My big guy is conked out with a fever and a runny nose and cough. The baby? She’s cackling and crawling around the living room, banging on stuff and searching for choking hazards.
Speaking of which, thank you for all of your babyproofing suggestions! We’ve opted to move the really small stuff up to Thumper’s room, because he was excited to have his toys up there, and to enlist his help in keeping choking hazards out of Ladybug’s chubby little hands. To that end, he now has his very own toilet-paper roll for size checks. Who would have thought that the kid who hates to be alone in a room would be so happy to have his Legos and Playmobil moved into his bedroom? Go figure. My best guess is that now that the baby is totally mobile, the idea of a space that’s just his own is quite appealing. We’ll see what happens once the novelty wears off, and will maybe go the baby-gate route then.
The baby has a runny nose, too. And yes, her bedtime was an hour ago. And yes, we went through our bedtime routine at the usual time, and got into bed to nurse. And then she sat up after nursing for a while and did that “I’m so damn cute” head tilt thing and started crawling all over the bed. I tried to lay her back down several times, but I’m not really the wrestling and forcing and strong-arming type of mama. I’m not going to pin down a not-tired baby. Nor am I going to put her in a crib, tricky as the family bed can be in situations like this. Yes, it would be easier with a crib to stick her in there tired or not and walk away, but that’s exactly why I wouldn’t want to put any child of mine in one. (This is what we choose for our family. I’m not judging whatever works for yours, crib or not. Well, except for crying it out. I do judge that a little. Okay. More than a little. But not to your face. ;P)
I thought I’d gotten the sleep thing straightened out after winter break, when I got us back on our normal wake-up schedule, but apparently I was wrong. I’ve tried to patiently explain to her that mama can’t work on her book until a certain baby is asleep and she just laughed in my face. Shocking that at nine months old a child should be so unconcerned with her mother’s hopes, dreams, and sleep needs.
Remind me to send my mom some flowers.
And now, time to strap this baby into the Ergo and wear her down.
Good luck! We just started getting our little guy down at a decent hour, but it’s only been 3 nights, so I’m sure it will change again. Ah, the joys of co-sleeping & nursing on demand!
I hope the the germs don’t have around too long & everyone sick starts feeling better. Hopefully moving the toys will solve you problem & I got my fingers crossed that your little one get some sleep so you can work on your book.
Full moon? My two were always more wakeful then, wacky as that sounds.
Good luck! I was always calling my mom to apologize when the boys were babies, so I love the comment about sending your mom flowers.
Having just tried to help coax a friend’s 6-month-old munchkin to fall asleep at an hr past his bedtime (nope! bright-eyed! must play!), I think I have a pretty good idea of what you’re up against. Cute and sleep-resistant = tough combo. Well, cute combo, but still.
Last time I read your blog, you had one baby. Time flies. But your adorable legwarmers caught my attention on Rav.
When my daughter was small (actually, until she was about 9!), I called myself Girl, Interrupted. I don’t think I completed a thought, much less a sentence, for years. Writing was tough, especially with a child who stopped napping after age 2.
Now she is 11 and has her own entire life, and I’m only in it for moments. Bittersweet, but it doesn’t suck. There are times when she is in her room or off with friends for hours and I realize that I’m on deadline and I have not been interrupted a single time. I have arrived. It’s a luxury to write without that constant low-grade tension that at any moment your thought stream will be broken. If you can write now, you’ll be able to write anytime, anywhere.
If only my husband would leave me alone for a little while…
Hope you get some good sleep and good writing in.
A little late but….I nearly sprayed my drink all over my screen when I read that first paragraph. Thank God for quick reflexes. Can’t wait til you’re published, I’m hanging out to read a book of yours!