Sleep Training - Conclusion

So I didn't write about night 10. Why? Because night 10 sucked! I felt like it was somewhat of a failure of a night, so I was too bummed out to write about it. It took a while to get her to bed, and then at 3:30am she woke up & was WIDE awake & didn't go back to sleep until 4:30!! At least she did this on the weekend. She did sleep in until 8am.

Anyway, I think overall the sleep training worked. Abigail wakes up around 45 minutes after we put her to bed, pretty consistently. We typically have to go in her room and give her the pacifier & she'll go back to sleep. Then she wakes up around 1am & I nurse her. She goes right back to sleep. I've noticed other times at night she wakes up a little, but puts herself back to sleep. This is such a great improvement from where things were just 2 weeks ago & this pattern, I can live with. I'm sure eventually we'll need to phase the 1am feeding out. I'm hoping she does that on her own. So I've decided to give her until she's 9 months old & then if I have to, I'll "sleep train" again to phase the middle of the night feeding out. To be honest, I really enjoy watching her sleep while she nurses at 1am. It's quiet & just the 2 of us & she is so beautiful. So yeah, she probably doesn't need it, but I miss her at night & it's a chance for me to see her & watch her sleep :)

She is taking pretty good naps during the day. They last longer & she is in a really good mood most of the time. I think she's about to get her top teeth here pretty soon, so I'm bracing myself hoping it doesn't throw her sleep way off again.

I will say that The No Cry Sleep Solution was a great resource! It worked for us. We were able to identify the sleep issues Abigail has, and then fix the issues that were worth fixing to us. She does say in the book that if something isn't bothering you that bad, is it really worth fixing? You have to be motivated to stick with things cause it's HARD. Which is why we ended up letting her continue to use the paci at night (she's learned how to get the pacifier for herself when she wakes up - if she isn't laying on top of it). And also why I'm OK with her 1am waking. I'm relieved we didn't have to let her cry. I don't think it's cruel or bad parenting for the people who do choose to let their babies cry-it-out. I just think it wasn't the right approach for us.

Anyway in conclusion, I would overall call the sleep training a success & also I'm calling it done for now. The book says that after 10 days you re-assess & adjust, and try things for another 10 days until you have your desired results. B & I talked it over, and I think we're content with the way things are for now. SO glad it's over!