2 Nugget 1 Me

It's like a battle. A night time never ending battle. I put him down at 6:30, his normal bedtime, and by 11 o'clock Nugget's popping up, screaming his head off. Give him a bottle-he doesn't want it. Change his diaper-he doesn't need it. Rock him back to sleep-that works until we place him back down in the crib. Then it's scream city. Nugget will lay in his crib and cry and cry until we pick him up. The only thing that seems to work is bringing him in our bed with us. And I'm so against that. I know there's nothing wrong with it, and that laying next to your baby can feel so euphoric-watching him sleep and toss his little hands above his head, but I'm afraid of it sticking. I read this article in Parents Magazine about a couple whose child slept in bed with them until he was 5. 5!! The article went on about ways they tried to get him out of bed, but every time they ended up bringing him back. I love my son, but I love my sleep, and being able to cuddle up next to my husband as well.
So what are we to do? I consulted the Baby Guru to find out.
"Sounds like it might be his teeth. Are the coming in?"
She was right, the top ones were. The next thing she told me was to call my pediatrician and ask if Nugget could start taking Baby Motrin. Apparently Baby Tylenol is a strong comparison to water. When they're tiny it knocks them out, but as they grow bigger it hardly touches them. Is this news to you as well? Well, my pediatrician agreed and I have to say Nugget only got up a few times that night, instead of his normal consecutive 3-4 hours straight.
However, I wasn't as lucky the following nights. Night after night I've gotten up, rocked him, held him, sang to him and bounced him for hour after hour to no avail.
I felt like it was a battle, Nugget vs. His Mother. Who would win? I was older, stronger and smarter. He was younger, smaller and almost as smart. But he had one thing up on me-everlasting energy. Here I was near tears wishing he would go back to sleep and here he was crying, screaming and no where close to giving in. And I have to tell you bringing Nugget in bed with me was like that one cigarette you want to have. "Just one," you tell yourself, followed by the promise that you'd never puff another one again. But as soon as that cool delicious martini rolls down your tongue and coats your throat you realize how well that cigarette would go with it. Ah, it takes delicious, smells delicious and exhausts that fighting desire that you'd been battling at the bar. But then morning comes and you regret it. You think of how hard you've made it for the next time you go out. How that martini isn't going to go down without a cigarette, how you've set yourself up for another battle for yet another night and how much you hate yourself for giving into it.
So I've been keeping count. This weekend I was 0-2, but as of last night I'm 1-2. A major score on my part. A night where I didn't bring Nugget into bed, a night where he and I got a full night sleep, a night where I didn't have to contemplate the pros and cons of giving in.
It could be that Nuggets two teeth finally broke, oh and did I forget to mention the most important discovery I found on Sunday afternoon-the one about Nugget and his four teeth, that's right Nugget's not only getting his top two teeth in, he's getting all four top teeth in! And, as of this morning, his other tooth broke through as well. So as for now I'm just praying. Praying that Nugget will sleep again tonight and I can regain some of the sleep I've been missing.