Every mom is different

Olivia is just fine. I took her to the doctor today, and he (Dr. Petit, the other doctor in the practice, who I also like and was grateful to have today since he is very thorough and scientific) checked Olivia's ears and belly and talked to me about what was going on. He said that 20% of babies have sleep problems like this at this time, and his first did, too. He said that it is often very curious babies with a real attachment to their caregivers who have these problems because they anticipate the separation that is sleep and fight it. (Of course very curious babies with a real attachment to their caregivers could also be awesome sleepers!)

Anyway, against what I always said (again), we are doing the progressive waiting technique to try to get Olivia to sleep. The Ferberizing has begun. By some miracle, Olivia took three naps today, 1 hour at 8:15, 30 minutes at 12:30, and 30 minutes at 3:30. So, we made her bedtime 7 o'clock, and hope to stick to that. I did the bath, bottle, and book routine like normal. I put her down with a small amount of protest and she wimpered for about 4 minutes. (The first wait time is five minutes, according to Dr. Petit. Then 10, then 15. He said that I could keep the waits at 15 minutes if I felt uncomfortable going past that. I do.) It was not the full-out crying that I expected. She didn't even stand up, which I know because I could tell by her blanket when I checked on her later. I fear the rest of the night, but here we go. Ferberizing, day 1. Dr. Petit assures me this will work within 14 days. Fourteen days. I can do this.