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Bizarre sleeping behaviour

March 14, 2008 in Ethan, Sleep | 9 comments


Scrap Credits
Emma kit quickpage and elements from retrodiva {designs}™
Sunshine and Daisies kit from Maria LaFrance
100% Tampons square frame from [ v.vv ]
Blue painted newspaper alphas from Manda J Designs

Peacefully.  Soundly.  That’s how Ethan sleeps in the morning.  Sometimes when we are ready to go out, he will still be sleeping, and when I try to wake him up saying “Wakey wakey”, he will grumble and whine, turn over and go back to sleep.

If only he could sleep this way through the night.  The strange night behaviour of his began last week.  One of the nights, Ethan suddenly woke up at 3a.m. and asked me to take him outside.  He wanted to drink milk and then watch some television.  I switched between Playhouse Disney and his two other favorite channels, Astro on Demand previews (channel 302) and Channel V (channel 714).  Then we watched some DVDs.  I tried to coax him to go back to the room to sleep but he didn’t want to.  Finally he fell asleep in my arms at about 5:30a.m.  It happened again two nights later, but this time round it was not so bad because he fell asleep after an hour or so.

Then a few nights ago, he would wake up screaming, and adamantly ask me to take him out again.  He would throw a huge tantrum if we refuse, kicking and screaming on the floor.  Once out of our room, he would lead me to the living room and then “throw” my hand towards the light switch in the living room.  Then he would “throw” my hand at the TV remote.  After that he would come and snuggle up to me and fall asleep.  With the TV on.

I kid you not.  Happened again last night.

Why does he do this?

My sleeping angel

February 18, 2008 in Ethan, Sleep | 10 comments


Scrap Credits
That’s Amore freebie from Cinzia Loosemore
Netter’s Alphas from Scarlet Heels
Brackets from Sun Porch kit by Amy Teets

Yesterday afternoon, while hanging out with Ethan at home, I witnessed a sleeping angel.  Ethan was sitting on the couch watching Baby Noah on the telly and I was flipping through the newspapers.  He hadn’t had his nap yet, and I knew it was about time he felt sleepy.  Usually he would look for me for a cuddle before falling asleep but yesterday, he suddenly crouched over on his tummy, found his really comfy position and drifted off to sleep, all on his own. 

What’s a blogger mom like me supposed to do?

Sleepy bleepy

January 25, 2008 in Ethan, Sleep | 4 comments


Scrap Credits
Clarity Kit freebie from MyAngel236
Doodles: Doodle Me Big from Mikkel Paige Originals
Blue painted newspaper alphas from Manda J Designs 

Ethan’s sleeping and bed habits:

  • Light sleeper – will wake up at the slightest sound.
  • Experiences deep sleep in the early mornings.  Sometimes I can even change his diaper without him waking up.
  • When he wakes up at night, the first thing he will do is cry.  When he wakes up in the morning, the first thing he usually does is SMILE.
  • Loves to play under the quilt covers – he will lie very very still when he is under the covers and then reveal himself to you all of a sudden.
  • Loves to climb onto our bedside platform, lifts his hands up as if in jubilation to say “Look, Mommy!  No hands!”
  • Needs to be either lulled to sleep by being carried or breastfed (working on the weaning part).
  • Still wakes up about once or twice in the night for comfort suckling.
  • Sometimes talks and giggles in his sleep.
  • Kicks a lot when he sleeps.  Able to rotate whole body all around the bed.
  • Sleeps in various positions, one of his favorites being the “crouching position”, i.e. butt high up and face tilted a little to the side.  Sometimes he sleeps in the coma/recovery position too.
  • Doesn’t like pillows, and still sleeps without.
  • Doesn’t like blankets, quilts and comforters too, preferring to sleep *exposed*.
  • Sometimes he wakes up and will fall back to sleep again when we put him on our bed.  However, he will need to snuggle and hug me really tight like a bolster first.  One hand will be around my neck or torso, and one leg around my waist.
  • When he wakes up before Daddy and Mommy are asleep and I don’t come and hold him as soon as he would like me to, he will cry and wail loudly, as if someone is abusing him.

But he does sleep like an angel, doesn’t he?

That glorious song of old…

December 21, 2007 in Celebrations, Ethan, Sleep | 5 comments


Photo credits: A Treasury of Christmas Carols

Last night Ethan interrupted my Amazing Race Asia program by leading me to our room. This meant he was ready to sleep. We had a very tiring day yesterday, did some Christmas shopping and Ethan fell asleep in the car on the way home too. That was why I was actually surprised that he already felt sleepy at about 9:30p.m.

Anyway, I took him into the room and let him roll around on the bed for a while. Then I started serenading him with some Christmas carols. He in turn began *talking* to me. I paused several times to talk back to him and I even asked him what his favorite carol was. He would smile and clap appreciatively after I had finished singing each song, but he was still wide awake. I sang every song from “White Christmas” to “Jingle Bells”, from “Silent Night” to “Away in a Manger” but nothing could make him yawn. As I was running out of carols to sing, I suddenly remembered I had yet to sing one of LB‘s favorites: It Came Upon a Midnight Clear. So I sang it… As soon as I finished the first verse, Ethan’s eyes began to look drowsy. I continued singing and he rolled on one side, close his eyes and eventually fell asleep! I wonder if this same song will work yet again tonight… only one way to find out… 🙂

Sleeping like an Angel

November 12, 2007 in Ethan, Sleep | 6 comments

 
Scrap Credits
Silent Night paper from Nicole Kaltenecker
Stacked & Wrapped frame from Ellie Lash
Blueberry Sparkles & Soft Romance elements from Magdalena Marthin
Memories gemstone addon from Lindsay Jane Designs
Sweet Serenity Alphas from Shabby Princess Designs

There’s something completely soothing about the way Ethan sleeps.  I can just sit and watch him for hours.  He looks almost angelic, if I might say so myself.
When he is asleep, sometimes he would break out in a giggle or two and then continue sleeping.  I wonder what he is dreaming of.

Last week, on Deepavali day, right before lunch, our boy fell asleep.  He must have been really tired because he slept from 12 noon till 2:30p.m.!  This is very unlike him, because he would be asleep for one hour tops, and that’s it.  Some afternoons, he goes through without a nap even.  But yesterday he was in a very deep sleep because at one point, he smiled, clapped his hands, turned over and then continued sleeping, oblivious to his surroundings. The weather was also very cooling, so it was absolutely conducive for sleeping.  Pete only went in to wake him up because we were both so hungry by then.  By the time we all had lunch, it was close to 3:30p.m.

If only Ethan could sleep through the night…

Late Sunday Night

July 10, 2007 in Ethan, Parenting, Sleep | 1 comment

Sunday night was another record-breaking night.  Ethan simply didn’t want to go to bed.  When we took him into the living room to play, he looked like he was sleepy, so we took him into the room.  But when he was in the room, he held either Daddy or Mommy’s finger, and motioned for us to take him out by running over to the closed door.  In the end, the three of us went to bed together, at the same time, and we *made* Ethan sleep by relying on the age-trusted method of breastfeeding.  It was close to midnight then.

It was as though Ethan did not want to sleep because he knew the weekend would be over as soon as he fell asleep.  Yeah, don’t we all wish the weekend would go on forever?

Finally, an Answer!

July 5, 2007 in Ethan, Funny Moments, Sleep | 2 comments

I have been wondering for so many moons why Ethan sleeps the way he does when he sleeps on our bed. The three of us will end up making an I shape, or H shape or sometimes (creative juices flowing here) a Z shape. Why? Why can’t Ethan sleep in the middle in parallel to both Mommy and Daddy?

Pete gave this gem of an answer: Because he wants to touch both Mommy and Daddy at the same time: head resting on Mommy’s arm and feet resting on Daddy’s chest.

So it’s not the same if he sleeps in parallel with one hand touching Mommy and the other touching Daddy? *scratches head*

Long Story Worth Reading

June 30, 2007 in Breastfeeding, Ethan, Food & Feeding, Growing Up, Milestones, Parenting, Sleep | 6 comments

I want to remember this special and historical day for as long as I live. I want to have every single detail of today etched in my mind for ever. Read till the end and you’ll know why.

Our Saturday started before 8:00a.m. when Ethan woke both Pete and me up. Ethan had somehow *found* his way to our bed again the night before, and although for most part of the night we slept in the shape of an “I” or “H” or at times a “Z”, we all had a good night’s rest. Maybe it was because we all *knew* it was already the weekend 🙂 In typical Ethan fashion, he crawled over to me, put both his hands on my cheeks and tried to wake me up. My mind was awake but my eyelids were still closed, so he rolled over to Daddy’s side and started playing with Daddy instead. We lazed around in bed and soon got up for breakfast. Ethan shared a bowl of Kellogg’s Frosties with full cream milk with me. I didn’t want to give him too much because of the high sugar content. After that I made 2oz of Isomil + Pediasure for Ethan in a bottle and Pete tried bottle-feeding him. As expected, he rejected the bottle. So I tried giving him the bottle myself instead. Pete gave him the bottle cover to play with and Ethan had a field time putting the cover on the bottle and then removing it. He then grabbed hold of the bottle and opened his mouth wide while putting the bottle nipple into his mouth. We thought he would be happily drinking the milk then but alas! It was only for a while; he had hardly drank 2 sips and he was repeating the entire process over again: close bottle cover, remove bottle cover, play with bottle, pretend to drink from bottle. In the end I decided to mix the milk with some organic arrowroot cookies which I had bought for him a few weeks ago. Guess what? Cookies, he liked. Cookies + Milk mixture, he pushed away. So much for the semblance of a plan. As a last resort, I just poured the remainder of the milk into his mug and gave it to him to drink….and you know, I was surprised he actually drank a few gulps that way. Finally to make it a wholesome breakfast, Ethan had a cup of his favorite grape-flavored yogurt, which he finished joyfully. I then gave Ethan his shower, and after that I breastfed him.

Today, I introduced the shape sorter toy his Ipoh Ah Ma bought for him some months back. Ethan was very excited when he saw the new toy and began playing with it immediately, although he can’t really play it the right way yet. He can turn the hands of the clock on the toy though 😛

We then went out to have dim sum for brunch where Ethan demonstrated once again that he was really becoming a big boy, on the way to independence and self-feeding. He now eats his siew mai using a chopstick ala satay style. Yup, he eats with only one chopstick which is pushed into a piece of siew mai. He will eagerly hold the chopstick and feed himself the piece of siew mai, chomping away happily after that.


Oh, and following Uncle LB‘s suggestion, Ethan tried lormaikai for the first time today. It is of course a form of rice and we are not at all surprised that Ethan loves it!

Next, off we went to Queensbay Mall. I did some clothes shopping and then we went to Toys R Us. The toy car which Ethan took a fancy to had been shifted to the back of the store. So now all the toy cars were grouped together. Of course, Ethan had to take his weekly rides in them. Hmmm….I’m still wondering if I should get one for him…. the problem is where to put the car? He discovered the police car this week…. just look at him having the time of his life!

After that we were at Borders, where we allowed Ethan to wander around in the children’s section, much to his delight. Ummm…actually he also wandered OUT of the children’s section, much to HIS delight too…. and so it wasn’t too long before our boy got knocked out while I was carrying him. He fell asleep in my arms and after a while we placed him in the stroller, while he was still sleeping. We did our grocery shopping in Jusco and then proceeded to the elevator, ready to leave Queensbay Mall. However, as soon as the lift music played, Ethan woke up alert and happy. When we reached home it was already 5:00p.m. and after we unpacked, it was half past five.

And only THEN did I breastfeed Ethan. He was such a good boy, and didn’t even demand loudly for his milk. All I did was sit on the sofa, and he came up to me with this adorable puppy-dog look that said it all, “Mommy, can I have some milk, please?” How could I say no to that?

This was also the first time we had gone out shopping for more than 5 hours that I did NOT have to breastfeed Ethan in the Baby Room in Jusco. Very very good weaning progress indeed.

Ethan played with his toys for a while, watching some TV too. Then we headed out to Old Town for dinner. Nasi lemak and roti bakar were the order of the day. Since Ethan did not take a lot (most of it was just the nasi lemak), I made him another 2oz of Isomil + Pediasure when we got home. I mixed some oats with the milk so it became oatmeal! And was I glad I did! Ethan loved it and ate a lot of it 🙂 It was already about 9:00p.m. then.

Suddenly I had the idea of trying to put him to bed without breastfeeding him. After all, he had had a lot of the oatmeal and he was already very full by then. We gave him his warm shower and got him dressed in his peejays. I then immediately took him straight into the room, and tried to make him go to sleep. To distract him from breastfeeding, I hugged a pillow to my chest and just laid down with him on the bed. After some giggling and smiling, he tossed and turned and finally fell asleep amid my singing and humming the lullaby song his Ipoh Ah Ma sang to him when he was a little baby. It was about 10:15p.m. then. Yes, he fell asleep WITHOUT me breastfeeding him. This was the first time ever and I hope this will mark the first successful step towards a successful weaning ahead.

It was really an odd feeling when it dawned on me that my little boy did not need me to breastfeed him to make him go to sleep. On the one hand, I am happy that we are making progress in this arena, but on the other, there was a part of me that missed that special bond we shared. My labor of love would eventually come to and end soon. We knew this would happen sooner or later. Of course, Ethan has to grow up someday. But it still left me in a poignant state. Motherhood does strange things to people, and although I know I will feel a sense of emptiness inside of me when Ethan is fully weaned off, I am thankful that I had the privilege to enjoy the breastfeeding journey while it lasted.

For now, good night my darling Ethan Boy. Sleep tight and don’t let the bed bugs bite….! …..as clichéd as it may seem.

Sunday Treat

June 25, 2007 in Ethan, Food & Feeding, Miscellanous, Sleep | 7 comments

Yesterday, we attended Ethan’s Ah Chek (Uncle Patrick) and Aunty Christine’s registration of marriage.  While waiting for the registrar to arrive, we kept Ethan occupied by walking him around and of course, snapping pictures.  I caught the official photographer taking a few shots of Ethan too!  The registration ceremony was a simple one and was over in a jiffy!  Ethan behaved himself extremely well throughout the entire ceremony, apart from a few rather subtle *sounds* coming from him.  I bet those would be audible in the video… hehehe…

After the marriage registration, I could sense that Ethan was already hungry (as were we), so made a beeline for the g Hotel, where the food-tasting cum celebratory lunch would be held.  Since we were still early when we arrived, I took Ethan to the Baby Room at Parkson to breastfeed him, and as expected he fell asleep after a few minutes at the breast.  However, when Pete came to carry him, he woke up and when he realized he was in a shopping mall, with escalators and more escalators, he was immediately rejuvenated!  With all that energy in him, we knew we would have our hands full soon.

We proceeded to the new g Hotel to have our lunch where Ethan enjoyed every bit of it!  He also enjoyed stomping his way on the wooden flooring along the window pane, walking back and forth and smiling all the while.  The g Hotel prepared a rather sturdy RubberMaid baby chair for Ethan, which I must admit looked really macho 😛  Ethan sampled almost all the food that was served, his favorites being:

which he declared to be:

After lunch, we headed for home.  And what can we do after a hearty meal but to:

 

And sleep he did, for TWO whole hours undisturbed!  He actually fell asleep in the car on the way back from lunch and slept on his Fisher Price chair when we reached home.  Pete even managed to trim Ethan’s fingernails then!

A Day of Records

June 19, 2007 in Breastfeeding, Ethan, Food & Feeding, Growing Up, Parenting, Sleep | 4 comments

Two new records have been set.  Here’s the scoop… 

Yesterday I tar-powed Belacan Fried Rice for Pete and myself for dinner because Pete was on leave.  I then picked Ethan up from the baby sitter’s and arrived home around 6:45p.m.  When Pete and I were having dinner, we put Ethan in his high chair and gave him his grape-flavored yogurt, which he absolutely adores.  After a few spoonfuls, he showed interest in the Belacan Fried Rice instead, demanding loudly for it and gesturing that I gave some to him.  So okay la, I gave him a couple of spoonfuls, not before warning him that it was slightly spicy though.  Our boy enjoyed the rice and the yogurt tremendously, had some water to go with it and after dinner, he played around with his toys and watched TV.  I sliced a mango for dessert, so we all enjoyed it as well.  I went about my usual errands: washing the milk bottles, preparing my working clothes for the following day, doing a round of laundry….the works.  After I had taken my shower, it was already 8:30p.m. and I prepared Ethan for his shower instead.  By the time he was done and all dressed in his peejays, it was about 8:50p.m.

Do you notice something different?  Do you see where I am getting at? No?

Ethan did not ask for milk AT ALL since we arrived back home!  Usually as soon as we reached home and unpacked, he would come over to me, hug my legs and request for milk, and it usually happens around 7p.m.  But nuh-uh, that did not happen at all today.  And I only breastfed him after his shower.  That’s a significant achievement in terms of not asking for milk!

After the breastfeeding session he slept for about an hour….. and we discovered that it was really only a nap because he woke up in alarm when Pete tried to trim his nails!  SIGH…we really need to educate Ethan on the importance of trimming nails.  Because he squirms and evades us when we try to trim his nails when he is awake, Pete has to do the deed only when Ethan is in slumberland.

So after he woke up, he was his playful self again, running around the house (yes, at 10p.m. +).  And he only fell asleep when it was past 11p.m.  *This* time he slept till way past 5a.m. in his cot.  And that’s another record and MAJOR achievement worth noting down. *grins*

We’d like to see more of these records, please… 🙂

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