My New Bedtime Routine....and I Love It!!!

Life has taken on many changes in the past 19 days, one major one is my bedtime routine.

I've been a TV gal for as long as I can remember but lately it's just not so. I'll be honest and say that there is much I'd like to watch but I've quickly learned that when the TV is on my girly stops what she's doing and watches the TV. Be it eating or playing she'll stop and watch the action which has caused mommy to keep it off most of the time. I've gone from watching at least 4 hours a day to probably a total of about 6 hours (while she's been sleeping) since Hannah and I met. There is a PVR downstairs loaded with lots of great programming like Amazing Race, Survivor, 18 Kids and Counting and more....but for now they'll just have to wait.

Hannah's sleeping patterns here in Canada have not been quite as settled as they were in China. I hear that's quite common. After midnight she sleeps like a rock and I am grateful for that but before midnight she is more unsettled. I'm trying to get her to bed a little earlier each few days and it's working but she still wakes up a few times. The first wake up is normally within 30 mins of her going to sleep. At this point she's in her crib and I'm sitting on my bed about 2 feet away. She wakes crying and sometimes she calms herself and goes back to sleep and other times she needs a little rocking and cuddling. Never a problem!

Normally after this cuddle time she's back to sleep but for the past 2 nights this sleep has only lasted about 15 mins and she's quite wide awake and happily plays in the dark beside me. Her little feet kick (as they're kicking the laptop now) and she chatters away and sometimes plays with the tags on her taggie which she likes to sleep with. I look down and these most precious little eyes with an huge gummy grin are looking up at me as if to say, 'Hey Mommy....let's play! I'm not tired!' I'm trying not to give in to it (although it's hard as she's so cute!) but realize we must get into a better sleep routine. Once midnight hits it's like a switch goes off and she's down for the count....normally until 10am! Now, I'm enjoying these late mornings but truly it does make it quite difficult to get things done and throws her nap schedule for the day too. I hate to but I might need to begin waking her up earlier in the day (oh yah....that means me getting up earlier too!) so that she can get onto a better schedule). We'll work on that.....next week. :o)

She settles really well once I do. If I needed more sleep I'd try to go to sleep when she does but I'd be wide awake in the middle of the night. For now I'm going to try and read a bit by the nightlight and see if she settles. Still working out the jet lag kinks but it's only been a week and we'll eventually get our sleep groove on. Until then....enjoy a little of what I see. Is there any question why I'm so madly in love? Even at midnight when she should be sleeping she's totally adorable!!



Oooo....it's 12:40 and I think she's gone for the night. A little more rocking and she was out like a light. Every other night one's she's asleep at this hour she stays asleep so here's hoping tonight will be like the rest!

good night friends.......