Continued from the author’s previous post, “Nap Wars.”
I had become so accustomed to my son’s predictable nap routine, I was getting a bit spoiled. About two hours after Dylan was awake, he would go down for a nice long sleep, and I would get to do all kinds of “mommy things.” We had finally gotten into a groove, and it felt great!
One seemingly normal day, I put Dylan down for his morning nap and prepared my brain for “The Real Housewives of New York City”…eh, I mean paying the electric bill. I put him down, put on some chill music and left the room. Just as I was about to settle into my morning routine, I heard it. Blood curdling screams!— Oh no…what happened to him? I ran to the bedroom, flung open the door, expecting to see an arm stuck in the crib, but he was fine. Dylan was lying there, in his crib, screaming bloody murder for no apparent reason.
Because things had been going so smoothly with his naps, I was confused as to the best way to handle this. I picked him up and attempted to calm him down, but the screaming continued. I rocked him, rubbed his back and sang to him. Nothing was working. I could feel my newfound confidence shaking. The sweat was returning to my palms.
After about an hour of a baby that would not calm down, I decided to nurse him again. Once he was cozy and had some milk, he fell right to sleep. Although I knew it was “wrong,” I gave up and let him sleep on me for a bit.
Assuming this was an isolated incident, I resumed the normal routine the next day. To my surprise, Dylan rebelled, again. What was this uprising about? How could one day of “nap-nursing” have derailed everything I’d worked so hard to build?
After an entire week of inconsolable screaming, my nerves were completely rattled and I was back to being a prisoner on the couch. It was impressive. This little bundle had redefined his nap time routine and I had no idea how to fix it.
I began to realize that just when I was totally comfortable in our routine, Dylan changed the game. I wasn’t in charge here.
I knew I had to regain control fast, before baby anarchy took hold of our entire apartment!
Next: Part III–The Return of the Napper
Check back soon for this next installment!
