Progress.

I am happy that progress has been made with Miss Beans the last three days. I know it is a process and that it will take awhile. It would be way too easy if there was just some one-day fix or something. Way too easy, but nice nonetheless. On night two she didn't go to sleep right at the end of our routine, but she fell asleep before midnight so I'll call that progress. Last night she went right to bed after the routine (and went down in the pack and play) but she woke up an hour later. We are currently doing some work in the kitchen and one big bang woke her up. She wouldn't go back down for quite awhile. I joked that she wanted to say "Geez mom and dad. If you hadn't been making so much ruckus I would've slept through the night." Yea right, but I can dream.

Today it seems three steps forward and one step back. Miss Beans has been a bear (with a capital B) all day long. I see her top left tooth about to cut through and her right incisor is VERY swollen. She was a major crankpot all day (Seriously, I joked I was going to need a beer to make it through the evening with her) and went down at 5 o'clock. Way before our routine and bedtime, but, you know what?, I wasn't going to fight keeping her awake for an hour so I could fight through the routine with her. Was I wrong? Maybe. But I do need to be a little flexible and, trust me, my sanity couldn't have taken trying to keep her awake. I would rather backtrack tonight honestly. I still think the last four days have been good for us. It is the first time I have stuck with a bedtime routine for her at all. We will follow the routine when she wakes up from her late-late nap.

Progress with flexibility. I know it will take a while, but I am trying to be prepared for the hurdles and optimistic about the future.