Have you ever had a plan to be nice to your kids completely backfire? That’s been the story of my life this morning.
My baby came down with a nasty cold a few days ago, and she’s been pretty miserable. I’ve been doing whatever I can to make her more comfortable: I give her lots of warm baths, run the humidifier, scratch her back, and do lots of baby massage.
She normally sleeps in her crib. She always napped with me as a newborn, but once she hit about 6 months old, she made the transfer to mostly napping alone. This morning, I decided that, for a treat, I’d let her snuggle up with me on the recliner and nap with me. I thought sleeping with Mom would definitely be superior to sleeping in her boring old crib. (I mean, wouldn’t everyone rather be around me than alone?)
We settled in, covered in soft blankets. I even decided I’d relax my “no TV” rule with her, and let her have a little mindless entertainment. I pictured both of us watching TV for a few minutes, and then drifting off into peaceful slumber together.
She did not fall asleep on me. Instead, she became more and more restless and agitated. I could tell she was tired, but I figured her congestion was keeping her from falling asleep. I continued to rub her back, confident she’d drift off eventually.
She also had zero interested in the TV. Rather than enjoying the bright colors of the screen, as I was sure she would, she kept reaching and straining for a stack of baby books sitting on the end table. If that doesn’t make a mother feel guilty for letting her infant watch a few minutes of television, I don’t know what will! I didn’t know whether to feel proud that she preferred the books, or guilty that I tried to entertain her with TV before even attempting to read. I decided to feel both emotions at the same time.
The morning ended with the TV going off, the two of us reading all of her books, and my honey sleeping peacefully in her crib. She fell asleep about 20 seconds after I put her down.
So much for treating her with a nap with Mom and TV time. Have you ever made plans to do something nice for your child, only to realize it was the last thing she wanted?
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