Last week was a long week, and this one is looking like it too.

Josh has been up FREQUENTLY during the nights due to his teething. And that means I'm up, and to make it extra interesting Caleb has been getting up 2-3 times in the night. He wants to be with me. And he will say anything to get attention. He says he wants to sleep in my room, he wants to sleep next to Jockey, he is cold and needs the blankets, he wants juice, he's "honkey" and wants chicken nuggets at 4 am.

This week we have more people awake at night than not. Sunday night we didn't sleep well out of concern for our beloved (and now departed) Cosmo cat. Josh is still up every other hour just wanting his gums to feel good. Caleb still wants to be near me. I think the entire house is exhausted and perhaps we are all acting out because of it.

Perhap there could be a better time, but right now we are starting to "furber-ize" Josh... get him to fall asleep on his own in his own crib. It isn't going so well. He gets so wound up that he actually is calling "muhmuhmuhmuh". He has never cried and screamed so loud ever, and that was just after 5-10 minutes. Well, then the Lord brought to mind something that I hope is the "stroke of genius" for this little boy. When Josh was crying so desperately and I came into the room, he stopped just at the sight of me. Well, not to give up easily and willing to put forth a creative effort.... I pinned up all the dangling items from his mobile and taped a picture of me and daddy to the underneath side of it. I'm hoping that that will help. I'm listening to the monitor as I type and so far he hasn't reached the levels of desperate cry he was demonstrating before. A modicum of success in that at least. We'll see how it goes.

I haven't figured it out yet, but I feel often times like Josh is feeling abandoned, worrisome, etc. There are times that I have to put him down to meet Caleb's needs. Josh is the baby that will cry and fuss if you stop playing with him before he is done playing. Acting like "the baby", he crys when he doesn't get the attention that he wants... which could lead him to feel abandoned and then be worried or insecure. But of course, he is ok really, and nothing could be farther from the truth about being abandoned or unloved. This makes it sound like he is always crying and upset, which is also very opposite of what takes place. He is great and tolerant of me having to get things done and not hold him, but I guess he has a line of patience that I shouldn't cross. He really is a good baby with calm and patience exuding from him. But these feelings that I am guessing he is having can be the cause of the difficulty getting him to sleep through the night and in his own room. I'll just have to redouble my efforts.

Caleb spent a lovely, and from what I hear, predominantly naked, Sunday evening with Grammy and Papa Dahl. He wore them out quite well, and they enjoyed every minute of it. They also had Josh that evening. Josh the little eater, he ate the better part of 2 jars of solid food! He has such enthusiam and excitement that he nearly attacks the spoon. I think he would try to swallow the spoon if it was just a little softer.

Monday Caleb visited Grammy and Papa Dahl's house for an overnighter. Again he had a good time. He darn near ate them clean out of strawberries. And he was using the potty with acrobatic positions, although I can't speak to any precision.

Tuesday morning, Grammy Dahl was a tremendous help and life support yet again as I had to go to a dentist appointment. This was her first time with both boys. Caleb was a big helper, and once again Josh ate well for her. She is very appreciated and loved, and I could tell... very tired after Caleb "entertained" her. So on that note, have a great Hawaiian vacation Grammy; rest up, Caleb will miss you.

Tomorrow we are off to a fun time at playgroup in the morning, and hopeful naps in the afternoon. My goal would be to have a "normal" day tomorrow and stick close to a schedule. The better the schedule during the day, cross my fingers, the better the schedule for the night.

Well, as the Lord wills...
God bless all of you readers.