Co Sleeper

Co sleeping is never something that has been comfortable for me. Oh I enjoy the occasional nap with my children but when it comes to having my kids sleep in my bed for a full night I'm not interested. When they are newborns it is hard for me to sleep with them next to me. I can't shake the feeling I'm going to fall deeply asleep and crush the poor child. As my kids get older they become more of a physical annoyance. My son Big E was a hot sleeper. As soon as he would actual fall asleep his body temperature would raise five degrees. Sweaty sleep is just not for me. G bear on the other hand was restless sleeper. She would toss and turn, pushing her way into a perpendicular position. She'd put her feet on us and squirm her head into our sides. At 3 she'd wake and hit us or pull on our noses. Her restless sleep became our restless sleep. For the most part it hasn't been a problem. From a young age our kids were champion sleepers. We'd put them in their cribs at seven and they would be out. They took good naps in the middle of the day. When we moved them out of their cribs into big kid beds they'd stay in bed and go to sleep. Some mornings we'd cuddle with them for fun, but it wasn't a necessity. I didn't understand people who had problems with their kids going to bed. Then we had Peach. Peach started out a good sleeper and at two months was sleeping through the night. The last few months though her sleeping has become erratic. She does not like to nap. She doesn't self comfort. She doesn't even want to sleep at night. Her nighttime nurse at seven she does a nurse nap and then finishes wide awake wanting hours of play. She giggles and slaps. She plays and cries. She jumps on the couch and balances on the arm. She climbs the steps and crawls back down. She is tired but won't sleep. When I got to nurse her at nine she resists. When I nurse her at ten she still doesn't want to sleep. Finally Jason and I will give in and bring her in our bed to sleep. Even then she will shake her legs every time she starts to doze, but when finally she realizes she is not going anywhere she will settle down...well that is as long as she is next to me. So here we are...co sleeping. I guess you should never say never as a parent. When it comes to getting your zzz you never know what you will be willing to do.