Booger

Booger Bear, Booger Bird, Tweetie Pie, Lil’ Poops, Chonko, Chonko Chunk, Chonko Chip, Tubby Buns, Little Baby Booger Bear Belly Boopie Butt. Those are just a few of the nicknames I routinely use for our little Elsee Anne. There are more, they just involve words that I can’t spell because they are not real.

Right now, it is 5:18am, and I have been up since 3. I got nearly six hours of sleep last night, which is really quite incredible if you compare it to her first seven weeks of life. You see, Elsee was colicky every minute of every day when she was awake. If you have never had a baby with colic, try not to, as I only give the experience one star—would not recommend.

Colic is loosely defined as crying, screaming, and extreme fussiness in an otherwise healthy and well-fed baby. Elsee was more in the screaming category, and Amanda and I had to take turns being awake and walking her around, bouncing her, swinging her, until the other parent would wake up and take over. But it isn’t like one of us was sleeping throughout the day, we still have two girls that need to do schoolwork at home, and they need to be fed, clothed, mentored, and attended to. I was losing my mind.

I already have trouble sleeping, I have R.L.S. (Restless Legs Syndrome) and chronic back pain which can both keep me from sleep on their own. I was getting two and three hours of sleep nightly for weeks at a time, with a few involuntary naps during some of the times that Elsee also napped. After a quick two weeks off of work, I had to get back into the grind and there were days I went in having already achieved my daily goal of 10,000 steps simply from walking the loop in our house. Living room, kitchen, laundry room, and back into the living room, for hours. Work was tough for me, and when we went back to carryout only, I began a three, twelve-hours-per-day schedule. It certainly has its advantages, but if on any of those three days I had to be up at two or three in the morning, and work from 8-8, it was pretty rough. I was starting to see snowflakes, which I had only ever experienced after days up on meth, and I wasn’t able to focus on my tasks.

She did sleep and nap sometimes, but when she was awake, it was only screaming unless we were walking her around, and even then sometimes that wouldn’t do. For seven straight weeks she kept it up with no solution found. We spent hundreds on cribs, rockers, swings, drops, solvents, and special weighted blankets, all of which claimed to help with colic, but to no avail. Then, one day, she just slept for five straight hours, and when she woke up, she smiled and laughed for her first time, and it was over. She still has her fits, but they are few and far in between, and even more predictable. It is normal for her to cry now and then be sated after she eats. Sometimes she just wiggles around and coos and squeaks and smiles, and it is a beautiful thing to watch.

I’m getting about six hours of sleep per night and I feel a little more back to normal. Elsee is a fascinating creature, and Amanda and I both feel that her colic has helped us bond with her even closer. It is an experience that I would not wish upon anybody, but I am glad we went through it together. We are stronger as a family, and we have stories to tell.

Christmas has come and gone, and for the third year in a row, Ella has declared, “This is the best Christmas ever!” That’s a good feeling. Santa, Mommy, and Daddy were very generous this year, and the girls will be piling up plastic for days. The house is quiet now, and Booger Bear is by my side, stretching out and lightly snoozing. She is fed, content, and breathing softly with the occasional coo. Her soft breathing reminds me that life is incredibly beautiful, and I am a lucky man to have the opportunities I have been given. So sweet, my little wiggle monkey, an she lay in a quiet, peaceful slumber. Life is good.