'So, how are things going?' people ask. And I would probably answer 'up all night, sleep all day.' It's not just a Slaughter song. And it's not describing
my life, let's be clear, because my life would be more like up all night, up all day. (I have a five-year-old who is not about to take a nap.) Now, before you get all worried, let me tell you ... it's okay! I'm having all kinds of fun in new baby dreamland. I love this. I
adore having a tiny baby in this house. You have no idea. Okay, you probably have some idea.
But there are a few things about newborns that I had forgotten about. Everyone seems to need me all at once, causing me to do things like burn grilled cheese sandwiches and such. And let's say that you have a few nights of no sleep? Like in college? Cake. But night after night of waking up and nursing for an hour, sleeping for 45 minutes, changing a super poopy diaper that has leaked through the onesie (only to get peed on while doing so) and then feeding, sleeping for an hour and doing it all over again? I had forgotten that the all-nighters are the toughest part of new-momma life. Sleeping for an hour at a time can
mess with you. I have all of the current 3:00 am infomercials memorized.
(Ask me about Cindy Crawford's anti-aging line or the 'Insanity' workout program. Or anything Guthy Renker-related.) Zzzzzzzz.
You can give me all of the advice you want, and in my brain, I know what to do about our sleeping situation. I keep him up as much as I can during the day, giving him baths and talking to him and singing and playing but that doesn't always work. I follow the advice of books that promote putting babies on schedules, but he might be a bit too young for that. It's just the whole newborn thing – this little guy has day and night a tiny bit mixed up and this too shall pass. It's okay. I can roll with that.
Because, really, our days and nights are sweet. I smile at him. A lot. And I know it's all worth it and someday I can tell him about the days when he was a tiny baby and I stayed up and stared at his little face. All. Night. Long.
