1 year and 4 months, plus a couple weeks...

Luci is barely 17 months old and she climbed/jumped/flew/ninja hopped out of her crib earlier this week. I wasn't totally surprised, but I also couldn't believe it. I thought we had a couple more months AT LEAST before she would figure it out. She has got super strong legs. Her mattress is at the lowest point in the crib. She is only about 32.5 inches tall.

I hardly ever have energy or time, mostly energy to get on the computer at night anymore. It's almost impossible to get on here in the daytime. Now I have to lay down or sit with Luci in her room on a futon mattress on the floor till she falls asleep. She wouldn't go to sleep tonight. I sat on my butt for over 90 minutes. Finally I put her in her crib and left. She cried and yelled at me, then fell asleep. She didn't climb out. Either she forgot how or she was too tired. We also put the crib in the corner of the room, so maybe she couldn't jump out with the new angle. I checked on her and she woke up very upset so I held her for a few seconds and then put her on the floor and sat with her and rubbed her back till she was passed out again. I feel better knowing she won't hurt herself jumping out of the crib later in the night.

I lay down with her for naps too. I usually end up just napping with her because I'm so tired by 2pm. Oh she went down to one nap a day about a month ago. And it used to be a 2-3 hour nap, but now it's about an hour. I really hope that improves a little, just for a year or three.

I rarely ever let her cry it out (CIO) to sleep anymore because she never ever ever stopped crying for good. She always whimpered or let out a 30-second to ten minute cry/scream/tears after months and months of being good about that whole SleepSense program stuff. I gave up. And when she is sick, she throws up from crying. So instead of crying we just let her sleep with us. I go to sleep with her early or Jason does. Crying just didn't work after so many months. I couldn't stand her sadness and it wasn't better for her in the end, especially after changing her sheets and clothes three nights in a row. I think we stopped the CIO method this past month. I do it once in a while, but I won't let her cry for too long, maybe 10-15 minutes before I go and check on her. Oh well.

Jason got orders for Fort Carson, Colorado. We move sometime in April this year. We are very much looking forward to it, but also I'm a little down because I've made an awesome group of girlfriends out here and I'm really going to miss them. Luci loves them and they all love her too. Living closer to civilization and having easier access to local shopping and food will feel like luxury to us. No more driving 80 miles to the nearest Target or baby store. Or even 30 miles to the nearest Walmart.

We spent the last Christmas with family up in Northern California since we figured we wouldn't be this close again. We only spent a week out there. It was okay. Luci enjoyed all of her relatives.

I should get to bed since Luci has been waking up at random times of the morning ever since she has been sleeping on the floor instead of her crib. I think I'm going to have Jason take down the crib this weekend. There really is no point to keep it up since it is dangerous for her to jump out. I'm so afraid of her hitting her head or snapping her little neck on the way down, even though we have some padding on the bottom. It won't fit through the door so either us or the movers will have to take it apart anyway.

Good night.