Before Missy Moo arrived, I was given lots of advice (and continue to receive advice both solicited and often not).
One bit of wisdom I often heard was sleep when the baby sleeps.
Once she arrived, so many people encouraged me to sleep when she did… but it’s not always that easy!
Credit: Cathy Thorne, http://everydaypeoplecartoons.com
For the first couple of months, I had to accept the fact that I often didn’t have time to make dinner (or even lunch some days! And I often forgot to eat) and that dishes could be done the next day. But once I managed to get into the swing of things and Missy Moo started sleeping through the night, I figured I could get myself in order and manage to check off various to-dos during the day.
Yeah, that works if your baby actually sleeps during the day…
The thing is, she’ll sometimes nap during the day, but it’s often a 30 minute power nap. There are some days where a nap may be a couple of hours, but it’s impossible to predict when those golden moments will occur.
We’ve quickly realized that our adorable little miss is very nosy and doesn’t want to miss a thing. She fights sleep tooth and nail. I’ve accepted the fact that you sometimes just have to let her cry it out as they say. It’s hard letting her yell and cry out when you can tell she’s so mad (see my earlier post about baby swearing). But if you wait just a few more minutes, she’ll probably find her thumb or a finger and suddenly drift off to sleep. She can go from completely awake to a solid sleep in the blink of an eye. I wish I could do that!
I was putting some laundry on the drying rack in the other room when suddenly little miss stopped bawling out and making noise while on her playmat, I came to check on her and found her fast asleep! Too cute!
If I have the car for the day, she’ll often get in a few good naps because she enjoys the car and also can sleep while being pushed around a grocery store or some other retail establishment. I swear she’s been asleep more often than not whenever I take her to Costco.
Then there are the moments where she fights sleep so hard and I know that letting her cry it out isn’t going to work. If it’s a nice day, I’ll put her in the car seat and attach it to the stroller and take her for a walk. It’s a win-win since she gets fresh air along with some sleep, and I get in some exercise.
Some days I manage to get a lot done. Other days – not so much. Either way, you just have to roll with it.