Through the Night

Its been a little over two months since our daughter was born and it seems like we may have lucked out a second time.  Our son started sleeping through the night at a little over two months old, or at least a solid eight hours during which my wife could get a good chunk of sleep in.  Well, our daughter did her first eight hour stretch of sleep through the night the other day and we are hoping that it stays that way.  Of course, I would have to be the one to throw a monkey wrench into the mix, which I did last night, by letting our daughter fall asleep too early in my arms, but I couldn't help it.  Regardless, she has one eight hour stretch under her belt and things are looking like they might continue that way.  It would be fantastic if she could figure out how to sleep through the night, night after night, before my wife goes back to work in a week and a half.  I think she can do it and we will do everything in our power to make it happen (which of course is not that much).  So aside from everyone being healthy and our son adjusting remarkably well to having a baby sister, that was the biggest news recently.  In fact, our son every other day or so, asks if he can old his sister on his lap, to which we of course reply that he can.  I can not even begin to tell you how happy I am that he loves his sister and isn't acting violently towards her.  In fact, he hasn't even asked if we can return her.  We have heard horror stories from other parents about how the older sibling has a very hard time adjusting to having a baby around, but all in all, our son is doing great.  The only area in which he gets a little jealous is over the attention that my wife has to give our daughter.  Yet, despite that little pang of jealousy, he remedies it by desiring to be with my wife more often than not.  And still, no violence.  I know as both my son and daughter get older, they will have their disagreements, their little shoving matches, their desire to hold on to as much privacy as space will allow, but for now, all is peaceful.  I am of the thinking that if we can keep the peace as long as possible, perhaps it will stick around as they get older and they will become the best of friends.  Only time will tell how their relationship will develop, but we are going to do everything in our power to make sure it turns out to be a happy relationship.  Oh well.

 

I am pretty sure I said this when our son was the same age as our daughter is now, but I will say it again in regards to her; I can't wait till she gets to at least six months old.  She is starting to show signs of being a human, with her personality occasionally peeking through, but all in all, she is still a full blown baby and I am just not a baby person.  I know some people love babies and would just love to keep their children in the baby phase.  I am definitely not one of them.  Give me a toddler, or a child, tantrums and all, and I will be content.  The incessant screaming that sometimes comes from babies is just not for me.  And as such, I think my wife and I are pretty much set on capping our family at four, the two of us and two kids, done.   Perhaps it is the fact that I have a 2.5 year old son running around the house or the fact that I am 2.5 years older and dealing with a screaming baby, or a combination of the two, but my patience for screaming is just not there anymore.  I can of course muster up the patience to deal with a screaming baby, you just sort of tune it out, but there are times when it just grates on my nerves.  Don't get me wrong, I love our daughter to death, the same as I love our son, I just need for her to get a little older and stop screaming so much.  My wife keeps on reminding me that our son screamed just as much, but I maintain that she screams more.  Yet, none of that matters because come summer time, she should be adjusted much better to life outside of her mommy.  When I am holding our daughter, there are times when I flashback to holding our son.  The two of them at times look remarkably alike.  You can tell there are slight differences in their facial features and the way their head is formed, but for a good part of the time, they look very similar.  One thing is or sure, having two young children around the house leaves very little time for anything else.  Its just a matter of sleeping less and trying to fit more into the hours of the day when we are awake.  Yet, I wouldn't trade it for anything.  There is nothing you could give me to take all this away and return life to the way it was before children.  I could ramble on, but I won't today.  Instead, I will go make breakfast.