Silly Parental Realizations

For some reason, it took me six weeks to realize that I could set Jasper down while he is awake and not have him melt down.

I think earlier on, this wasn't true, so if he was awake, he needed to be held. If he fell asleep in arms, I could gently place him in his nest or in his little papasan chair and hopefully he would stay asleep. For the last few weeks, when he wakes up, I've been letting him stay where he is for a while. He'll generally spend a few minutes opening and closing his eyes and looking around. Its amazing seeing him become more aware of - and interested in - his surroundings. If he starts fussing, I'll sit and talk to him, play with his hands and feet. And then, if he stays fussy, I'll pick him up and figure out what he needs. Usually its a diaper change or a meal, but sometimes he just needs to be held or rocked or walked around.

But the whole thing about being able to set him down when he's awake? Liberating. Last night I hung laundry while he snuggled in his nest. This afternoon, I set him in his little travel swing while I made cookies. Of course, generally this only lasts a few minutes, but, hey, its a start. The seats that keeps him occupied the longest are the ones with moving parts; he loves sitting and watching the mobile on his full size swing. I'm not sure if its the moving stuffed animals that keep him mesmerized or the mirror on the bottom of the mobile where he can see his own reflection. Regardless, the result is a very rapt baby.

I had another realization today after the travel swing grew boring. I really wanted to finish making cookies, so I grabbed my beautiful sling, which I have been terrified of using. Jasper's just felt too little, too fragile the couple times I've put it on. But today, somehow, it worked. He watched me and watched the kitchen as we moved around scooping cookie dough and pulling things in and out of the oven. He even (!!!) fell asleep. I am now in love with the sling. Jasper didn't seem to mind it too much either.

And of course, since I was so amazed that he fell asleep, I had to take a picture:



(This also represents to the blog debut of my new Mommy haircut - yes, I'm a cliche. Its actually much cuter when I'm not a sweaty mess.)

And since we're doing pictures, this is what I came home to after walking the dog this other night. (Sorry the picture is so dark - I didn't want to wake them with a flash.)