Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Our strong willed girl

As we settled in to our normal mom-doesn't-have-to-work-today routine this morning, I got a little nostalgic. Little One was quietly playing on the floor, reaching into her basket to pull out some toys (yes, she does that now, too!). I poured myself some coffee and sat back and watched her entertain herself. My arms started to ache to hold her. And because I could, I picked her up and tried to settle her into my lap. No siree, she wasn't having any of that. The twists and turns, the grunts, and the pushing away that ensued made me giggle and then made me sad. My little one isn't so little anymore. She has a will of her own and it doesn't involve mama snuggling with her.


So, being the loving, nurturing, strong willed mother that I am, I devised a manipulative plan. Little One delights in Baby Einstein. Had you asked if I were planning to use those DVDs when they were given to us, I probably would have smirked and said, "no." I mean, what good mother places her child in front of the tv so she can get one second to herself to use the bathroom without holding a squirming baby? Not me. (insert sarcastic laughter here) Well, Little One is never as still and quiet and peaceful, not even in her sleep, as she is when Baby Einstein is on.


Enter manipulative plan. I popped in a DVD, hit play, and instantly she was still. Mesmerised. Enamored. I could have set of fireworks inside and it wouldn't have distracted my little chickadee. And then, I picked her up. I positioned her in my arms so she could still see the television. And we snuggled, we nuzzled, and I rocked that little baby for the entire 30 minutes the show was on. Pure heaven.


The lesson I have learned is this: Babywise is wonderful. WONDERFUL. I don't regret a bit of following a schedule. However, in those early months, when that baby does little more than lie comfortably in your arms and stare in your eyes, seize those moments. I was so concerned that I was going to hijack our babywise plan that I didn't hold her how I needed to for my own good. Lesson learned.

7 comments:

traveledroad said...

This seriously spoke to my soul. Ditto on all things babywise, I'd soak up all those cuddles now that J never. stops. moving. I'd tell you something different if he woke up tonight at 2am though...

Mommy of TWO little MONKEYS said...

cute, cute, CUTE!!! The look on her face when she is getting into the basket cracks me up!

its funny you mention the BE videos, cause Ainslee is mesmerised by them too! cant wait to get them together

J said...

oh she is SOOOO precious!!!

Love the quilt picture!

And regarding cuddling, I used to sneak into MW and T3's rooms at night when they were sound asleep and I would scoop them up and rock them...it was blissful! Did I mention I still do that sometimes? :)

Emilee Odette Garrett said...

That was my one regret with Caroline: I didn't cuddle her enough. I don't do Babywise (stresses me out), but I was so afraid I'd spoil her and she'd never be able to go to sleep by herself. I did better when Helen was a newborn. But as luck would have it Helen is now way too stimulated to fall asleep on me and way too busy to sit on my lap for long. I still try, though!

Lauren said...

I hear ya! Just yesterday, Vivian was running a fever. I hated that she wasn't feeling well, but she actually snuggled with me...all day!!! I was secretly enjoying that she wasn't feeling well enough to run around all day. I am relishing those sweet moments. Here we are, one year later...and it goes far too quickly. Like the blink of an eye. So glad you got those 30 minutes of snuggle time in with LO, even if it means turning on the DVD player! :)

Jen said...

I thought the same thing about BE dvds, until I out one in the dvd player. Oh and we did babywise to an extent and it helped us tons, mostly with sleeping.
LO is so cute!!

The Steffens said...

Great pictures!