Crying it out...booooooooooooooooooooo

Tonight, Z was unable or unwilling to go to sleep. Well, he fell asleep and then he heard me leave the room and stood up and jumped around in his bouncy trampoline (crib=bouncy trampoline).

This has become an ever-growing problem because he has gone (as I have mention again and again and again) from sleeping pretty well through the night to sleeping 3-4 hours at a time and WAKING UP (and I mean it- WAKING UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Like, MOMMY I AM AWAKE AND I AM BOUNCING ON MY TRAMPOLINE AND NEED YOU TO COME HERRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!).

It started when he was about 7 1/2 months old and he hit some type of growth spurt and needed extra bottles during the night. However, I'm pretty sure he doesn't need much food in the middle of the night anymore (he kinda just sips the bottle) and he's resisting all sleep with all his might. The payoff he gets from waking up in the middle of the night (or not going to sleep when he's tired and it's bedtime) is that I take him out of the room. Ick - I know! Why do I do that?? Why did I start that?? It just kinda happened but I can tell how much he enjoys it.

So, tonight, as the door creaked when I left his room and awoke Z and encouraged him to stand up and bounce and call for me, I had to do the one thing I never wanted to do- let him kinda cry. Because I really am out of ideas on how to encourage him fall asleep- because he is definetly definetly tired.

I hate the idea of crying it out. HATE IT! However, this battle of wills between Z and I has gone on for a really long time (like, 8 1/2 months) and I am starting to see the glimmer of understanding in his eyes. I do not think he's manipulating me- I don't think he's bad- I don't think he's a sneak. I just think he needs help going to sleep and the rocking and shussshhhhhing (which only kinda worked thus far) aren't cutting it anymore.

Luckily, hubs was home and he dealt with the tears- I think it only lasted about 10 minutes in total and he didn't get hysterical (which is what has happened in the past when I've let him cry for even the slightest amount of time). I cried the whole time too. And I don't expect it will solve our sleep problems, but I hope it helps him learn that when he's put down to bed, it means bed time. Because I'm pretty sure it hurt me way more then it hurt him and I don't know if I can handle another day of it:(

And, for the record, lest anyone think I'm an awful cry-it-out mommy, hubs went into Z's room ever 2 or 3 minutes to give him a kiss and tell him that we love him and lay him back down.

So, there you go. That's been my night. I am hoping and praying that he still loves me tonight when he wakes up and needs his bottle.