3459 Jasper says "Just get her a litter box."

Friday, February 10, 2012

Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities.
-- Voltaire --

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Late last week Daughter pretty much crashed and burned. Nugget is 9.5 months old, and she's still waking multiple times during the night, demanding attention, breast, diaper change, whatever, and she doesn't go back down easily. Daughter is getting no sleep.

Daughter is doing an excellent job with Nugget. She's strong and healthy, interested and curious, social and happy, active and bubbly, and sings and dances constantly. So I've pretty much refrained from interference, offering advice only when it's requested. But all along I've been a bit disturbed at a lack of schedule. She's put down for a nap when she's tired. She's responded to when she wakes during the night. She's taken out on social jaunts when her parents go, regardless of "nap times", but she loves people, so she's "not tired".

I won't go through the whole conversation, but the key was getting Daughter to realize that Nugget is in charge!, and she's not old enough to be making those decisions. So we talked about some changes, like scheduled times for morning and afternoon nap, whether Nugget says she's tired or not. Her internal clock will adjust. The adults will have to work around those times, but at least it's predictable. And a definite bedtime, with a ceremony that says "this is night sleep", and if she stands and screams, just sweep her feet out from under her and lay her down until she gets the idea. Part of the problem is that Nugget seems to think of night time as just a series of 1.5 hour naps. She needs to know that it's different.

A second problem involves diaper changes. Nugget won't lie quietly on her back. She twists and turns and crawls rapidly away. She's willing to stand holding onto a chair for a diaper change, but that doesn't work for poopy diapers. A few weeks ago I told Daughter that I didn't want to change poopy diapers any more when I'm keeping her, because I just can't do it with the kid upside down, or running away, or in whatever twisted position she chooses, and I don't want to fight with her. Nugget is very stubborn. Again, Daughter had to admit that the Nugget is in charge of diaper changes, and that's not acceptable. So when she starts with the twisting, Daughter can't just accept and accommodate it sweetly. She'll have to register disapproval and make it clear exactly what she wants. The kid's going to get nothing but bigger and stronger, so you have to start now.

I agreed to play with Nugget in the morning so Daughter can get a 2-hour nap until things settle down. I warned that it might be a few weeks. Daughter and Hercules discussed it over the weekend, and agreed on the schedules and the ground rules.

It's been amazing! In only four nights, Nugget settled down to one wake-up-briefly-and-back to sleep without attention two hours after being put down, and then a "want a drink" at 4 am, also brief and back to sleep after a few sips. Super overnight diapers helped, too. I changed a poopy diaper yesterday, and the Nugget made one brief attempt to arch her back and roll over and get away, I said "No!", and she immediately stopped and lay quietly.

She's such a good baby. All she needed was to learn what is expected of her.

Yesterday Nugget was pushing a box around the floor, practicing walking. I got my camera out, but when she saw the camera she left the box and came to stand at my knee. The camera case is attached to my camera with a thong. She played with the case, but wanted the camera. "Oo oo oo" means "I like that! Give it to me!" Usually it works. At the very end, 1:54, she gives a mighty jerk on the cord to pull the camera closer. Catch her face after that.

I showed the clip to her on the camera screen three times, and she was fascinated. I think she recognized it as herself, like a mirror, but somehow not! Wow! Magic, Gramma!
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