Update on Ella’s sleep issues

I blogged a week or so ago about Ella’s sleep issues, and how she has nightmares and will scream and cry in her sleep, so I thought I’d give an update on that.

She has been sleeping with me in my bed for almost two weeks now and this seems to have really helped. I can feel her body tense and she starts to kick wildly (ouch for the sleeping companion but at least she doesn’t wear cowboy boots to bed…) so I’m able to wake her up before she gets into a full blown nightmare. What hasn’t helped is the cold she got this week, but that issue (runny nose and snorting, sneezing, coughing and breathing through her mouth all over me) aside, she has been getting better rest. Her naps dropped from 1.5 or 2 hours to just 1 hour every day and she’s not cranky in the evenings. Mind you the cold has changed these statistics somewhat, but cold aside she seems to be sleeping a lot better.

Yes, this is probably just a symptom of something else and yes, I should be dealing with the root of the problem, but no, I haven’t yet. I really think this is related to grief and I should be taking her to Sanyus to help her start to deal with some of it. But it’s easier for me to deal with the symptom and not the root right now. I just haven’t had the extra emotional energy to get my butt in gear, take a day off of work and take her into Kampala. I need to JUST DO IT, even if it's not totally regular and both teachers aren’t there (they will each be taking their leaves in November). They are going to move Jorum soon so I should probably get her up there before he leaves.

On a lighter note! I have mentioned before that Ella has a unique twist to her play. As in, pushing a Tonka truck in a tiara, playing with toy trucks and having them talk to each other, and here’s a new one - pushing her stroller filled with babies in her high heels while pretending that the stroller is a lawn mower!! Hee hee. She “mowed” the entire front of our house yesterday in her high heels with the assistance of her dolls, Lillypie and Ninnypikkins.

Over-the-shoulder-boulder-holder? No way! Ella has an over-the-shoulder-stuffed-lamb-holder! (I do not take any responsibility for this, by the way. The blame fully rests upon the shoulders of a sister, who shall remain nameless ;)