Does Teddy Dream of Electric Sheep?

While heading to the Cherry Blossom Parade last Saturday, we almost ran over some ducklings crossing the road by the Fed. Margaret got a good look, but probably didn't get a full appreciation of them from her position in the car. Which is a shame since one of her favorite books is "Make Way For Ducklings" in which Mrs. Mallard and her offspring make their way to the Public Garden in Boston, aided by some Boston cops. Luckily for our ducklings, they had blocked off most of the roads around the Fed in preparation for the parade (which happened to seriously hinder our attempts to park at the Fed), so they didn't face serious traffic. Although it poured before the parade, the weather ended up being ok, and Margaret had a great time watching the bands and floats pass by.

But the major topic of this post is not ducklings or parades, rather it's Teddy's sleep habits. Put briefly, Teddy has been a really crappy sleeper. To be fair to the boy, I don't remember how well his sister slept at a similar point in her life, but I do know that we used the swing to lull her to sleep and that she would sleep for hours at a time in it. In contrast, Teddy has never liked the swing. His typical sleep pattern at night involves falling asleep around 8:00 PM and then waking up sometime between midnight and 1:00 AM. Now, waking up around then is understandable for a kid who wants a midnight snack. The problem is what follows that snack. Teddy doesn't want to play in the middle of the night, but he also doesn't want to be "left alone." Instead, he wants to sleep on top of his mama, and he wakes and fusses ever hour or so when she tries to put him back in his pack-n-play. So he ends up getting up around 2:00, 3:00, 4:00, 5:00, etc. or some combination of those times. It's really quite difficult, especially for Abby, since it prevents us from actually getting quality R.E.M. sleep (even for me, although I often manage to roll over and fall back asleep pretty quickly.)

For the past month or so, we have been plotting a "shock treatment" in which we let the kid cry himself to sleep when he's having problems getting to sleep and clearly has no reason to be up. Luckily for him, he slept through the night last night (for the first time ever!!!!), so he may escape that fate if he can keep it up. Otherwise, we'll toss him into his bed, put in the earplugs, and sleep like "babies." Which may sound harsh, but it's better than tossing him out the window as I often threaten to do after an especially bad night.

O bed! O bed! delicious bed!
That heaven upon earth to the weary head.
~ Thomas Hood, Miss Kilmansegg - Her Dream

And if tonight my soul may find her peace
in sleep, and sink in good oblivion,
and in the morning wake like a new-opened flower
then I have been dipped again in God, and new-created.
~ D.H. Lawrence

O sleep, O gentle sleep,
Nature's soft nurse, how have I frighted thee,
That thou no more wilt weigh my eyelids down
And steep my sense in forgetfulness?
~ William Shakespeare, Henry IV, Part I

People who say they sleep like a baby usually don't have one.
~ Leo J. Burke

As for those of you who wonder about the odd title of this post, please see this which spawned a great movie.

Also, Teddy has recently become pretty good at sitting up on his own. I suppose that's a new skill worthy of a post, but given his sister's achievements and his sleep problems, I'm not inclined to praise the boy too much. But here are some pictures including some in which he's showing off his new skill.