Note: this is in no way of judgement for families who use the CIO method. Do what works best for your family and your sanity. We are all just trying to stay afloat with this parenting gig.

At 15 months old, we transitioned Sophia to her own room and it was so smooth and seamless. She maybe cried all of 3 minutes before going to sleep. By 16 months, we were able to put her in her crib while she was still awake for nap and bed time and she would lay there and talk to herself or play for a little bit before falling asleep (this still happens to this day at 22 months). Sophia always wakes up in the happiest of moods and just starts playing and talking in her crib while she patiently waits for us to get her. I share all this to show you can successfully transition your older child to their own room without using the CIO method. I truly believe that by answering to Sophia's call as much as I was physically able to and nursing her on demand is what made her feel confident and secure to be in her own room because she knows mommy will be there when she needs it.

Besides CIO not feeling natural to us, I also read a Facebook post about orphan newborns, you can read it here. I cried in heartbreak when I read it and from then on I knew I could never do CIO especially as someone who lost their parents as a child. I know what it is like not having my biological mom and dad not be there as they both died before I was even out of elementary school (I had a great mom that raised me so don't get me wrong here but it still isn't quite the same). 

Now this doesn't mean my children never cry. They do cry, a lot in fact, haha. But I would never intentionally make them have to soothe themselves, if they need me I will be there. Sometimes I am not able to get to them right away because balancing two kids and a house is tough but I talk to them and let them know mommy is here and will get them in a moment or I sing to them even if I can barely her myself think because of how loud their cries may be but they will always know mommy is here to comfort them whenever they need and as best as I physically can in that moment. So if CIO doesn't feel natural to you or you just do not want to go that route, don't feel pressured to. You are not spoiling your child, you are giving them the confidence they need that you will be there for them.
Did you feel pressured to CIO because of the old wives tales of spoiling your child? Or did CIO work for your family? What method did(do) you use to help your child(ren) have better sleeping habits?

This post was created in partnership with The Ollie World but all thoughts and opinions are of my own.

Well guys my big guy turned two months old on Christmas Eve. Like where has time gone? It feels like only yesterday that I brought this sweet baby home and was a hormonal mess about missing out on Sophia yet it also feels like that was so long ago. Funny how that happens.

Since we have baby Anthony on a pretty good sleep schedule now I figured I would share some tips of what has been helping us. Although he doesn't sleep through the night, he is a really good sleeper and I think it all has to do with routine and the Ollie World swaddle.

We started our bedtime routine almost immediately of bringing baby Anthony home but as he was still adjusting to life outside the womb, he was calling all the shots. Now he is pretty consistent at knowing bedtime is 8:00-8:30pm. Here is a sample of our nightly routine:

*depending on how tired he is, we may skip story-time and daddy does story-time with Sophia.

Before laying baby Anthony to sleep in his DockATot, we always wrap him in his Ollie World Swaddle. We personally choose to keep his arms out of the swaddle as we noticed he did not like it and would fight the swaddle. Once we started swaddling without his hands being tucked in, he fell asleep so much easier and that alone is one of the benefits of the Ollie swaddle, the ability to swaddle your little babe with arms in or arms out. We also love the fact that the Ollie swaddle has a custom fit to be individualized to meet the needs and size of each little one and having a big guy we definitely needed that individualized sizing option, haha. Not to mention this crazy weather Texas has been having such as snow and ice days and then we are back to 60-70 degrees like nothing, I'm so glad that this swaddle is made from custom moisture-wicking material to reduce the risk of overheating. Another benefit of the Ollie swaddle is the easy access diaper changes accessible through opening at the bottom. So you can see why this swaddle is the only one we use for bedtime. There are so many benefits to it and our guy feels so snug and comfy in it without the worry of it being too tight around his hips or shoulders.

Two Month Update

If you found this post helpful or know someone who would, please share it! I have made this pinnable image below to make it easier to share and pin!!

Since I stopped babysitting in September, we reset up the pack n play in our bedroom (it was in the playroom the last few months), and have now restocked it for  baby Anthony. These are the items we always have nearby both changing stations:

• Pampers Swaddlers or Pampers Cruisers
• Pampers Sensitive Wipes
• Boudreaux's Butt Paste
• Grocery bags
• Ubbi Diaper Pail (we only have one by baby Anthony's changing table for middle of the night diapers)

Also we never bought any type of diaper pail with Sophia because I honestly didn't want to spend the money by having to constantly buy specific trash bags for the pail or going through the hassle of DIYing the bags to use. It was just easier and cheaper for us at that point to take poopy diapers straight to the dumpster in the garage and pee diapers in the regular trash can since we change that trash almost nightly anyways. I did finally bite the bullet and purchased the Ubbi diaper pail with the monetary gifts we received for baby Anthony as this pail has the ability to use regular kitchen trash bags which that alone sold me on it. Plus, changing two to three kids' (I started babysitting again this month) diapers is a lot of work and momma wanted at least one pail for all the poop. We still take Sophia's (and the toddler I babysit) poop diapers straight to the dumpster because that smell is on a whole other level compared to breastmilk poop, haha.
With the cold weather we have been having the last few weeks I have been living in joggers like these from PinkBlush.  And let's be honest, having cute and comfy clothes like these joggers make mommying a tad easier. Well not really but at least you look cute and are comfortable doing it! 

Do you use a changing pad/table or do you change your baby wherever you happen to be? What are your thoughts on diaper pails? What is your daily momiform look like?

Wondering if I soaked in enough time with her. 

Was I truly intentional those first 19 months of being just her mommy? 

Was this postpartum depression? 

Do all moms have this way of thinking when having two under two? 

Or was my life circumstances (parents dying) playing a role in my guilt of not spending enough time with either?

Those few weeks were so long as I really considered what I was feeling and my mood got worse the longer I kept these feelings to myself. I finally opened up to Anthony and told him how I was feeling and the guilt I was having and wondering if I was suffering from postpartum depression and he was such an encouragement to me in reassuring me and comforting me.

Side note: Anthony has always been the one afraid he couldn't love or wouldn't be able to divide his attention for each child the same whereas I'm all let's have 20 kids and we will love them equally and now I am the one who was struggling with wondering if my time was enough with just two. It's funny how that worked out and he ended up having to lift me up.

Since that talk, I have been even more intentional with my time with Sophia and baby Anthony and trying to give myself grace because I can't do it all even if I want to. My mood has also greatly improved and I don't have that guilty feeling hanging over my head anymore. I'm able to enjoy baby Anthony and all his sweet little baby coos.

One Month Update

My big guy is the chunkest thing. He started off wearing size 1 diapers right away and after about 2 boxes is now in size 2 and we are thinking we may have to move him up to size 3 already! He also skipped newborn clothes altogether and went straight to 3 months and even now some 3 months are getting too small so moving up to 6 months has started happening at 6 weeks old!

This guy also started trying to hold his head up right away which we think is because he has such a huge neck. Well this guy is just huge all over who am I kidding, haha. He has even started trying to scoot when doing tummy time, like what the what? He is really trying to speed ahead in milestones all at once and mommy just needs him to slow down.


His sleep has been somewhat of a struggle this first month which honestly is to be expected since we are all adjusting to this new way of life. The first few weeks, he took really good naps during the day and decided to have parties at night and we quickly knew we needed to help him change that because when you have more than 1 kid, there is no sleeping when the baby sleeps. Once we finally got him sleeping pretty well at night (it only took about a day or two for him to catch on), this guy decided we wouldn't take naps during the day. He would only take one nap during the day and luckily he would do that at Sophia's nap time so we got some type of break from both kids. Although his nap times during the day were hit or miss, his bedtime was amazing. He was sleeping from around 8-11 pm, nurse back to sleep until 2 am, nurse, sleep until 4 or 5 am, nurse, sleep until around 7 or 8 am and up for the day so about every 2-3 hours. He quickly dropped the 11 pm feeding when I started to dream feed him at that time. I only did it twice so now at 6 weeks old, he is in bed around 8 or 8:30 pm, he wakes up to nurse around 2 am, again around 5 or 6 am, again around 8 or 9 am and wakes for the day around 10 or 11 am. This is on average, there are still nights were he may wake up one extra time or his day may start at 9 am instead but overall he is a much better sleeper at night then Sophia was as an infant. The last week daytime naps have been very consistent and going good so hoping that will continue.


So my biggest lesson with being a mom with two under two is to work on my time management. There is so much going on and so much to do but my kiddos come first. Dishes will always be there, the floor will always need to be cleaned but they are only this little for so long. Therefore, I want to make the most of my time with them and when they are napping at the same time or playing independently, I want to be productive with that time instead of mindless scrolling on social media.





 Photos by LaPalomento Photography