Ladies & Gentlemen... We Have Success

So, it's been a week since we started Ferber-izing Monkey and I think we have reached success.  How do we define success?  Well, he goes down for his naps with minimal (if any) crying.  He goes to sleep with no crying and for the most part he sleeps through the night.  On those rare nights where he gets up (like last night) all we need to do is put him down again in his crib (he is usually bouncing and standing on his mattress), turn on his sleep sheep (fine, we still rely on sleep soothing machines - sorry Dr. Ferber) and he goes right back to sleep.

Even this weekend, with pool and zoo in between, we were successful at keeping his schedule.  This is what he has been doing this past week:

7:00 AM - wakes up and gets a bottle, watches Sesame Street while Mommy makes her own breakfast and tidies up
8:00 AM - eats his solid food breakfast
9:30 AM - bath time
10:00 AM - nap
11:00 AM - wakes up from nap and gets a bottle
12:00 PM - eats his solid lunch, hangs out with Mommy while she eats her lunch
2:00 PM - TV off (if on), book (usually his favorite monkey book), naps
3:30 PM - wakes up from nap and gets bottle
5:00 PM - eats solid dinner
6:45 - 7:15 PM - TV off (if on), changes in to pajamas, final bottle while Mommy tells a story, reads Daddy Hugs (I am already sick of this book but he is enthralled), in room Mommy sings to him, in crib with sleep sheep on, sleep

So this means he is seeping roughly 12 hours at night and 2.5 hours during the day.  I'm okay with this. AND he is the happiest baby in the world.

So, I have to address an earlier post I wrote about my disdain for schedules (and I just looked for it and I can't find it... I know it is somewhere).  I need to let you know, I still hate schedules.  But what I've learned is that they are best for Monkey... yes, right down to the clock times (which I made fun of in that post I can't find because I saw other moms had done it).  This schedule thing is really hard for me because the idea that today is going to be like tomorrow is going to be like the next day, etc... wow, I want to gouge out my eyes. 

But, here is what I know so far:
1. Even though I loved being pregnant there were quite a few inconveniences (like sleeping sitting up for 2-3 hours at a time).  But look how that paid off.  This is just another inconvenience.
2. How can I not do something that makes the little man so happy?  Cranky has pretty much left the building.
3. This isn't forever.  And if I can deal with the loft for a year, I can deal with this.
4. When baby #2 comes along, schedules will make my life much easier.

So, I'm learning... stubborn moment by stubborn moment.