cranky babies, cranky parents

Thats the name of my current life and maybe someday a parenting help book...omg these children do not sleep. I am trying to be a good parent and an obedient "back to sleep"er but i mean really...all three boys have some serious reflux so when we lay them down, even after they have been upright for 30 minutes to an hour after their feedings they squirm and arch their necks and whimper in their sleep and chew and puke. This is a very stressful (for me to watch them be in pain), messy (for the outfits I have to frequently change), and wakeful (for all the times one or more of them does not sleep more than 15 mins in a row) process. Each individual baby has good patches and bad patches of sleep time but unfortunately they got together and decided to stagger their cranky times so that they could get some good one on one time with mom and dad and as a result we are CONSTANTLY comforting, propping, readjusting, feeding or refeeding someone. This is as you might guess not so good for our overall sleep health...and we weren't getting all that much before this new phase started. Part of it is that the boys are waking up and growing into normal wakeful babies. Although I am giving them playtime during the day, when they are awake, they are AWAKE and they want to be fed or entertained or at least stimulated visually with toys or lights. This can get complicated with three babies at staggered timings. I have tried to schedule them so that they all get playtime at the same time but they aren't quite cooperating. I suppose that I can't blame them, there are times in the day where if you woke me up and said PLAY NOW I might not cooperate and I might try to fall back asleep too. So I am trying really hard to accommodate their individual needs without going crazy at the impact that it is having on my individual needs (am i even allowed to have those now?). I am also thinking that I may have to bribe, coerce, and potentially torture their pediatrician into medicating for reflux. I have walked the line of extremely conservative and I didn't really want to give them meds but I have changed my mind and I am now willing to try just about anything...nice how a our values can change in times of desperation huh. Anyway, our doctor appointment is tomorrow and it is medication or bust for me, laugh!

Konrad having playtime

Mohawk Mikey

Zach's playtime (muwahaha)...14 hours straight...