Ever since we stopped with the swaddling, Aria has been so, so difficult. She has been crying and fussing all day long, refusing to sleep even when she was visibly sleepy. At first I was able to rock her to sleep but the past 5-7 days even that hasn't worked, she just raises her head up and looks all around and then cries because she doesn't want to go to sleep. During the night (she sleeps next to me) she has been dozing and then kicking herself awake over and over and over, usually for a good 3-4 hour stretch. I am exhausted. It's been worse than when we first brought her home and she was only sleeping for an hour and a half at a time at night. Mostly because of the constant fussing and having to hold her all day long.

So this morning she starts in with her squirming and crying and I had just had it, it was obvious that she was sleepy but she just wouldn't let herself go to sleep, so in desperation I swaddled her up super tight and stood there and patted her tummy for a couple of minutes and miracle of miracles, off she went to sleep.

She's swaddled for her second nap now, too, and is snoozing away. This one took a little more effort; the first time I laid her down she wasn't having it, so I just sat and rocked her for awhile, not trying to get her to sleep but just being quiet and calm, hoping to kind of settle her down, then I swaddled her and again, off she went.

I'm not kidding, I could cry at the thought of actually getting a few hours of sleep tonight.

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Mary Beth - 32
DH - 31
Big boy Kian - 3/24/07
Baby Aria Grace - 2/10/09
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