I am pretty sure that most every baby in the world will "fight sleep" at some point in their life. When my now 9 week old daughter is screaming at the top of her lungs even though she is not hungry, has a clean diaper and has been played with, she is clearly fighting sleep. And ya'll this baby girl fights it HARD. It's sad to watch them fight this battle that you know they will eventually lose. So, When this happens I will pick her up and rock her in my arms and say:
"Sweet Angel, sleep now. Sleep as often as possible, for as long as you can. Dream sweet dreams while you are still innocent, not a worry on your mind. Before the world hardens you and nightmares sometimes take the place of those dreams. There will come a time when all you will want to do is sleep and you won't be able too. You will be all grown up with responsibilities. It might be in High School in the middle of class because you are tired from going to school all day and working a part time job in the evenings. Maybe you'll be in college when you have to pull all-nighters a couple of times a week to finish an English paper or study for that Calculus exam. Or it could even be when you have a daughter of your own who is fighting sleep. That day will come upon you in what will feel like the blink of an eye. I know you are curious about this big, strange, bright new world you are in but trust me baby girl, you have plenty of time to try and figure it out and, hopefully, change it for the better. But you don't have to take all of that on today. No, today you can sleep. Get lost in a dream full of beautiful colors and peaceful sounds, knowing you are safe in mommy's arms and that when you wake up I will still be here. To feed you, change you, play with you and, once again, try to talk you out of fighting sleep."
If only you understood what I'm saying, precious one. If only...
Ah, much better! Sweet Dreams, Angel Baby
***Note: I took the top photo as soon as she began to cry and as soon as I did, I picked her up. No need to call DHR on me, promise! ***
Wait until she stands in her crib, stomping her feet and crying, like her mother did.
ReplyDeletei literally have cried four times today out of frustration, since my baby has been fighting every nap. i am trying to do the right things, get her to sleep in her crib, etc., but today she's not having it. this helped. thank you.
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