Ruby Lately

Hey Everyone,

It's been awhile since I've blogged. Maybe it is because Ruby has been busy crawling and getting into everything she shouldn't be. She has a plethora of toys, yet she goes for outlet covers, the rug with all our shoes, and best of all...she goes after Moose. I'm thinking this is only the start. Am I right, Mamas? She has also cut two bottom teeth. Let me tell you, that was not fun. She was fussy almost all of the time. She wanted to be held all the time. Now, most of the time I don't mind holding her, but she is getting heavy AND she always wants to face out. I wish sometimes she could be that sweet cuddly melt into you cuddly. Oh well, I can't complain. I think she is so curious about the world around her and she has a serious case of FOMO. (Fear of missing out.)

Over Labor Day weekend our family took off to Big Stone Lake and went camping in the RV. We met up with my mom, Sarah, and Liam. We took a nice swim. Ruby LOVES the water. She splashes away and always ends up drinking some of the water. Yuck! Ben, Ruby, and I stayed in the RV that night. Ruby's pack n play fit nicely and Ben and I were able to sleep on the bed. Ruby slept better than she has EVER slept. Mama, not so much. I woke up around 3 wondering if Ruby was ok. I never got out of bed, but I basically stayed awake until she woke up around 5:30 to feed. We spent the rest of the weekend in Watertown.

Now, on the topic of sleep. Maybe some of you Mama's can help me out. Ruby's sleep schedule is SO inconsistent. During the day is just fine. She usually takes a nap about every 3 hours. At night however, ought. Sometimes she will sleep for 11 straight hours. Ok, she did that once. But sometimes she will sleep for nice long stretches. Other nights she wakes up 2-3 times a night. What gives? Here is what her typical schedule looks like. She usually goes to bed around 6:00. (Maybe that is too early, but that is when she appears to be tired.) On a bad night of sleeping she will usually wake up around 11:30, 4:30, and then up for the day around 7:30. Lately I have been going in and feeding her when she wakes up. Even though, I know she isn't waking out of hunger. I think she is comfort nursing to fall back asleep. Last night I sent Ben in at 4:30 and he held her and rubbed her back and she went back to sleep. Hurray! I think I'm going to stop feeding her in the middle of the night and see if that helps anything. I also know she is capable of falling asleep without nursing. When I lay her down for naps during the day, I always lay her down awake. When we put her to bed at night I will feed her in the living room, we will go read some books, and we lay her down awake. She also sleeps for about 12-14 hours total each night. I'm definitely NOT a fan of the crying it out method. I know this has worked for many, but I can't do it. I do let Ruby cry for about 10 minutes before going in. I guess, for you seasoned mothers out there. Any tips? Is this normal for a 7 month old? I read in a lot of places that they should be able to sleep through the night.

I haven't been able to go to many MOMS club events lately because they are usually scheduled in the morning when Ruby is sleeping. Big time bummer, but when we can go, we do. It does get kind of lonely during the day without Ben home. We try to get out on as many walks as we can or just sit outside and enjoy the nice weather while we can. Anyway, that's all I have for now. I hope all is well with all of you!

My brown eyed girl. If you look close enough you can see those two teeth on the bottom.