live blogging: sleep school day 3 / nap 2

After I packed a picnic lunch, got everyone's shoes on and had 1, 2, 3 potty breaks, we arrived at the park by around 10:45. We met up with two other triplet families and while the kids ran around and played, I nursed a fussy Henry in the Bjorn and then pushed him in a baby swing. He dozed off for around 10 minutes ... while Carolyn ... who was also being pushed in a baby swing - also dozed off.

This was extremely uncharacteristic for both of them, but clearly, sleep training is exhausting for everyone.

Heck, I almost dozed off standing there pushing them.

It's important to note that if Henry had not woken up this morning at 5:15 - and instead - had slept through until 7:00 - the hour and a half nap that he took before we went to the park, would have been sufficient to recharge his batteries, and he wouldn't have dozed off less than two hours after he last rested.

We began the process of leaving at 11:40 - and actually left the park by 12:05. We drove 30 minutes across town to the doctor's office and I noticed that Henry snoozed for at least half the drive there. Our appointment was at 12:20, but we weren't seen until almost 1:00.

We waited.


And waited.

And waited.


Just as the doctor opened the door to come in to our examination room, all three of the children said they had to use the potty.


I herded everyone in to the restroom and spent the next 10 minutes, with Henry suspended in the Bjorn, while I hoisted one, two, three - one again - children on top of the toilet and then pushed little hands away from all the medical paraphernalia that can be found in a doctor's office lavatory.

Elizabeth was diagnosed with an ear infection.


The prescription was called in and we left the office at around 1:30.

Once we arrived back to the car, I broke out our picnic lunches and fed the kids in the parking garage. I didn't feed them at the park because they'd had such a late breakfast and I knew that by feeding them a little later - they would be more likely to stay awake for the car ride home. I nursed Henry while the kids ate and then, noting the time of 1:40, began to drive back to the house. Since they didn't have time to finish lunch in the parking garage, at red lights I would chuck peanut butter and jelly squares over the back seat to the children.

We arrived home at 2:10. By the time I washed hands, put 1, 2, 3 kids on the potty, diapered everyone, administered Zicam and Dimetapp to the triplets, and ibuprofen to Elizabeth, got kids tucked in to bed - it was 2:30. I put a very fussy Henry in the Bjorn, grabbed a handful of peanut M&M's (I tend to heavily snack on chocolate when I'm overtired and this is my drug of choice today) and began to nurse him. He was asleep almost instantly. I took him out of the Bjorn and put him in to his crib at 2:45. He woke up, started to cry, but fell back to sleep in less than a minute.

William is in his bed. I considered moving him out to the couch, but seeing as he only likes to sleep in his room, have opted to leave him where he is.

Now, I'm off to PUT AWAY LAUNDRY.

By the way: You can always tell a blogger because they are the only ones that carry a camera to the after-hours-pediatrician office on a Saturday.

****

Henry woke up crying at 3:27 PM. I went in to check on him at 3:34 and he had one leg stuck in the crib railings, again. Once I moved him back to the middle of the crib, he cried on and off for approximately 45 minutes before I couldn't take it anymore. I picked him up, nursed him, and he has been happily crawling around ever since.

The morning nap is coming along very well. Even though Henry wakes up at the 30/40 minute transition, he is successfully putting himself back to sleep with out much disturbance. The afternoon nap is more difficult - just as I remember it being with the triplets - and probably will remain at no more than 45 minutes, until he drops his third nap.

One load of laundry put away.

A lot of M&M's eaten.