the afternoon.  Where do the books and “experts’ get the idea that babies will do this?? 

I suppose that what we are going through is normal, but it is still difficult.  I just keep telling myself that this too shall pass and that one day O will be a 16-year-old teenager like his big brother B who could sleep all day if we let him and that these sleep issues will be a distant memory.

Our Menu: Week of March 24 to 30

Greek Salsa Chicken with Roasted Potatoes and Steamed Green Beans 

Oh boy, was this GOOD.  If you like feta cheese and Greek food, you have to try this.  It’s a very easy recipe and it’s good enough to impress guests.  Our guest this week was my Mom and I think she was impressed with this one!  I made a couple of modifications to the recipe, but nothing major.  First, I only used one lemon instead of two and it was plenty lemony enough.  Second, it says to put the ‘salsa’ mixture on the chicken after it comes out of the oven (i.e., cold), but I put it on the chicken for the last 15 minutes it was in the oven.  Cherry tomatoes taste so good roasted and I think putting the cold mixture on the chicken wouldn’t have been as tasty.  For the roasted potatoes, I just cut a bag of mini potatoes in half and tossed them with olive oil, salt, pepper and dried oregano and roasted them in the oven alongside the chicken (in a different pan).  I bought some tzatziki to go with them too. YUM!!!!!   You can find the chicken recipe HERE. 

Chicken and Mushrooms in Garlic White Wine Sauce, Baked Rice and Peas, and Candied Pecan and Blue Cheese Salad 

I have made this chicken dish a couple of times and it is really delicious – see this post.  The Baked Rice and Peas was also easy and a great accompaniment to the chicken.  I also made my favourite salad with candied pecans and blue cheese. I usually add a chopped pear, but didn’t have one.  Still, an amazing salad!

Tofu Peanut Stir Fry 

This recipe is from Chatelaine magazine, which often has really good, easy recipes. It was tasty, but I’ll make some adjustments next time such as using firm tofu and cutting it in bigger chunks, not ‘French Fry’ strips as the recipe says, because it all fell apart.  I would also cook the tofu on high heat with oil in the pan first before adding vegetables, again to help keep it together.  The sauce could use a bit more flavour and kick too, so I would definitely add more garlic-chili sauce, teriyaki and peanut butter than it calls for.  Speaking of that garlic-chili sauce, if you can’t find it in the grocery store, just do what I did and use Sriracha sauce mixed with 2 or 3 minced garlic cloves.  I also added bean sprouts and green beans to the stir fry, but you could use any veggies really. 

Spaghetti with Homemade Meat Sauce and Steamed Broccoli 

The last frozen container of that batch of sauce I made a few weeks ago.  I will have to whip up some more since the living basil I got from Plan B is still thriving! 

Indian Cauliflower Curry Stew and Steamed Asparagus 

This was a really delicious vegetarian meal.  If you like Indian food (or FOOD as they call it in India...), try it.  The recipe called for brown rice, but next time I’ll use basmati.  I also doubled the amount of curry powder. I love curry!  Click HERE for the recipe.

Pork and Pepper Stroganoff with Steamed Broccoli & Cauliflower 
This is another Chatelaine recipe that I have made a couple of times.  It’s a very quick weeknight meal and delicious. Here’s the recipe.  I have made it with and without the jalapeno and it doesn’t really make a difference.

Bon appetit! 

(P.S. please pardon the spacing issues that occur regularly with Blogger.  Doesn't matter what I do, some posts just end up with weird spacing!)

 

Double the Cuteness!

Way back 16 years ago when Brayden was a baby complete strangers would stop me to tell me how cute he was.  He was a very happy baby and really was the cutest thing I had ever seen.  I can remember saying, “I can never have another baby, there’s no way it could be as cute and I would just compare him/her to Brayden!.”.  Well, turns out that cuteness has happened to me twice.  I know that probably sounds like gloating or that I'm conceited (for lack of a better word) but man, Oliver’s cute.  Some days I just look at him and can’t believe the cuteness, and I remember feeling that way about Brayden too.  Of course I have my mommy goggles on but I’m entitled, aren’t I!?

When I was pregnant with Brayden I KNEW he was a boy.  I had no doubt at all and even bought blue bedding and accessories for his room.  When the doctor announced, “it’s a boy!”, I thought to myself, “yah, I know.”.  When I was pregnant with Oliver, I really felt that he was a girl.  Or maybe it was wishful thinking.  At the time I thought to myself that I have a son already, a daughter would be nice.  But always in the back of my head I couldn’t help but think of how much I LOVE baby boys and that if it was a boy, I would be totally OK with it.  I don’t know what it is about baby boys (and all of you mothers of daughters – especially people I know – please don’t take offence!), I just love them to pieces.  I have a soft spot for them that I can’t explain.  When Oliver was born (by c-section) we asked the doctor and nurses to let Jason tell me if it was a boy or a girl.  When Jason said “It’s an Oliver” my heart filled with joy and I couldn’t wait to see and hold my second son.

I may never put pony tails in a little girl's hair or build a dollhouse with a daughter, but I’m so very lucky to have two sons and I wouldn’t change it for the world! 

Brayden - 6 months, August 1996

Oliver, 7.5 months, March 2012

Five Grain Rolled Cereal Daybreak Cookies

I made a batch of these cookies just before O was born with the idea to have them on hand for a quick bite to eat in the morning once he arrived.  It turned out that we were in the hospital for 6 days after O’s birth and Jason had to bring his own food so these cookies were great for that purpose.  I had all but forgotten about them until I started to organize my bookmarks in my web browser and came across the link to the recipe so I whipped up a batch today.  They are so good and really easy and only take 10 minutes to bake.  I made a couple of modifications to the original recipe – see my notes below. Here's my version:

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup butter, melted

3/4 cup packed brown sugar (original calls for 1 cup)

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup whole wheat flour (original calls for white flour)

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cup five-grain cereal – I use Grain Shop High Fibre Crisp (which is also one of my favourite cereals for breakfast)

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1/4 cup pecan halves – chopped

1/4 cup walnuts – chopped (not in the original recipe)

(I also omitted the coconut in the original because I just don’t like coconut!)

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Blend melted butter and sugar with a whisk until smooth. Add vanilla and egg to butter mixture and mix well.

In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cereal. Stir flour mixture into egg and butter mixture until just combined. Add remaining ingredients, mix until combined.

Drop 1 1/2 inch balls (about 2 tbsp per ball) onto parchment lined cookie sheets.

Bake 10 minutes or until lightly brown on edges but still soft in the middle. Cool 2 minutes on cookie sheets and then remove to wire racks to cool completely.

ENJOY!

Our Menu: Week of March 17 to 23

Ah, the week of St. Patty’s Day!  My sister’s recent fascination with genealogy has uncovered that we are more Irish than anything!  I always knew we were at least a quarter Irish since my maternal grandfather was, but it turns out there’s good reason to raise a glass and say “Slainte” on March 17th!  What does this have to do with our menu, you ask?  Nothing, really!  Except that we went out to a pub on the 17^th for some grub and a couple of pints, thus making the menu shorter this week.  Next year I really want to make an Irish feast on St. Patrick’s Day and these are the recipes I am dying to try:

Guinness and Honey-Glazed Pork Loin
Colcannon 
Chocolate Stout Cupcakes with Bailey’s Irish Cream Frosting  

Only 360 more days till St. Patrick's Day 2013!   Now, on to the week’s menu!

Ham and Potato Soup and Salad

A repeat – see this post.  I used gluten-free all-purpose flour this time and the soup didn’t get quite as thick, but it was still very tasty. 

BBQ Meat with Grilled Veggies

It’s only March, but I’m so excited that it’s BBQ season already!  The best part of the season is the super easy clean up after dinner. Jason and Brayden each had a steak on the ‘Q and I had a pork chop that I sprinkled with Montreal Steak Spice.  We also had grilled veggies on the BBQ for the first time this year and I was reminded of how much I LOVE them this way!  I included mushrooms, purple onion, cherry tomatoes, zucchini and asparagus. Toss them in a bowl with olive oil, salt, pepper and some garlic powder and cook them in a BBQ basket.  They don’t take long at all and they are so good! 

Rosa’s Lasagna!

I have mentioned Rosa a few times (my sister’s mother-in-law) and I was so very lucky that I saw her this week and she sent me home with one of her lasagnas!  Rosa is the pasta and sauce master and makes both herself.  We steamed some cauliflower and broccoli to go with it and had a Caesar salad.  Thank you, Rosa!

Jerk Chicken Thighs, Spanish Rice and Steamed Broccoli and Cauliflower

Bev (my sis) keeps raving about Grace Jerk Chicken Sauce and picked up a jar for me.  I rubbed it on some chicken thighs and roasted them in the oven.  Delicious but be forewarned, the sauce is HOT!  I used WAY too much!  I was going to make some plain rice to go with the chicken, but I decided to whip up some Spanish rice instead. It's very easy.  Saute a chopped onion and a couple of garlic cloves in some olive oil.  Add a can of diced tomatoes, about a tablespoon of chili powder, a teaspoon of cumin and some salt and pepper to taste.  Then add 2 cups of uncooked long grain rice.  Bring to a boil then reduce the heat and let it simmer until the rice is done. If it doesn't look like there's enough liquid for the amount of rice you used, just add some water.  I also steamed some broccoli and cauliflower to go with it.  

Saucy Green Beans and Sausage

A new recipe!  This was really easy and so tasty!  The ingredients are so simple but the flavour was fantastic.  We had leftover Spanish rice with it. 

Pita Pizzas and Salad

A simple supper for a Friday night.  See this post.