Flip Flops and Swaddlers

Luke has met some milestones this week. He's now rolling from back to front and front to back with ease. I think he is much happier now that he can mobilize himself instead of watiing for someone to do it for him. He actually likes being on his tummy and able to see everything. Its fun to watch him learn new things and really get the hang of it. I will forever stand in awe of the power of God to create such a thing and cause him grow.
However, (there's always pros and cons to everything) he's gotten the hang of rolling in his swaddler. This is a problem because once they can roll while wrapped in their swaddler, it isn't safe to swaddle them anymore. And this is a problem because Luke's recipe for a easy bedtime routine is a bath, a book, swaddle up, and plug with a pacifier. His eyes roll back in his head and he is out in minutes. Now that we skip the swaddle, it has become a recipe for a long, draining fight to relax enough to let sleep come. We had settled into this routine, so I have to admit that I have no idea what to do now. Last night I spent 45 minutes trying to help him get to sleep. He fought every bit of the way with arms stretching and legs kicking, back arching and pacifier spitting. Then, just when he is finally asleep and down in his crib without my tight grip on his limbs, he startles and wakes up. If you've ever had a dream that you were falling and then your body jerks and you wake up, that what he does. After laying him down and having him wake up, I tried consoling him in his bed. Finally, he rolled onto his side and just like that, fell asleep. He only woke up once through the night but ended up in my bed again. (The last few weeks he has been increasing his night wakes ups to two, three, four, even five times a night. And spending fewer and fewer hours in his own bed. He began refusing to return to his bed at 3-4am. Then it became 2am, then midnight. Desperate for sleep, I take him to my bed and he sleeps soundly. But I don't.) I suppose sleeping without the swaddle will get easier as he gets used to it, but for now, I'm at a loss. Though it was quite a feat to get him to sleep, it was precious to see him sleep. The sight reminded me how fast he is growing. It was only four months ago that he was brand new, swaddled in a blanket in a bed next to mine. On a lighter note, he's sporting the summer fashion trend of FLIP FLOPS! I went into Payless to grab myself a pair, and was reminded by the clerk that its BOGO season again...Buy One Get One half off! After reviewing the selection and only seeing one pair that I prefered, I hit the baby section! So CUTE and so FUNNY!