We had an interesting evening last night.
I decided to barbecue, had chicken marinating and was throwing the potato packets in the grill when Marty decided to take Grant for a walk to go get the mail. I did not see them enter the house, but they were standing in the kitchen when Marty said, "Honey, can you come over and look at this?"
His voice was very calm, but there was a little something about his tone that told me something was wrong.
He was holding Grant, and there was a good-sized spot of blood on Marty's shirt. Grant had fallen in the gravel and split his knee open, and was sitting happily in Marty's arms, blood running down his leg and onto Marty, and saying, "Mommy, owie." Such a brave little boy.
My first thought was that he needed stitches, but upon Marty's insistence, I called our good friend Gordon who is a firefighter and an EMT. He told me everything I needed to do, and then after dinner, I took Grant to Rite-Aid for some gauze, iodine, and butterfly bandages. And, of course, some new Lightning McQueen band-aids. And some candy.
My tough, brave little boy did great. I used the wonderful pain relieving spray they give you after giving birth, then gave him a candy and cleaned it up. He cried, but he sat there, knowing it had to be done and that it would be over soon. And then he got to stay up late and cuddle a while, 'cause I am a big softie.
Thank you, Gordon, for your expert advice that saved us a trip to the ER. You are my hero!
In other news, I would like to clarify a few things about the last post. It seems I stirred up a teensy bit of discussion about my decision to not offer the boob to Drew during the night. Here are my reasons.
1. He does not wake up hungry, just wanting the comfort of nursing. If I offer it to him, he latches on and immediately falls asleep, he does not feed at all.
2. I really feel the three jars of baby food he eats for dinner and the nursing he gets right before bed is plenty to keep him full and satisfied through the night. He is not a formula baby, but I'm quite sure sweet potatoes and green beans will do the job.
3. When i allow him to "demand feed" at night, he wakes every half hour to forty five minutes because he loses the latch. He cannot get into the deeper REM sleep that he needs to be well rested, and to grow properly.
4. At five months old, it is perfectly reasonable to expect him to sleep throught the night.
5. I have slept through the night less than twenty times in three years. I am exhausted. I am run down. I have been getting sick a lot lately, as my body is not healthy from lack of sleep. I have been blogging about talking woodland creatures, for goodness sakes. I am so emotional that if someone mentions to me that I need a nap, I have a hard time not bursting into tears.
6. Babies who are allowed to nurse all night long can have improper teeth development, and the bacteria that can grow from constantly having a tiny flow of milk can cause problems for the baby as well as the mother.
7. My child is not lacking in attention from me. I am not just letting him cry at night, I am holding him, rocking him, singing to him, shushing him, and offering the pacifier. He is not being neglected, he really is a contented, happy baby. In fact, he is sitting on my lap right now and sucking on his toes and smiling at me.
I could go on and on, but I won't. He needs sleep, I need sleep, and this is the way I have chosen to do it. All of you, dear readers, can agree with me, not agree with me, decide not to follow my blog anymore, whatever. It's a free country.
This is my choice, and I'm sticking to it.
Have a great day, and hug an EMT for me!
11 comments:
AMEN Sister! Preach it!
I agree with you 100% and then some! I hope my previous comment didn't sound like I was disagreeing, because I AGREE! I AGREE!
And I'm so happy that Grant is okay!
What day next week works best for you if I come down? Tues, Wed or Thurs?!?!?!
Tiff,
Everyone has their own thoughts on parenting. It would be nice if people who disagree with your parenting skills, just keep their comments to themselves. Drew is not lacking in anything!!! Let him cry a little. It will make him a stronger little boy who has confidence in his ability to solve problems!!! Love you.
Tracie
ps I AM buying this camera. It is awesome. I just need to purchase a bigger lens for more zoom.
Amen Sister!
You do what is best for you & your son!!!
Addie has slept through the night for the last 3 nights...knock on wood. And she will be 8mnths next week.
I appreciate the alternative views and love to hear people's opinions. I would rather hear the opposing views than have to believe that everyone agrees with my wife. That being said, Tiff is an amazingly stubborn mother who will do what she thinks is best for our children regardless of opinion or judgement. Another reason why she is, in my unbiased opinion, the most wonderful mother in the world. Keep up the good work hun!
good job tiff....I did that alot earlier than you are!!
If all four of your children make it through the day with all limbs intact, I say you're doing great! Seriously though, I totally sympathize with the soothing obsession. Liam had a bottle until after he was potty trained. And a cavity between his two front teeth to go with it. But he survived. :)
I still can't believe you make dinner for the whole crew regularly. You're doing an amazing job.
That is definitly the one downside to blogging about your life is having to hear others opinions (very annoying). Stick to your guns....I feed my son on demand at night until he was over 10 months and let me tell you that was a LONG 10 months...I finally had to just not feed him at all at night, which was hard, but better in the end! Good luck, I feel your pain!
Amen Tiff! You are an amazing mom and you have an amazing supportive husband. YOu know what is best that is why God gave us Mothers instinct.
Sorry Grant got hurt but I am thankful Gordon was able to help out. I totally freak w/blood but try to keep it under control so my kids don't see my panic. I am not sure how good I do w/it.
Hope Drew sleeps well tonite and so you get a good nights sleep. I swear w/all the sickness Kolette had I never slept thru the night either. You are much more emotional and don't realize how little sleep you got until you finally do get to sleep thru the night.
Love ya!
Amy
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