The more things change

I can't believe it myself, but I'm actually typing this with two hands! Since March 28th at 10:57 pm, the times that I've not had my youngest in my arms in some form have been pretty much limited to when I'm asleep or showering. But now (and I almost hate to type this, as I don't want to jinx things), Laura has been taking naps in her crib! On her own! For more than three minutes at a time! I really admire attachment-parenting types who are able to hold/carry/wear their babies all the time, but I was beginning to wonder if I was ever going to be able to do laundry again without the background noise of Laura's wailing. (Who looks forward to doing laundry??? I'm also looking forward to such thrilling domestic tasks as organizing the kitchen cabinets and cleaning out my closet.)

In any case, I realized that if it were ever going to happen, I needed to do something about it. Stat. And yesterday I did just that. For her naps, I put her in her crib and walked away. And just like her brother before her, she fussed for a minute and fell asleep on her own. And stayed that way for two whole hours. Two whole hours that Will was also sleeping! I can't put into words how blissful the quiet was. Now I feel guilty that I really thought she needed me to constantly hold/rock/pacify her. But it appears that all she really wanted was to be left alone, a woman after my own heart. Maybe she'll be more like her parents in this respect instead of like her crazy brother, who has aspirations of becoming a Walmart greeter.

I think we don't often give our kids credit for being ready for things when they really in fact are. It seems as though many parents (myself included) baby their kids needlessly, giving them this, spoonfeeding them that, but all kids really want is to feel competent in their own little world, in their own little way. We swaddled Will until he was six months old and the first night we didn't, I dreaded what would surely be an awful night as he woke up multiple times. Instead, he stretched his fat little self out in his crib, rolled over and slept all night. We approached the taking of the pacifier the same way and Will protested for a few days and that was it. And while some may think our approach to such matters is cruel, I really think the cold-turkey method is the least painful, like ripping off a bandaid quickly, bad while it lasts but over fairly fast.

Speaking of competent kids, here is one of mine:

Doesn't she look old? And more independent?

Here she is again:

I could eat her with a spoon. I had the distinct pleasure of having her all to myself last week as Mom and Dad had Will in WV. We enjoyed our girl time, despite Laura's pitiful runny nose and serious lack of sleep. If there were ever a baby who could convince me that another is a good idea, she's the one.

On the other hand:

This one convinces me daily (hourly) that another one would send me over the edge, never to regain my sanity. Or my clean(ish) house. And this is, no exaggeration, the best picture I have taken of him in the last few weeks. He's completely rotten. It's a good thing he's cute since it's saved him more than once.

I'll try to write a little more now that I have regained the ability to type with both hands! Simple pleasures. . .