Halloween with a Toddler

So I started this entry almost ONE YEAR AGO! That tells you what my life with a toddler has been like.
Now, as I was saying:

***
I had visions of grandeur when it came to Halloween with my newly-turned-1-year-old. I pictured a caravan of her neighborhood buddies (also recently-turned-1-year-old's) going from house to house saying 'wick or tweet' or whatever other sounds they could come up with to get their point across. We agreed to meet at our house for pictures and decided that we'd go up the main road towards my mother-in-law's - about four blocks.

Here's what really happened.

It was chillier than we'd expected, so quick costume modifications were needed. My little giraffe donned a cape. So she ended up looking like either a race-giraffe (do they do anything competitively?) or The Giraffe who ate Little Miss Riding Hood. Either way, it was cute, and nobody cared. 

There are no perfectly posed pictures because it was much like herding cats getting them to look at any camera all at once. Baby B didn't really understand what Trick-or-Treating meant and was pretty gun shy about walking up to a stranger's door with her little hand stitched sack. So we tried over and over and over and OVER again until finally we reached Grammie's house. Instead of taking candy from people, my Giraffe tried to share or trade her candy away.  

I'd say that for a first (well technically 2nd Halloween) she did pretty well. There was no crying or melt downs and she started to understand what was happening as we walked back to our house. 

Lessons Learned

1. Go out early. Big kids are ruthless, mean even. Toddlers aren't candy-hoarding monsters yet. 
2. Take lots of pictures. You can use them as blackmail later or in a wedding montage - is there really a difference?
3. Choose a costume appropriate for the weather, your child's temperament and ease of movement. Baby B's costume was a full jumper with long sleeves and full pants which made it perfect for a Fall day in Chicago. 

So what am I going to do with her this year? I've sewn her a Princess Jasmine inspired romper to wear as her costume. I started with instructions from Make It Love It and made some modifications such as using ribbon instead of casing elastic for the sleeves and wider elastic at the cuffs along with a wider flare to make the bottoms look more like harem pants. I have some finishing to do and modifications to make since I made my own pattern and didn't really measure her waist. It's my first attempt, so we'll see how it goes. The romper was easy enough...the bias tape out of satiny costume fabric....not so much. Next up is attaching a tulle 1/2 skirt and some bedazzling to finish. Ideas welcome.

Crying it Out

I've read a lot about child rearing dos and don'ts. DO encourage tummy time to promote muscle development. Do spend time talking with Baby so she learns language. Do spend time encouraging Baby to explore the world around her, etc.  DON'T over dress Baby to avoid heat rash. DON'T feed baby solids until 6 months. DON'T put Baby on her tummy to sleep. It's getting the Baby to sleep and more importantly stay asleep that is tricky. Baby B is great at dozing off in my arms or snuggled on my chest.  She's even done a great job transferring to the crib. Every once in a while she gets her nights and days switched which is to be expected. I mean, if you lived floating in mostly darkness, would you have any idea which way was up let alone night and day?

In an effort to develop positive sleep habits, we've encouraged Baby to soothe herself. (I read it in a book somewhere). She's successfully put herself back to sleep when she wakes herself up during naps and she hears my voice. There are no tears, no sounds of pain or extreme distress. It's like she just wants to make sure I'm still close by.

Tonight, my husband and I are attempting to let Baby 'Cry it Out'. Literally, right now, she's upstairs crying in her crib. She went to bed about an hour ago woke up about 20 minutes ago. It started out as a whimper then some fun chatting with her giraffe blankie and then onto her bear and even the nice dolly that sits in the corner of the crib (a very safe distance away since she doesn't move enough to warrant taking all that stuff out, yet).

Then it got louder.

Then there were tears.

Now it's an all out screeching but not quite a tea kettle blowing.

Ten minutes passed. I went upstairs and my heart ached when I picked her up. She was crying with her whole body. That gasping-for-air-between-wails-kind of crying. I don't feel as bad as I thought I would...probably because I was able to soothe her. Her eyes were puffy and red and she looked like she'd been through a battle. We discovered that she's inherited her dad's skin (her broken capillaries show through) and my scratchy voice. (It will get worse when she's overtired or goes to church camp - allergies mostly!).

When I picked her up from the crib, I had a flash forward of a day when nothing I say or do will soothe her. Or worse yet, I'm the one who makes her cry like that because I've denied her the latest craze or discourage dating before she's ready. Yikes! She's 3 months old, I have a while before I need to worry about boys, right? Although where did the last three months go? So soon enough, but not today. Time to put Baby back to bed.