As I type this I’m being forced to listen for the 10th time this morning to white noise. More specifically; the vacuum, over and over again. No, I’ve not lost the plot… Well I might of, see we have a non-sleeper.
The downsides of a baby who detests sleep are pretty obvious. He hates the pram, detests the car seat and don’t even get me started on the Moses basket debacle. We’re up every other hour in the night comforting and feeding, we’re awake most of the day wanting to play before getting grumpy from tiredness. But why let grumpiness stop your fun when you’re newly discovering the world?! It makes for a tired mama, a tired papa and an extremely crotchety baby.
Thankfully, there are two things which are near guaranteed (I can’t believe I’m jinxing this!) to induce those magical snores. The first being the aforementioned white noise. It’s loud, annoying and frankly sends me off to sleep at the drop of a hat, but IT. WORKS. The second, the baby carrier. Within minutes of clicking him in to his padded cocoon, he’s asleep. Smushed against the side strap with a lip curled backward, hands scratching at our chests and bouncing around in a manner that any adult would find sickening… Apparently, it’s purely soporific.
But how can this possibly be a positive? I hear you ask. Easy. When all those great sleeping babies (I’m jealous ladies, so jealous) are tucked up peacefully in their cots, we’re out hitting the streets. Walking and walking to attempt to get some semblance of a daytime nap. Did you know that babies that nap apparently sleep better at night?!
We also get to go out at night… Because where’s the fun in walking the same streets as you did during the day? In the evenings we walk the promenades at our local beaches, hike up round the woods, take the dog out. And if you happen to be passing an icecream parlour, it’d be completely rude not to reward yourself when he finally drops off! Okay so that negates the health benefits of all of those miles but really, who’s counting?
So for any mum struggling with a non-sleeper, strap them in, get striding and look on the positive side… Anything is better than the white noise!
x
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