The "witching hour" is an experience that most parents will come to know. It's a period of time where your child cries for what seems like no reason. There is no pacifying them and at times it can be almost maddening. Our daughter had a brief period in which for about an hour, beginning around 9pm, she would cry inconsolably. This time around with our son, we felt a bit more prepared. While the last couple weeks have had us wanting to cry ourselves between the hours of 8 and 10pm, we know that this too shall pass. In fact, the last couple nights have been much better.
As we tried to work through this time with our daughter, we found it best to get her outside. Many nights we could be found sitting on the front porch or walking her around the yard. It was all about survival. It's a bit different now. Having two in the house makes it a bit trickier.
G's bedtime happens to be at the beginning of N's witching hour. On nights that I'm home alone I've had to find ways to adapt. I have placed him in his crib (which is in his sister's room) while I complete my daughter’s nighttime routine. This worked for about 10-15 minutes. I tried getting him to sleep and leaving him in the pack n play downstairs only to have him wake up and begin screaming in the middle of my daughter’s bedtime story. I have brought him up in the bouncer to bounce him as I read to and rock my toddler. This seems to be one of the more successful tactics.
After G is in bed, I turn all of my focus to N in an attempt to calm him and survive the remaining hours. One way that I have found to cope this go around is to sing. I don't choose the typical lullabies. In fact, these times have begun turning into a time of worship. I sing whatever worship songs come to my heart. The singing may or may not calm my son, but it calms my heart as I draw closer to the Lord. As I sing the words I can feel my tension ease and my burdens becoming lighter. It's amazing how blessed I feel and how at peace I can become as I worship during the difficult times so rightly termed the witching hours.
Oh hard times; I feel for ya mama! Luckily I have never had a baby that went through inconsolable crying periods. Sounds like you are doing an awesome job caring for both kiddos though!!!
ReplyDeleteThat's so tough! I would have such a hard time with two kids by myself. Sophie never really had a witching hour, but there were certainly times she had some inconsolable nights, when I was by myself and like you I sang. Just songs that I knew or lyrics of songs that I had heard as a kid. You're doing a wonderful job mama!
ReplyDeleteliz jo @ sundays with sophie
Thanks! My husband is a firefighter so "alone" happens a lot :/
DeleteKeep at it Mama - you've got this. Our time always seemed to come at dinner time. Luckily, my wonderful husband never hesitates to jump in and either finish making dinner or do his best to handle the grumpiness.
ReplyDeleteI love this! I'm mentally preparing myself for those hours with my little guy on the way and I love that you are able to keep your own heart calm enough to worship. What a great use of those tough moments! Thank you for sharing at Mommy Moments last week! It was the top viewed link and will be featured in the link up today!
ReplyDeleteI love this! I'm mentally preparing myself for those hours with my little guy on the way and I love that you are able to keep your own heart calm enough to worship. What a great use of those tough moments! Thank you for sharing at Mommy Moments last week! It was the top viewed link and will be featured in the link up today!
ReplyDelete