All change
I'm all out of sorts because Anna is changing her routine again – I think. It always takes me by surprise despite the many times it's happened before; I spend a couple of days wondering why she suddenly doesn't want to do whatever she's been happily doing, and then the penny drops and I realise that the times, they are a'changing.
This most recent one is regarding my old nemesis, nap time. For the past couple of months (or weeks, or maybe days – I don't know, time has no meaning for me anymore) she's had a nice and easy routine of a two hour nap starting at 10.30 or so, going until lunch time (very handy) and then topping it up with an hour in the afternoon. This has been brilliant for me as I get a whole two hours to do whatever I want with (and you can bet it ain't been the housework!) but still had the afternoons free for visiting or shopping or escaping the dust bunnies in the corners. Now, she's not happy to nap until about noon and I'm all confused. I rushed off to consult my baby books and yes, apparently this happens somewhere around 12 months (terribly advanced and gifted is my daughter, you know) but there are no hints about what to do about the food issue if she's sleeping slap bang in the middle of lunch time, so again I'll be making it up as I go along. I have a million things to consider: do I give her a very early lunch, but run the risk of her being too tired and cranky to eat it? Do I leave it and give her a late lunch, knowing this will surely interfere with the afternoon snack? How do I work the breastfeeding around this given that her morning and afternoon tea have previously been a breast feed? Is now when I start to try get her to sleep without a red hot go at boobies? How can I put this off for longer, as the thought of all the crying and unhappiness is too hideous to contemplate right now? How do I work my lunch around it all – I will starve to death if I have to wait until 2pm or later to eat, but who ever heard of sitting down to lunch at 11.30? That would mean preparing it at 11-ish and I've only just come out of morning tea by then. Who wants to prepare a lunch with a belly full of cake or biscuits? (Oops, sorry, of course I really mean fresh fruit or yoghurt). If I eat on my own how does that gel with encouraging Anna to eat with the family and learn about social mealtimes, and the proper way to hold a fork, and how as fun as it no doubt is, dropping food over the edge is really not the done thing?
What is the bloody meaning of life, anyway?
I think now might be a good time to take a chill pill, relax and go with the flow. Despite all my crowing, Anna is really not having much truck with the solid finger foods anyway and I honestly don’t think she notices if I happen to be eating when she is. I suspect the socialising at the dinner table concept is something that sounds fabulous in theory but doesn't translate very well into reality. Not for an 8 month old, anyway. I am so determined not to make food an issue between us – I can see terrible two's* tableside temper tanties looming on my horizon otherwise, and I just can't be bothered with all that – so I need to be a bit Zen and let go.
Right then, I'm off to have my lunch.
* Although what I've heard from the gossip of my baby club networks is that two year olds are actually still pretty nice people – it's when they hit three that the gremlins take over. Three is the new two!
This most recent one is regarding my old nemesis, nap time. For the past couple of months (or weeks, or maybe days – I don't know, time has no meaning for me anymore) she's had a nice and easy routine of a two hour nap starting at 10.30 or so, going until lunch time (very handy) and then topping it up with an hour in the afternoon. This has been brilliant for me as I get a whole two hours to do whatever I want with (and you can bet it ain't been the housework!) but still had the afternoons free for visiting or shopping or escaping the dust bunnies in the corners. Now, she's not happy to nap until about noon and I'm all confused. I rushed off to consult my baby books and yes, apparently this happens somewhere around 12 months (terribly advanced and gifted is my daughter, you know) but there are no hints about what to do about the food issue if she's sleeping slap bang in the middle of lunch time, so again I'll be making it up as I go along. I have a million things to consider: do I give her a very early lunch, but run the risk of her being too tired and cranky to eat it? Do I leave it and give her a late lunch, knowing this will surely interfere with the afternoon snack? How do I work the breastfeeding around this given that her morning and afternoon tea have previously been a breast feed? Is now when I start to try get her to sleep without a red hot go at boobies? How can I put this off for longer, as the thought of all the crying and unhappiness is too hideous to contemplate right now? How do I work my lunch around it all – I will starve to death if I have to wait until 2pm or later to eat, but who ever heard of sitting down to lunch at 11.30? That would mean preparing it at 11-ish and I've only just come out of morning tea by then. Who wants to prepare a lunch with a belly full of cake or biscuits? (Oops, sorry, of course I really mean fresh fruit or yoghurt). If I eat on my own how does that gel with encouraging Anna to eat with the family and learn about social mealtimes, and the proper way to hold a fork, and how as fun as it no doubt is, dropping food over the edge is really not the done thing?
What is the bloody meaning of life, anyway?
I think now might be a good time to take a chill pill, relax and go with the flow. Despite all my crowing, Anna is really not having much truck with the solid finger foods anyway and I honestly don’t think she notices if I happen to be eating when she is. I suspect the socialising at the dinner table concept is something that sounds fabulous in theory but doesn't translate very well into reality. Not for an 8 month old, anyway. I am so determined not to make food an issue between us – I can see terrible two's* tableside temper tanties looming on my horizon otherwise, and I just can't be bothered with all that – so I need to be a bit Zen and let go.
Right then, I'm off to have my lunch.
* Although what I've heard from the gossip of my baby club networks is that two year olds are actually still pretty nice people – it's when they hit three that the gremlins take over. Three is the new two!
posted by Helen at 12:44 pm
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