This week has been a mixed bag of fun and frustration. Jack has been so much fun to play with during the day, but due to the onset of toddler night terrors the nights have been less than enjoyable. Life is all about the good with the bad so here is an accounting of our week. . .
The first part of the week was actually the last part of Mommy’s first week back at school so life was a little hectic. Between rushing off to class and getting course work done Mommy and Daddy were working hard to figure out the perfect balancing act to accommodate the needs of Little Man and each other. To make matters a little more stressful Jack wasn’t napping as well as he had been, only taking an hour and 20 minute nap as opposed to his usual two hours. This eventually led to Jack being overtired which resulted in him being overly cranky at bed time. An overly cranky and overly tired Little Man at bed time equals at least a thirty minute battle of wills over if Jack will actually go to sleep. This battle is always won by Mommy and Daddy, but Jack is a formidable opponent. Later we would learn that Jack’s state of being overtired is also a contributing factor to his middle of the night scream fests.
Around eleven o’clock or Midnight, for the past few nights, Daddy and I were awoken to the shrill screams of our little boy. This scream can only be described as horrific and blood curdling. The type of scream that jolts you out of bed and your restful slumber faster than if the house were on fire. Daddy and I sprinted to Jack’s room upon hearing this wail to find him standing in his crib screaming at the top of his lungs and thrashing about. All of our initial attempts to comfort him only resulted in him throwing himself down on his mattress and banging his head around in the crib. For fear that he was going to injure himself, Mommy’s first instinct was to pick him up and try to hold him and talk to him with a soothing and soft voice. After being hit and scratched a few times as Jack continued to thrash I had Daddy turn on the light. As if this scene weren’t disturbing enough, when the room was illuminated and we were able to see our little guy, it was apparent that he had to still be asleep or in some sort of in between state because he wasn’t registering that we were Mommy or Daddy.
Despite my Mommy need to hold Jack in an attempt to make him feel secure, we let him run around the room in hopes he would settle down after a minute or two. Eventually he appeared to “wake up” and calm down enough that we were able to hold him, give him some milk, and lull him back to sleep. Jack went back to bed without a peep as if he hadn’t just been completely hysterical. Mommy and Daddy walked away scarred by the experience. The first time this happened we thought that perhaps he had a severe case of gas as he passed an extreme amount of gas as we laid him back in his crib. After a few more nights of this Mommy and Daddy began to scour the internet and our toddler books for answers.
After much research and watching quite a few YouTube videos it has been determined that Jack suffers from night terrors. Evidently these are quite common in toddlers. They are extremely different from bad dreams because the child is still asleep and completely unaware as to what is really going on. He is only able to react to what he perceives is going on, but because these take place in a semi awake state he is able to move, much like sleep walking. According to everything Daddy and I read, these terrors tend to occur when a child is overtired and over stimulated close to bed time. The over stimulation can be caused by something as benign as a bath (This made a lot of sense for Jack because he is especially agitated at bedtime on bath nights.) So, based on our extensive research we have decided to implement the following to help prevent Jack’s night terrors:
- Bath time will take place during the day prior to Jack’s afternoon nap.
- If Jack doesn’t sleep well for his afternoon (less than two hours) we will attempt to put him down for a second nap.
- For the hour leading up to bedtime we will keep all activities quiet. There won’t be any loud music, rough housing, or anything that might ramp Little Man up.
- All stories read before bed will be quiet and soft.
If we are unable to prevent Jack’s night terrors all of the leading experts and doctors on the subject tell us we should suppress our parental instincts to comfort him. Apparently, during the course of a night terror, Jack has no clue as to what is going on and any effort on our part to calm, restrain, or soothe him will actually make the episode last longer and be worse for him. He will have no memory of the incident since he is asleep. The best we can do is to keep him from hurting himself and turn on the light. Thankfully we’ve been successful in preventing another night terror since learning of these things so we haven’t had to sit idly by and watch our darling as he lives through this toddler terror.
On the brighter side of the week, Jack has been a ton of fun. He has learned how to climb on and off of his bouncing zebra in his playroom so he has enjoyed showing off his riding skills whenever he gets the chance which is quite often as Mommy likes to do her school work in Jack’s playroom so we can spend time together. Mommy often tries to include Jack in study time. For example, when I was studying the various anatomical directions of the body I would practice on Jack and tickle him as I named off anterior, posterior, superior, inferior, etc. Today, I read William Faulkner’s A Rose for Miss Emily aloud to him. He seemed to enjoy Mommy’s southern accent even if the story wasn’t in line with Horton Hears a Who.
Another one of Jack’s favorite games to play is the hiding game. Jack loves to tuck himself away behind a chair or a curtain and then he’ll laugh hysterically as you look for him. Mommy will walk around asking where Jack went and I can just hear his delightful little giggles as I roam around the house. When I finally jump in front of him and exclaim “There you are!” he laughs even harder. The moment is priceless. . .
In addition to night terrors and fun family games this week has also brought with it Fall weather! Temperatures that peaked at 105 degrees on Thursday were quickly replaced by highs in the 60′s and 70′s. This meant that the family was stepping out to enjoy the beautiful entrance of our much beloved season, Fall. So, on Saturday we went out for a family “date night” to Red Robin. Jack was so well behaved that we almost wondered if he had been replaced when we weren’t looking. There was no screaming, throwing, or tantrums and Mommy and Daddy were actually able to eat a complete meal, including dessert without interruptions or eruptions. It was so great. Jack even enjoyed being able to drink out of a cup with a straw that wasn’t a sippy.
After dinner we decided to go home and enjoy the cool and windy weather out in our back yard. Jack had so much fun running around and exploring. He would lean down and pick up a leaf and then pick up another one and compare it. It was a bit of a struggle getting him to avoid stepping in any puppy land mines (one that would prove futile in the end), but it was a complete blast. Daddy and Jack even had a “sword” fight with the long seed pods from our Catalpa tree. My guys are just too cute!
As a parent all you want is to keep your baby (no matter what age) safe, happy, and with the over whelming feeling of being loved unconditionally. Those are Mommy and Daddy’s goals. When we aren’t able to comfort our darling we feel helpless, but we’ll move heaven and hell to ease whatever we can. We have so much fun together that it makes the moments of complete panic and helplessness bearable. So, Mommy and Daddy focus on the moments when Jack is being silly, like when he spins around in circles and falls down on purpose or when he is being cute, like when he gives Mommy all of his stuffed animals because he wants me to kiss them all. Mommy and Daddy love Jack more than words and because of that we know there will always be more happy moments than the other kind.
Quick Jack Facts
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Jack is always changing how he likes to show his affections. One week he will be all about the kisses and the next he will be all about the hugs. This week, Jack has been all about the hugs from behind. Whenever Mommy or Daddy are sitting on the floor, Jack likes to walk behind us and press his body against our back, laying his head down. It is so sweet.
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Another way Jack likes to show his affection lately in by brushing Mommy or Daddy’s hair. He will walk up, hold out his hair brush, and begin petting our hair with the brush. Then he will brush his own hair. Just the other day after Mommy had taken a shower, Jack had a blast drying Mommy’s hair with her blow dryer. When Mommy turned it off Jack was still holding the hair dryer making roaring noise and moving the dryer back and forth.
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Little Man is so incredibly helpful! Daddy has completely Jack proofed the kitchen so he can spend time in there without dismantling the room, but that doesn’t stop him from wanting to be in the thick of the action. Yesterday while Mommy was unloading the dishwasher Jack began to take dishes out and putting them on the counter or back in the sink. Mommy was quite impressed. I think he will make some young girl very happy!
- The other night, during one of Jack’s bedtime protests before succumbing to his sleepiness, Mommy was in Jack’s room attempting to calm him. He suddenly stopped yelling, took his paci out of his mouth, and kissed Mommy on the mouth. He then resumed his insubordination. It was adorable and aggravating all at once.
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Jack is getting so good at brushing his own teeth! Every night before bed and every morning before breakfast Jack is given his little Elmo electric toothbrush with Mixed Berry toothpaste and he just goes to town.
