The Witching hour returns!

This is going to be a very watered down version of the post I was actually writing in my head at 2am this morning. But after a hot cup of tea and lovely french toast I have calmed down somewhat and am therefore typing with less anger and frustration. So what is the object of my frustrations.... Sleep of course... or rather lack of it! After the success of my sleep training at the start of the year, I was pretty impressed with myself for 'dealing' with the hot topic on every mother's lips... getting baby to sleep through the night. Of course I knew that teething would cause some unsettled nights, but I didn't expect it to toatally undo all the sleep training I put us through! For the past 3 months itt has been getting progressively worse. From waking every 3 hours only needing the dummy  to sleep again, to waking every hour from midnight onward - hence the tittle of this post. Like clockwork, on midnight the restless sleep kicks in. Most nights its simply: she cries, I put the dummy in her mouth, I get back into bed, repeat. Most nights it's pretty automatic, literally following the process in my sleep. But every few nights I have one like last night.

Where she just  can't fall back to sleep, not wide awake, clearly wanting to sleep, but just not able to cross that bridge over into deep sleep. Worst still she doesn't want me to pick her up, she is very happy with me leaning over the side of the cot with my hand on her back. Her eyes would be closed, she seems to be sleeping I've been standing like this for 15 minutes already so I think maybe I can creep back into bed... oh no! The minute I  move my hand from her back she opens her eyes to peer at me throught the darkness. The minute I put my hand back she closes her eyes again. When it gets to 2am, I'm cold, my back is sore, I'm getting pins and needles in my arm from hanging over the cot, I'm tired and when I remove my hand from her back and she looks at me and claps her hands... yes claps! that is truly the last straw I tell you. This is when I use all a manner of obscenities under my breath, feel like shouting at Sumayah, feel  like crying with tiredness and frustration, feel like putting earplugs in and dumping her in the cot to cry it out....

Deep breaths...5,4,3,2,1... lift her gently from her cot and bring her to the bed at the risk that she will now be wide awake and want to play (it's happened before!). Surprisingly she lies quietly between Yaasier and I tossing and turning a little bit until hey presto! she is asleep. Still only lightly, so still needing the occasional pat on the back, but at least I am snug as a bug under the covers so I finally get a little shuteye!