When Brooklyn Sleeps

So currently, Brooklyn sleeps with me at night. There has not been one night since the day she was born that she has slept by herself. Especially since that incident where the hat got pulled over her face on the second night home. I am just too paranoid. Plus now, Brooklyn has acid reflux problems which we are treating her for. She still gets choked up even a couple of hours after she eats and I have to rush to sit her up and pat her on her back. So this makes me even more paranoid that something is going to happen if she sleeps by herself and I won't hear her choking.

Now I know, I know, I shouldn't' t let her sleep with me because then I will NEVER get my bed back and then there is the increased risk that I might roll over on her. However, since I have become a mother, I find that I don't really sleep at night. Brooklyn always sleeps on my left side, so there is no risk of her daddy rolling over on her, and she sleeps on her side. She is not a back sleeping baby. She is comfy on her tummy and her side. The only time she sleeps on her tummy is when she is laying on my chest, or during the day for a little nap. Other than that, she's on her side. So at night, she sleeps with her head on my arm, on her side, curled into a ball with her binky in her mouth. I make sure that she doesn't roll into me and suffocate by keeping my chin on her forehead at all times, so she is a safe distance away from my chest.

Her daddy is still worried about her sleeping against me like she does, but for me, it's a comfort thing knowing that she is right there next to me at night. Plus, like I said, I don't really sleep. I am constantly aware of every single move and noise she makes. Now I have tried to put her in her bassinet, which is right beside my side of the bed. This doesn't work though. Usually, as soon as I put her down, away from me, she wakes up and starts crying. The longest she has ever slept in the bassinet was for an hour. Then she woke up and started screaming. As soon as I pick her up though, she is perfectly fine and goes right back to sleep. I will try to let her cry until a certain point, when she starts hyperventilating. Then at that point she sleeps with me.

She has become so spoiled to being held all the time that very rarely am I able to put her down during the day. She either sits in my lap with me all day while I do whatever needs to be done on the computer ( like she is right now, passed out, sleeping on my lap), or she is in the sling that I wear around my shoulder. Brooklyn will lay in her crib every now and then and allow me to get things done though.

I spoke with the doctor today and asked how long the risk of SIDS lasts, and she told me only until about 6-9 months, until she is able to roll over on to her stomach by herself. After that it won't matter really how she lays. So I am excited for that risk to go away.

I am sure that I am one day going to really regret holding her so much, but right now, I love it. Like someone once told me, "a child isn't really ever spoiled, they are just loved a lot more than others." So that is my excuse!

Love,
Jennifer