Personal

Short of our decision to adopt Oliver, the single *best* parenting decision we’ve made was hiring a sleep coach.

You often hire a realtor to help you sell a house, a coordinator to plan your wedding, an accountant to do your taxes; why should we hesitate to ask for help for the single biggest stress to new parents?

I was skeptical about asking for help for something that our friends seem to have figured out on their own. But as Ollie turned two months and the magical glitter adrenaline of being a new mom started to wear off, the effects of sleep deprivation were taking over my life. We all needed sleep! Despite going through a phase for a couple weeks where he was sleeping 6+ hour stretches at night, his 4 month sleep regression kicked in and we were all feeling like this during the day :

A past bride and classmate of Nate’s, Rachel, had become a professional sleep trainer since we photographed her wedding day. While I first flinched at the idea, it wasn’t long into my insomnia that I was ready to do anything to fix our family! Luckily for me, The Cradle Coach had a sleep training package perfect for us, and it only cost $150. (Shh- Don’t ever tell them how much they’re undercharging for these magical powers!!) That $150 included our personal sleep plan and 3 days of email support from Rachel, which was PRICELESS!

When I first reached out to Rachel, Oliver was about to turn 4 months old and impossible to put down at night. His nighttime “routine” was a ~3 hour disaster of bath time, bottle, swaddling, giving a paci, rocking to sleep, and gennnnnntly putting him in his bassinet trying not to wake him. Without fail, part 2 of this routine would begin about 20 minutes later, where Nate and I alternated going up every 15 minutes to try to calm an inconsolable Oliver. Most of the time, trying to stand over his bassinet, “shhhh” until our mouths were dry, and try to keep his pacifier in his mouth. Every night, I’d cry, and every night, Nate would ask, “can’t we just duct tape his pacifier to his mouth?” (That began as a joke and I think he meant it towards the end!) Short of random ~15 minute catnaps throughout the day, naps were nonexistent and he was so cranky.

Fast forward two nights into sleep training and we put our son down to sleep in his crib. In his room. No swaddle, no pacifier, no rocking to sleep. You could have picked my jaw off the floor when within ~15 minutes, Oliver had talked himself to sleep! A week later, we’d weaned him off his night time feeds and our boy was sleeping 12 hours. Even more importantly? He was happy during the day. His witching hour disappeared since he was well rested, we got more office hours in during the day and some mom and dad time at night. It’s been an absolute dream come true for our family.

While we’ve definitely had some push back from family members, “What do you mean you don’t rock him to sleep?”, “He can’t nap on me when I come over??”, “I never stuck to a nap schedule with my kids and they turned out juuuust fine- And could sleep anywhere!” We’ve just continually pointed out that the reason our son is the happiest baby ever is *because* he’s well rested. And it’s crucial that anyone babysitting him follow his schedule… We’ll know that night if they don’t! ;)

Yes, it’s not ideal to plan our lives around our son’s nap schedule, but we’ve made it a priority. And you guys- He really is the happiest baby now. <3 He’s nine months old today and takes three naps during the day (an hour, two hours, and another hour in the evening) and still sleeps for 12 hours at night! And if we *do* find ourselves on a long road trip and unable to get him home to nap at 1:00, he still gets a decent nap in because his body is used to the schedule. This was taken on our last road trip at 1:01pm. <3

Whether you’re a new parent or this is your 5th and you can’t figure out why your newest won’t sleep, stop what you’re doing and go visit our friends at The Cradle Coach. I know all of the coaches are wonderful, but we can’t sing Rachel’s praises loudly enough. Request her! :) She’s truly our personal sandman! We love her so much we even gifted a sleep plan to my sister-in-law for her baby shower!

I’m so happy to have The Cradle Coach in our back pocket now and have no doubt we’ll be checking in for “tune ups” down the road. Until then, I’ll continue singing their praises to random new moms I meet at nail salons, at the grocery store, and now my blog! :)

You can check out their sleep plans here, and for 10% off, make sure you use “ROOT10” at checkout. (By the way, we get no referral credit or anything. This is simply passing on something amazing because the world would be a happier place if families all got the sleep we need!!)

SWEET DREAMS, FRIENDS! <3

I first met Jessie when she was 16. We were in my now mother-in-law’s kitchen, and she had a black and white tea length skirt on and I told her I loved her because she looked like Audrey Hepburn!

It’s hard to believe the spunky, slightly rebellious teenager I remember driving me around when she first got her license is now p r e g n a n t. But then of course that seems like a lifetime ago, and it’s only when I think back to our early Starbucks dates on my visits to town that I realize how much our lives have changed. But then I think about our topics of conversation then and now and honestly not a whole lot has changed at all!

For as much as we’re different, Jessie forever has my heart. Out of allllllll of my in-laws, she’s the first I really connected with. I feel like she was the first to see me as more than Nate’s girlfriend, and the first time Nate had to leave me in the NICU with Oliver to shoot a wedding, she was the one I called to be by my side. She’s truly my little sister.

And sometime very, very soon, I’ll have a new favorite relative: My newest niece!!!! I’ve always been that crazy aunt who loves her nieces and nephews too much, but this time is extra special… Baby C will only be a 3.5 hour drive away. Which means I get to see her all the time, and she and Oliver will be raised as best friend cousins which is truly my dream for my only child son! Get ready Baby C. Adventure is out there and Ollie can’t wait to show you everything! :)

Nate took these photos in maybe 30 minutes at a nearby park in Fort Lauderdale and I’m completely obsessed with them. I mean… Can we please talk about how my sister is a fairy garden goddess pregnant woman?!

(And for those of you wondering, this stunning dress is from Forever 21. I know. I sneakily bought it for Jess when we shot a maternity session last year and our mama was wearing the same one- It screamed Jessie! I haven’t seen it online since but this just goes to show you can find great maternity dresses anywhere. Look for long and flowy!)