You know that dream you have when you first fall asleep? That dream where you trip or stumble or fall down the stairs and it jolts you awake and your body actually convulses a little. Since becoming a mother, that happens to be a few times each night, except that the dream has changed. I am no longer tripping over a crack in the sidewalk or missing a step or falling down the stairs. Now the dream is that Cora has stopped breathing in her bassinet or she’s flipped over on to her stomach and is unable to move her head. I’ve been on first aid and CPR training courses so I know exactly what to do if I ever find her unable to breathe, but when you’re asleep you have no idea what situations they’re getting themselves into.

It’s a funny thing, parenthood. Nick and I are both sleep-deprived and would do anything for a full nights sleep, but each one of us is so quick to jump out of bed and check on her when we can’t hear her breathing. And she always is breathing. I thank God for that every night. It seems like it’s just going to be the way things are for the rest of our lives; to worry like this.

As parents, we do things to ensure a little peace of mind, at least. We make sure we buy the right bottles and the right swaddles. We spend hundreds on monitors to make sure that when we aren’t in the same room as her, we can still keep an eye on her. We make sure she sleeps on her back, alone in the bassinet. We research the best toys and the best music to listen to. (She listened to more Mozart in the womb than I have over my entire life). But despite the numerous times I wake up each night to check on her, there are lots of times I don’t wake up. And her Owlet monitor, the newest addition to our household, gives me the peace of mind to be able to sleep.

The Owlet monitor is comprised of a few pieces. The first piece is a sock that the baby wears on her foot. Connected via WiFi, the sock sends signals to the base of the monitor, which sits on my nightstand. If at any point during the night, the sock monitor shows that Cora has stopped breathing or her heart rate has gone down, the monitor on my nightstand will illuminate red and will sound an alarm so that I wake up. It comes with three different sock sizes, so that the monitor really can grow with your baby. Cora wears hers inside her sleep sack.

For more information on Owlet, check out their site, they have videos!

So, will this Owlet monitor keep me from jumping out of bed a few times each night to rush over to her bassinet, lean down and put my ear next to her face to make sure I can hear her breathing? No. But it will give me the peace of mind during the times when I am sound asleep that everything is okay.

I’ve teamed up with Owlet to offer $25 off your purchase of an infant oxygen and heart rate monitor. Use this link to have the discount automatically applied at checkout. This makes a GREAT baby shower gift. Click here for the discount.

XOXO – Em

[all photos by Emma Parker Photography]