Whats mine is yours... except our bed.

Bryan and I were laying in bed with Wyatt the other night flipping through Bryan's baby book. Filled with milestones and memories, it was fun to compare Bryan's accomplishments and growth to Wyatt's. We reached the page that commemorated his 5th birthday and were both caught off guard by the comment his mom made about him 'sneaking into bed with them that morning, something he still does about 3-4 times a week'. We both looked down at Wyatt and then at each other, knowing that the short lived experience of sharing the 'family bed' had to come to an end... especially if Wyatt ever wanted to have a little sister.

Figuring out the best place for your baby to sleep is one of the toughest decisions to make. When Wyatt was first born, I adamantly put my foot down against co-sleeping. After the initial adrenaline rush that comes with having a newborn baby wore off and fatigue set in, I slowly found myself falling asleep with Wyatt on the couch or in the rocking chair. Once we moved into our new house, Wyatt's bedroom is downstairs below us and I just wasn't ready to be so far away from him just yet. With him getting bigger by the minute, he is quickly outgrowing his pack n' play next to our bed and the inevitable move to his crib awaits us both.

There is nothing I love more then rocking Wyatt to sleep or smelling his warm, milky breath on my face as we fall asleep but I know that with independence comes courage and strength and those are 3 qualities all the best men in my life have, and what better time then the present to start teaching them?

So heres to sweet dreams and happy babies... hopefully.

Watching the clock.

A lot of people get the wrong idea when I tell them that I have Wyatt on a schedule.

They immediately imagine a baby boot camp being run out of Wyatt's nursery, with his Johnny Jump Up being used as a torture device and me yelling across the room, "Drop down and give me 20... minutes of tummy time!". Although Wyatt does look good in camo, I have hardly traded in his footie PJ's for combat boots.

Babies really aren't that different from adults except all of their emotions and needs are magnified. When they are sad they are REALLY sad and while we as adults might just need a hug when we cry, they need to be rocked until the world is well again. When they are happy, they are so happy that their bodies can hardly handle so much joy... so they spit up whatever is in their belly, making room for more giggles. The same goes for schedules and routines. Imagine your morning... you wake up at approximately the same time, you eat the same cereal, you have your coffee and only after all of these things have happened do you even begin to feel prepared to start the day. Now... imagine that you woke up only to find that you are out of coffee. I know from experience this immediately puts me in a bad mood, which usually lasts for a better part of the day. Babies are no different! So for Wyatt, it goes like this...

Wake up at 7 am. Have a quick nip and then back to sleep.
Wake up at 9 am. Full of smiles and ready to start the day.
Diaper change, get dressed, help mom clean the kitchen.
10 am. A bowl of rice cereal, followed by booboo!
11:30 am. Nap time!

1 pm. Booboo!
1-4pm. Go for a walk, followed by booboo!
4-5:30 pm. Nap time!
7 pm. A bowl of rice cereal, with a nip off the boob afterwards.
Bath time, Pajamas, then story time with mom or dad.
9:30 pm. Little snack before going off to bed.

Next day... repeat.

For us, this works. It doesn't mean I am counting down the minutes in between breakfast and lunch. If it is 9:45 and I can tell Wyatt is getting hungry, I feed him. If I lay him down for a nap and he is just not having it, I get him up and read another book, then try again. I can already tell that Wyatt has adjusted to his schedule and actually enjoys it! Did you know that a baby should not wake up crying? If they do, it means they aren't getting enough sleep or they aren't fully awake and you need to let them lay down longer. There is no better feeling then knowing that you understand your baby.

Schedules don't work for everyone. But humans, by nature, are creatures of pattern and predictability. Though our daily routines might be boring, beyond changing cereals or buying a different flavor of creamer now and then, we like boring and wouldn't have it any other way!

So before you question it... try it out. Change just one part of your morning routine and see if it throws off the rest of your day. Bryan has learned over time that if he leaves me an empty pot of coffee in the morning... more then likely he will be having Top Ramen for dinner.

But that's just us...

Now... off to see how Wyatt is progressing on reassembling his .22 Chipmunk.