Friday, August 19, 2005

No More Cribs!

Since our trips to Wyoming, Denver, etc. Mazen has not slept normal. She just doesn't do well and gets so upset if she isn't in our bed. So we chose the most convenient date to deal with the throwing up and decided to put her in the crib and let her throw up and then clean everything up and put her back in. We've done this many times and know the routine and it takes several days and she then stops the throwing up. EVERY time in the past, she's thrown up, we clean her up, then she goes to sleep. Maybe cries for 5 minutes.

So we started telling her how it was going to be. We explained several times through the day that that evening she was going to sleep in the crib. That evening, just before bedtime, Mazen was playing with the phone and she pushed the intercom button on the handset that works with the base phone. So she was across the room talking to me on the handset and I was on the base phone. We had quite a conversation. Then I said, "Mazen! Guess what! Tonight after you brush your teeth and we pray, you are such a big girl that you are going to sleep all by yourself in the crib!" Immediately... I mean immediately, she HUNG UP THE PHONE! hahahaha

Not much later we went through the routine and she threw up and we put her back in the crib and then she screamed and sobbed and screamed for 45 minutes. She never gave up and was hyperventilating and so upset. We couldn't take it anymore. I picked her up and she fell asleep immediately. When I tried to put her in the crib asleep she woke up and started screaming again.

Sigh... another night in our bed! Ugh!

The next day at church I stayed in the nursery with her about 25 minutes and when she seemed completely wrapped up in playing I left. I got about 50 feet away and heard her SCREAM!!!! So I went back and peeked in. She was really upset. So I went in and the nursery workers rolled their eyes at each other. I picked Mazen up and said, "If she gets really upset like this she throws up." Their rolling eyes stopped and got big and they started to say "Oh no!" but before they could she threw up on my shoulder. Off to the bathroom we went.

I cleaned her up and me up and then went back and stayed in the nursery. We decided that afternoon to get her a twin bed because we suspected the problem was that she didn't want to be in the crib. It wasn't about being in our bed as much as NOT being in the crib.

A couple of days ago Michael bought her a nice mattress and it's made up on the floor in her room (less distance to fall from) and she LOVES it! Praise God! She likes to go in and play on it and she goes right to sleep on it. We sit with her just a few minutes and she goes right to sleep.

Before we could get the mattress home, she started in getting upset about the high chair. It's a HUGE battle each time to get her in it for meals. She just screams and screams. So far we've been determined and after much upset and crying and FORCING her knees to bend and get her strapped in and then distract her and she finally will eat.

Then last night we had a new experience. We had company for dinner and Michael grilled T-Bone steaks we found on sale for $5 a lb. Corn (Mazen's favorite) and Zucchini and sourdough bread! Yum. The food's ready, table set, and Mazen threw a fit about getting in her chair. She pushed her stomache forward and would not bend her body. She is STRONG. After a bit of a struggle, we got her strapped in and then she THREW UP all over the place. Three times. She just kept throwing up. At dinner. We did move her away from the table. We kept her in the chair and she finally calmed down and ate.

We think we are losing this battle quickly. She doesn't want to do any "baby" things anymore. :) I think we are going to have to look for a booster seat or something soon. She really is wanting to do everything we do. (I hope she wants to use the toilet like we do soon!)

Our baby is growing up too fast now!

1 comment:

Jenni said...

She IS growing up so quickly. the throwing up thing though, I don't know. My experience would indicate that this is her way of being in charge...but that doesn't necessarily help the puking to stop, does it? Good luck with this one...