Sleeping Beauty

Last Monday, Alex decided to stop napping all together. Since then she has taken 1 nap. It was on Saturday and only because Abby was here and she took a nap. I've been keeping our afternoons super busy so we don't go crazy at home. Today my windshield was being replaced (finally!) so we were at home from about 12:30 on. Alex actually cried because she wanted to leave the house. She gave me suggestions of Chickfila, Barnes and Noble, Target and HEB. She asked for a snack around 4:20 so I gave her a bowl of pretzels. A few minutes later I looked at her and saw...

It was hilarious! I grabbed my phone, took these pics and sent them to Josh. I then realized she still had food in her mouth so I woke her up so she could finish eating. I tried taking her bowl away and she cried so I took most of the pretzels out and let her keep it. She finished them and has been snuggled on the couch since. I know she's tired, but she won't go back to sleep. Actually, at this point, I don't want her to sleep since she'll be going to bed in a few hours!

A Few Tidbits

Friday night we helped Kate celebrate her 2nd birthday! Candice picked a "night at the movies" theme and it was sooo cute! They had a huge screen set up in the backyard so after it got dark we could watch a movie outside. It had been beautiful weather all day and right as the party started, it started raining. :( They brought the screen in and the kids still got to enjoy Tinkerbell. Candice had bags of popcorn for the kids and a whole candy bar set up for the adults!

Alex and Kate with their bags of popcorn!

cake and ice cream!

The adorable cupcakes Candice made with marshmallow "popcorn"

So, these are the only things occupying Alex's bed at the moment. She is still sleeping on the floor, but we have to make sure Piggy, Popi, Bean and Mono are all sitting at the edge of the bed watching over her. Naps are still totally hit or miss. If she naps, it's usually not until 3ish and that is after trying for 2 hours to get her to go down. I've noticed her attitude has changed since her sleep issues started. She is throwing more and more tantrums, she is cranky and gets totally out of sorts at the smallest things. At lunch yesterday, she actually got frustrated and threw a chip at Josh. I decided we need to get the sleep issues under control because it is making Alex a different child. I am totally fine if she is ready to drop her nap, but we have to work on her getting a good night sleep. She is still waking up at some point almost every night screaming and crying. I was flipping through a book on toddler and pre-school sleep issues at B&N the other day that I am going to buy this week. We need some changes in our house, I am at wits end!

Blah Week

Nomi brought Alex home on Sunday evening and spent the night. I love when my mom stays here. Alex woke up in the middle of the night calling for Nomi and when I got up Alex was snuggled in bed with my mom! They were so cute together. Monday we headed to the Woodlands to meet my 2nd cousin and her daughter for lunch. We were a little early so we planned on doing a little shopping then walk to La Madeline. We made it to 2 stores before the skies opened up. I was able to find Alex and Mom a way to the parking garage so I could pick them up there. I ran through the rain in white pants to get the car, then I dropped them off in front of La Madeline so I could park and run back through the rain. We had a great lunch, but Alex started melting down. She took a little nap in the car on the way home. Nomi left that afternoon.

We went to our normal Tuesday gymnastics class. Because most of the pre-schools here started this week, our friends were not there. They all moved to a Monday class. We didn't know any of the moms or kids, but they all seemed to know each other. They were in "interesting" crowd that I really can't see us hanging out with. I'll give it a few more weeks, then we may see about changing classes so we can be with our friends.

The rest of the week consisted of a trip to the grocery store every single day and a few other errands. Alex is starting dance next week so we made a trip to the studio to get a few supplies. She is so excited about starting class!

With all the traveling last week, Alex's sleep habits got totally messed up! She has not napped the last 2 days, she flips out if I leave her room. The one day I got her to take a nap, I had to lay down with her until she finally fell asleep. Nights haven't been much better. She has gone back to sleeping on the floor. The last 2 nights, I left the room and let Josh stay with her. He gives her pep talks until she finally agrees to go to sleep. She now sleeps with a flashlight she can turn on in case she wakes up and gets scared. Once she is asleep, she is out for the night, which is great, but it's like pulling teeth to get her to sleep. She seemed to do so well sleeping on a full size bed when we were in San Antonio and at Nomi's that it kinda makes me think we should have skipped the toddler bed all together and gone straight to her full size bed! Knowing her, she'd probably hate that too!

Nomi got Alex a purse last weekend that she has been carrying non-stop (and even sleeping with)! I told Alex we had to get ready to leave the other day so she got her purse, put on her sunglasses and grabbed her water. It cracked me up because it reminded me of Josh when he leaves for work (minus the purse) with his sunglasses and coffee!

I am so looking forward to a long weekend with Josh and Alex. Tomorrow we are heading to our friends house to spend the day playing in the pool. We love Erik and Fei, they have an amazing backyard and always make the best food! They ADORE Alex which makes it even better! They even told us to bring Cooper this time so he can play with their dog, Mocha! It will be great to be heading out of town as all the Ag's head in for the first home game of the season. Our town gets a little crazy on home game weekends. Then Sunday afternoon we are helping Abby celebrate her 2nd birthday! Alex is so excited about the party and keeps pointing out Abby's present to me!

Random Pics and Stuff

Alex had her last summer session gymnastics class last week. Her instructor, Miss Summer, is moving so Alex will have a new teacher for the fall. We LOVE Miss Summer. The Fall session actually started this week, but we missed the first class because we were out of town. In addition to gymnastics, Alex starts dance in 2 weeks. It's the only studio in town that has a 2 year old class and there is only one class day/time so we were super excited to get a space! It is a ballet/tap class. We have a welcome orientation tonight!

Helen, Miss Summer and Alex

Last Friday we had 2 couples over for dinner and games. Kate and her parents came so Alex and Kate kept each other entertained. They even got little bowls of ice cream!

Alex is on an apple kick. I usually cut them in slices so when she asked for one, I cut half of it into slices. She threw a fit, took me in the kitchen and pointed to the half that was on the counter. She wanted a whole piece. Since then, she will only eat big apple halves she can bite!

When Alex was sick a few weeks ago, she totally became a Mommy's girl. She wanted nothing to do with Josh. When she got better, she was still all about Mommy. She has finally come around to loving on Josh more and more!

Alex is also obsessed with stickers! We went to Target one day and bought lots of stickers from the $1 bins. She will go into the closet and pull out a sheet of stickers and put them all over her arms!


Last but not least, I **think** we finally have our sleep situation figured out! I started leaving Alex's door cracked when I put her down, so she could still see me as I passed her room. This went on for a few days while she slept on the floor. Then she started asking for me to leave it cracked when I told her it was nap or bed time. After a few days, I moved her blanket she slept on from the floor to her bed. At first she was a little hesitant to get in bed, but after a few times, she'd get in bed on her own. Now, she is sleeping in her bed with the door cracked. I let her take the Leapfrog laptop to bed with her so she can play with it until she falls asleep. This is more for us because she will pretty much play with it until she falls asleep. When we stop hearing the computer, we know she's asleep! Last night was our first little hiccup. She woke up around 1:30 screaming "crack, crack!" Her door was cracked, but since all the lights were off, she couldn't tell. I went in her room to talk to her for a few minutes, then turned on the bathroom light so she could see come light coming through the crack. She was happy and went right back to sleep. Now we just have to remember to leave a light on in case she wakes up at night she can see a little light coming through the crack.

Who Needs a Bed?

We have been having more sleep issues with Alex. She has been getting hysterical when we put her in bed. We have resorted to leaving the room and letting her cry herself to sleep. She gets soo upset but never gets out of her bed. I finally decided to put a blanket on her floor in front of her crib with her pillow, blanket, glow worm and kitty. I decided it may be easier if we give her a little more freedom at bedtime. We sat her down, gave her a few books and her Leap Frog computer. We told her she could stay up looking at books and playing with her computer all she wanted, but she needed to stay in her room. 5 minutes later, she was out, on the blanket. She slept on the blanket again last night.

Naps have been horrible. She slowly started pushing them back later and later to the point where we had to wake her at 5 so she wouldn't sleep too late. I kinda thought the late naps were causing the bedtime problems so I decided to cut out her naps for a few days. If we were in the car for a while, she'd nap, but naps at home were hit or miss. I've gone back to putting her in her room around 1:30 or 2 and telling her she could play all she wanted, but it was quiet time. I keep her door cracked so I can keep an eye on her. Yesterday, after an hour of playing, she finally took a little nap in her bed. Today, I knew she was sooo tired, but wouldn't sleep. I went in and held her for a bit, then put her on the floor on her blanket and she crashed. At one point, when I checked on her, she was sitting in a pail. (the above pic!)

So, I've basically given up on naps, if they happen, great, if they don't oh well. I'm fine with her sleeping on the floor for now, if it means she will go to sleep without crying.

Nap Issues

So, the first few days in her toddler bed, Alex napped like a champ! The last 2 days, not so much. She spends about an hour (or longer) playing in her room before she finally falls asleep. If I pop my head in she runs back to her bed. She usually whispers,"hi mommy" because she knows she is supposed to be quiet. Once she finally does fall asleep, it's not in her bed.

Last night was our first bedtime issue. We made the mistake of letting her watch Ratatouille before bed. For some reason at the end of the movie she always starts crying, bye bye mouse and is just sad from then on out. She was crying off and on while we were getting her ready for bed. We went through our normal routine and she was just not happy about it. We left her to fuss a little. After about 10 minutes, I went back in, she was still in bed crying. I sat and had a little talk with her, she calmed down, I left and she went to sleep. She was up at midnight screaming so I went in to check on her. I didn't want to get her out of bed, I wanted her to go back to sleep. I snuggled her for a few minutes then I sat beside her bed. After a few minutes, I grabbed a blanket and crashed on her floor. She sat up a few times and I reassured her I was still there and she seemed ok. I ended up falling asleep. At some point, I woke up and was about to leave her room. My hip popped when I stood up (because I am old and old people shouldn't sleep on the hard floor!) and she cried, Mommy no! So I stayed. At 3, I woke up again and snuck out and went back to my bed. She was ok after that. I am hoping this is a one time thing!

Here is where Alex napped the last 2 afternoons. (grainy because I used my iphone)

Breakfast in Bed

Today Alex was running back and forth from her kitchen to her bedroom. I peeked in to see what she was doing and I found her in bed with piggy. She had a plate with a cookie on it and was feeding piggy with a spoon! She was carrying on a full conversation with her piggy!

I love that little girl!

here is a not so great pic of her new bed setup...

Beach Baby

We headed to Galveston Saturday morning. We had sooo much fun! We stayed much longer than we normally do because we bought a canopy so we'd have a little shade. Alex is such a water baby! The tide was high so we had a great shallow area to play in. We had a picnic lunch, played in the water, relaxed in the water while the waves came over us, then flew a kite! We can't wait to go back.

When we left Galveston we headed to our friends house to clean up. Alex adores Steve and Tricia and they adore her! We went out for burgers before we headed to an event in their neighborhood. While we were at dinner silly Alex made onion ring glasses! Alex got to stay up way past her bedtime while we walked around. We had a great time catching up, eating yummy burgers and drinking even yummier drinks!

Today the James crew came over for dinner. Alex has been so excited about seeing Abby. We've been counting down the days. All the kiddos played so well together! I can't believe I didn't take any pictures.

On another note, Alex has continued to amaze us with her ability to transition to a toddler bed without any issues! We are keeping our fingers crossed that it keeps going good. Next challenge...potty training!

Transition to a Toddler Bed

Night #1 (Wednesday)
Wednesday evening we traded out the front of Alex's crib for a toddler rail. She was soo excited watching us take the front of her crib off and even more excited when we brought in the box that held the toddler rail. We told her it was a present so she was even more excited! She climbed in and out of her bed a million times. When it was time to put her down, we went through our normal bedtime routine and walked out of the room. She actually stayed...ALL NIGHT LONG!!! In the morning when we heard her talking, Josh went in there and she was still in bed. She pointed to her new rail and told me it was a present from Daddy! Soo cute!

Nap #1 (Thursday)
I was a little concerned with her naps since she was used to sleeping in our bed while she was sick. Today at nap time we snuggled while she drank some milk then I let her pick out jammies to wear. I put her down and covered her with a blanket she picked. She was very quiet for about 10 minutes, then I heard her playing. After another 10 minutes or so, I went in told her we needed to put all of her babies back in bed (she sleeps with a whole posse of stuffed animals) and the puzzle she took out of her closet needed to be put away. She helped me with everything then I put her back down and she napped for about 2.5 hours!

Night #2 (Thursday)

Alex was super wound up most of the evening so I was worried bed time would be a nightmare. To our surprise it wasn't! We did all of our bedtime stuff and put her down like normal. I popped my head in and she lifted her head, looked at me then went back down. She ended up sleeping the entire night.

So far, when she wakes up, she has been staying in her bed until we go in there. We'll see how tomorrow morning goes since Josh doesn't have to get up for work. I'm a little scared to say it because I know it can all change in an instant, but transitioning her to a bed she can get in and out of has been super easy so far!

Cute Words

Alex is pretty good at pronouncing her words. There are a few that she doesn't pronounce right and it is just so cute! I wanted to remember...

remote: meemote
coffee: caasee
Nomi: omee
Cooper: coocoo
silly: siieee
balloon: baanoon
lemonade: memade
stickers: stickewws

AND...tonight is Alex's first night in her toddler bed. We have the toddler rail that replaces the front of her crib. She didn't nap today so we knew she was super tired and she hopefully wouldn't be up too much!

A First

Josh and I have been very adamant about Alex not sleeping with us. She has slept in her crib since she came home from the hospital. She's been waking up at night, most of the time she puts herself back to sleep, but sometimes I end up sleeping in her room on the floor with her. Not the most ideal situation, but oh well. She tosses and turns so much that she is impossible to share a bed with. Last night, she woke up screaming and crying so Josh told me to just bring her to bed with us...so after almost 2 years of sleeping in her own crib at home, we gave in and let her sleep with us. The only time she has slept with us was when we were traveling and even then, we usually have her sleep in her pack and play. Since she was tired, she didn't move around too much and fell asleep fairly quick. I rolled over this morning and watched my sweet little angel sleeping between us. The bad part, she woke up around 6:30, got off the bed and started playing.

Random Stuff

I feel like we've had a busy few weeks. Tomorrow is Alex's last swim lesson and I'm soooo glad. 4 days a week is a lot for both of us and it's right in the middle of the morning so it makes it hard to run errands before, and by the time they are done, we have time to make a quick stop, have lunch then head home for a nap. On a good note, Alex is loving her swim lessons! After the first class, she was fine getting in the pool and leaving all the toys in the basket. She catches onto habits very fast. After each class, Candice and I sit with the girls and give them a snack while we dry off and dress the girls. Yesterday about 5 minutes before class was over, Alex looked at me and said, Mommy, all done. I told her class wasn't over yet and she said, no, all done! So we went to the edge of the pool, she got out, went to our towels, sat down and got her snack. I guess she was over class! lol

One of Josh's friends stopped in College Station on the way to Houston Monday. We all went to dinner. While we were eating, Alex was playing with her water cup. She poked her finger through the side of the Styrofoam cup and water spilled everywhere. She looked at us and said "oh shoot!" We started dying laughing. It actually made me happy that another S word didn't come out...I've been really good about watching my mouth in front of her!

We have been having a few sleep issues. Alex woke up one night at 3am screaming her head off. I finally went in snuggle her and she refused to go back in her crib. We ended up on her floor. Around 5 I woke up and she was sleeping in the middle of her room. I left her and went back to bed. When Josh got up, he heard her playing in her room. She has been fighting her nap. She gets so tired but doesn't want to sleep in her crib. One day I let her out and made a little bed on the floor with her babies and lots of blankets. She stayed in her room for an hour or so playing, but never napped. I guess she just needed some quiet time. I have a feeling once we transition her to a toddler bed, she'll prefer sleeping on the floor! Monday she actually slept until 9:45 when I woke her up so we wouldn't be late for a playdate. She NEVER sleeps that late! She is a creature of habit and no matter what time she goes to bed, she is up by 7:30 at the latest!

Here are a few pics from our week!

Alex and her "cheese" face!