My first Mother’s Day started off so promising — Levi woke up slightly later than the crack of dawn, and we were able to FaceTime with JB while still in our pajamas. He watched me open the Mother’s Day gift he had shipped from Anthropologie. It was the astrological maps bracelet by Julie Nolan! The mister does read Bunny & Dolly!
While Levi took his morning nap, I showered, straightened my hair and even put on makeup. We were meeting a friend and her six-month-old boy for brunch (her husband was away for business), so I dressed in a skirt, striped sweater and, on a whim, accessorized with a necklace. I never wear necklaces anymore for fear that Levi might yank it off my neck. I also had time to change the sheets on my bed while Levi slept. Imagine that!
Brunch was lovely. We ate at Upstream in West Omaha and each enjoyed a large, well-deserved mimosa with our meal. The kiddos were well behaved as we chatted about the recent Time magazine cover, attachment parenting and first birthday parties. My sweet friend even had a Mother’s Day card for me! (I wish I had thought to bring one for her!)
After a quick run to Target, Levi and I headed home. It was only 1:30pm, but he was starting to show signs of being sleepy. I nursed him and put him in his crib around 2:00…and by 3:45 he had still not fallen asleep. In between that time I even changed a near-blow out diaper, thinking that might have been what was keeping him awake. Holy cow, it smelled so bad!
I rescued Levi from his crib at 4:00pm. Over the next two and a half hours, he became more and more challenging as he entered the TTTF (too tired to function) zone. He whined through a lengthy dinner, refusing every other bite of food. He didn’t want to sit still in the bath tub, and we wouldn’t let me put his diaper on afterward. Then I had to wrestle him into his jammies on the floor of his bedroom. Levi didn’t even have it in him to listen to a one bedtime story. Oh, and while he sat naked in his crib when I started the bath, he peed on his sheet…although I didn’t notice it until I tried putting him to bed.
I nearly cried after putting Levi to bed around 6:40pm because I was so exhausted. Feeling so tired and frustrated gave me an idea of what to ask for next Mother’s Day — a day off from being a mom! Of course I love my son, but every once in a while I just need a break, especially after being a single parent these past seven weeks.
By the way, yesterday was the second time in three days that Levi did not take his afternoon nap. Does this mean he is soon going to phase out his second nap? I really hope it was just a fluke!
Tell me: Was your Mother’s Day every thing you hoped it would be?
:/ I thought I was going to get a day off from being a mom, but now I wonder if it’s even possible.
Kiddo woke up before 7 and the hubs ASKED if I wanted him to get the little guy. Um. Yes.
And hour later after I was done with my shower, no one had breakfast of plans for it. I had to keep us on track for lunch and then cooked half my mother’s day dinner… not to mention doing all the nap and bedtime routines and snot wiping.
So, it was kind of a bummer, until I realized how essential I am to this whole operation 🙂 I keep telling myself it feels good to be needed!
My daughter started refusing her afternoon nap around the same age! From what I read at the time, that can happen if you don’t “protect it” — meaning making sure the morning nap isn’t too long (1-1.5 hours max) and also putting your baby down before s/he is overtired in the afternoon. Tall order, but we’ve managed to find a rhythm to keep that p.m. nap in place, since the morning one is easier to start phasing out in terms of a daily schedule. Good luck!
Oh, and p.s. — I found that the later she “slept in,” the more likely the horrible afternoon nap issues. I hope that isn’t the case for you…but sounds like it might be. 🙁
I probably have to do a better job of “protecting” the afternoon nap and not letting Levi sleep 2 hours in the morning. I also need to get him in his crib before he starts rubbing his eyes. But I’m not too concerned about him sleeping in too late — unless parenting books consider 6:30am to be a late start to the day!
I know — hence the scare quotes around “slept in.” Black out shades are just not doing it at our house… sigh.
PS, my apologies for the grumpy comment. I guess I wanted to say: I get it! Sometimes it’s good to know you aren’t the only one who feels that way 🙂 Also, I’m sorry you didn’t get to spend your first mother’s day with the guy who made you a momma. I’m definitely impressed with his gifting initiative.