For the Record Books

I just had to record for posterity :) that Asa seems to be making some peace with night time sleep. It's been awhile since he actually *fought* sleep at night--he goes down reasonably well most of the time and almost *always* goes right back to sleep after he eats during the night. The thing is, he's over 10 months old and was still often waking 3 times/night to eat. Until very recently, I didn't really get more than 3 hours of consecutive sleep.... ever. I can recall 2 times I've been sleeping deeply enough to dream.

The first night Asa and I were in TN, he had a longer than usual first stretch of sleep (4-5 hours... he had cut down to about 3 prior to that), then the rest of the night was normal--2.5-3 hour stretches. The second night he barely made it to 3 hours each stretch, it was more like 2.5 hour stretches. Then the boy started eating like a HORSE. I had never seen him pack away so much food at lunch and dinner. And slowly, his sleep started shifting as well.

It's almost 2 weeks later, and the past 2 nights, Asa's first 2 stretches of sleep have been 5-5.5 hours EACH (the 2nd stretch is of utmost importance because I am actually in bed during it, and he has traditionally resisted stretching it even when he stretched out the first sleep)! I am sleeping more than 3 consecutive hours! In fact, last night I slept **5** consecutive hours!!! I am THRILLED! I even had to WAKE Asa up the past two mornings (I would let him sleep, but it totally messes up his naps if he sleeps in late)! Praise the LORD!

At our 9 month check up Asa's doctor asked how he's sleeping. She said normally she would encourage us to help him sleep longer, but that if I was willing to feed him whenever he woke she would encourage us to do that instead--it's an easy way to get extra calories into him. I think he has come a LONG way in catching up in his weight, and now he finally weighs enough and his stomach is big enough to hold enough food (that's a lot of enoughs) that he is sleeping longer. How like our God to give this gift right before I go back to pack up our entire house?

I know he could fall off the bandwagon again at anytime, especially when the next round of teething starts. But it is BEYOND encouraging to know we are getting there. We can get back here again after the next round of teething. I WILL sleep again (there's always that little voice that wonders if you really will. I admit I had wondered to myself if he would still be waking so much by the time we, Lord willing, have another baby and if I truly would ever sleep again!)!

This is such a huge breakthrough for Asa I had to record it here--and in his baby book! Yea, Asa! Yea, sleep! Yea, God!