Baby-Sitter Club: Solo

Last night I was asked to watch the sweetest little boy I ever did meet. He will be one year into his Earth journey this month.

The last couple of times I helped watch him, it was a tag-team effort. Today, I have him all to myself. Initially, I was a little worried, because he was VERY fussy with us the last time due to teething. He just learned to walk, and he was already very independent. I just knew that I would have my hands full.

I cleaned up, rolled out the carpet, layered some blankets, pulled out some tupperware, and gave him a lime. He was having the time of his life. Banging, gnawing, laughing, talking, rolling around to his heart’s content. He decided to get up and walk up and down the hallway, took a look around the bathroom. He then decided to play with his carseat while filling his diaper. I gave him a couple of minutes to get it all out. We then went to get cleaned up. Soon after that, he got fussy and I gave him a bottle. I saw the look in his eyes - we were approaching nap time.

I decided not to take a forceful approach. I used this as an opportunity to try out baby signing and help him to realize that he was sleepy. He drank half of his bottle and decided that he had more energy to burn. I let him roll around for about 15 minutes, simultaneously using the sign for and saying the word “sleepy.” After 15 minutes he started to get a little lethargic, but still wanting to play. I rubbed his back and his legs when he was still, tranquilly saying “sleepy.” I found a jazzy lullaby and put it on repeat. A few minutes later, he let me hold him and give him a bottle. We rocked for about 10 minutes and off he went - no crying, no fighting, no fuss.

I know it will not always be that easy, and I can’t even imaging having to do that multiple times a day all through his first 12+ months. But, I am glad it went smoothly.