Happy Camper and Maybe Sleep Strides

As I mentioned, today was Lewis' first day of camp!

Our happy camper!

We've been talking it up for a few days, and he was super excited about it. For some reason, he got it in his head that camp=eating pizza, so I made sure to pack some pizza in his lunch. :) At drop-off this morning, we talked to one teacher while Lewis walked right on in with another--just like, 'See ya later, folks! I'm off to have some fun!'

I received a positive report at pick-up. The teacher said he did well with transitioning from one activity to another and with interacting with the other kids. She said he would shoot basketballs and proclaim 'I made it!' over and over, which the teacher found funny. :) He did not eat his lunch, however--I didn't think about it, but he isn't used to sitting in a chair without being strapped into it. He just took a few bites and walked around, so he had to eat when he got home. (I'm going to bring a booster seat tomorrow to see if he can use it.)

The theme this week is 'Jungle,' and I gathered that they talked about gorillas and alligators. Otherwise, he told me he rode on a fire truck, plane, big dump truck, and bikes. The church has a huge gym that they let the kids ride around in, so I'm guessing that's what he's referring to. He's excited to go back tomorrow (and Thursday)!

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Sleep update:

This morning I had to wake up at 5am to go to a park for a news segment for the place I volunteer, and, unfortunately, I must have woken up Lewis with the sound of the shower...which, of course, meant that Kevin had to wake up, too. Oopsy. (And the news thingy had a big turnout, and I wouldn't have even been missed, but whatever.)

By the time naptime rolled around today, I knew it was crucial that I do something different. Over the weekend I did some more reading and found a method that uses strict rules, rewards, and consequences (by Marc Weissbluth). Monday, Lewis and I made a Sleep Rules poster for his room with places for stickers (rewards), and we talked about the rules a lot.

1. Get in bed/stay in bed.
2. Close your eyes.
3. Be quiet.
4. Go to sleep.
5. Don't wake up until the alarm clock tells you it's okay to wake up. (We ordered a clock that is supposed to light up green when it's okay to get up...we'll see if it works--it isn't here yet.)

He seems really excited to decorate his poster with stickers, but Monday's nap situation was still bad (really bad) and the early morning wake-ups are getting worse (from being overtired). As much as he seems to understand the rules and wants to follow the rules to get his sticker, I realized today that he doesn't know how to shut himself down enough for a nap. He doesn't know how to stay in bed because he's never had to (he's always had the crib keeping him 'put'). 

He is so active (and so overtired at this point), so today I tried something different...I literally laid in bed with him in a bear hug while he thrashed and fought me (all gently, of course). I shushed and sang and told him I loved him, and he finally, finally, finally tired out after about 20 minutes and nap happened. Hooray! Since it was an early day for all of us, I stayed with him and napped, too. A poopy diaper woke him up about an hour later, and he wasn't able to go back to sleep after that. BUT, I really am hopeful that we'll be able to work on it every day until he gets it and eventually gets his sticker. :)

These are the faces of a non-napping Lewis:

 

Suckers! Rookies! You have no clue what you're doing, do you?! :)

And I'm not napping in the car!

 This was yesterday at dinner, which was a first:

Poor little buddy

To be continued...