My babies are 7 months old. They usually take a morning nap and an afternoon nap on the same schedule. The problem is at night. H2 goes to bed nicely around 8:30. She sleeps for about 5 hours then begins a routine of getting up every two hours. I try to get H1 to go to bed just after H2 who can sleep through anything. H1 will not go to bed. I finally manage to get her to sleep between 12 and 1. So, I get about 4 or 5 hours of sleep broken into 3 pieces each night. I am painfully exhausted.
H1 does not want to be held, so I can't just take her to bed with me. She wants to play. But she does not want to play alone. Sometimes, there is nothing that she is happy with and she just cries and cries no matter what I try. She can keep up crying for hours before giving in and falling asleep. Sometimes, she will sleep in a swing for a while. Sometimes, she will fall asleep early. Tonight she fell asleep in my lap around 8, so I put her in bed. By 9 she was bright eyed and not willing to go to bed. Some nights, she falls asleep in her high-chair during dinner around 7. By the time I carefully extract her from the chair and put her in bed, she is wide awake and ready for several more hours of activity!
They were both sleeping so well right around 4 months. They only woke once during the night. I was just starting to brag. Then they went through a growth spurt and wanted to eat every 2 hours. They got over that, but now have this frustrating misalignment of sleep schedules.
I have tried not letting H1 take an afternoon nap. But that doesn't seem to help, and then I don't get my afternoon "alone hour".
Does anyone have any suggestions on improving sleep?
H1 does not want to be held, so I can't just take her to bed with me. She wants to play. But she does not want to play alone. Sometimes, there is nothing that she is happy with and she just cries and cries no matter what I try. She can keep up crying for hours before giving in and falling asleep. Sometimes, she will sleep in a swing for a while. Sometimes, she will fall asleep early. Tonight she fell asleep in my lap around 8, so I put her in bed. By 9 she was bright eyed and not willing to go to bed. Some nights, she falls asleep in her high-chair during dinner around 7. By the time I carefully extract her from the chair and put her in bed, she is wide awake and ready for several more hours of activity!
They were both sleeping so well right around 4 months. They only woke once during the night. I was just starting to brag. Then they went through a growth spurt and wanted to eat every 2 hours. They got over that, but now have this frustrating misalignment of sleep schedules.
I have tried not letting H1 take an afternoon nap. But that doesn't seem to help, and then I don't get my afternoon "alone hour".
Does anyone have any suggestions on improving sleep?
With enough sleep deprivation, it will all eventually run together and you won't remember. 
