This post comes from the lovely Zoey, who blogs at Good Goog – Adventures in Parenting.
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Sleep deprivation and parenting go hand in hand. There’s the newborn stage, bouts of illness, the very un-awesome rounds of teething and all manner of other little things along the way. It’s a cruel joke that a sleep deprived parent is constantly trying to get their reluctant little munchkins to sleep. And although Riley is now over 2 and (mostly) she sleeps pretty well, a very new pregnancy has thrown me back into the exhaustion pile. Which I’m happy about. The way I figure it, being tired just means that everything is as it should be.
With my first pregnancy I moaned about a lot of things, being tired and having to drag myself to work, aches and pains, itchy and sore breasts, hips that went to crap, just to name a few. You won’t catch me complaining this time around, because I am so grateful to be pregnant. But nonetheless, looking after an energiser bunny toddler brings its own set of challenges. And sometimes you just have to work on a certain laziness in parenting.
Lying Down Games
I’m a big fan of lying down games, or games in general where I don’t have to move. This could be a game of peek-a-boo on the couch with a blanket, or where I’m lying down and my only job is to react while she tickles me, or even better the game where I pretend to be asleep and then ‘wake up’ suddenly. All good.
Being Oblivious on Purpose
There are certain destructive behaviour patterns that I allow, given I know it’s only going to take me half an hour to clean it all up when she’s having a nap. Like redistributing beads all over our floor. Or pulling out tupperware from the cupboard. Or anything else that is not actually putting her in harms way and is not permanently damaging the house.
Getting Up Early, Very Early
The 5am wake up isn’t exactly ideal. I’d quite happily stay in bed until 7 or 8. Quite. Happily. But if I go with the early starts then I get no protest at nap time and no problem with getting Riley to bed at a reasonable hour. And there’s nothing I love better than a lazy afternoon nap with a touch of Winter sun peaking through my bedroom curtains.
Reinforcements
I take every opportunity for someone else to do the hard work. Let them run around with Riley for a few hours. This is where grandparents and aunts and uncles come in handy. Very handy. The fact that Riley will often ask for her Aunt during the day is very clear evidence of the fact that there are plenty of people with far more energy than me.
The App Store
Riley loves puzzles. In fact it’s usually the first thing she says when she wakes up ‘puzzles?’. Which is where an iPhone or an iPod Touch comes in handy. In a clear travesty I don’t own an iPhone, but I do have an iPod Touch and there are all manner of puzzles and other kids games available for download. Which means that Riley may occasionally consider being still for a few minutes as we chillax on the couch. Sadly this post is not sponsored by Apple. Otherwise I would already have a freaking iPhone.
It’s still a work in progress and it’s still very early days, but I’ll take a certain level of laziness over being snappy and grumpy any day of the week. Because tired or not I have a joyful little toddler who runs around the place yelling ‘happy’ and ‘fun!’ for a good part of the day. I’d like to keep that for as long as possible.
Congrats on your pregnancy!! And yes, I love those lying down games. I remember those well. 🙂
Thanks for posting, Veronica!
HAHAH I LOVE laying down games! Sometimes when Alexa is too much for me to handle, we’ll go upstairs to her room. I’ll shut the door so she can’t escape on me, and I lay down. She jumps and climbs all over her room, plays with her toys, tries to scale her crib. Often I get a short nap, and every once in a while she’ll lay down next to me when she’s done and take a snooze of her own!
Also, if she’s playing well by herself and making a mess…I WILL NOT stop her. Like you said, if she’s safe and not breaking anything, it’s all good.
I love lying down games. They’re my favourite.
I love the le’s all be really quiet games
I like all your suggestions, I was just the same. My son was just 18 months old when I fell pregnant with my twin girls. My sister said I was making a big fuss, as I said being pregnant second time round was soooo much harder, and I was sure it was twins (pre 12 week scan). She said it was just because I already have one – ha she was wrong! But I think that whatever gets you through is perfectly fine! Tupperware is a really good one. Even the pans and a wooden spoon if you can stick the noise. Long daytime baths! Good Luck:)
I remember lazy parenting days, with toys from one end of the house to the other, everything being swept along the hallway into the spare room at the end of the day. Shut that door and all’s right with the world.
These are awesome!
We play “lets see who can keep quiet the longest” – my daughter is yet to make it longer than a split second but still we try :-p
Yes laying down games are the best.
I totally know what you mean. When I was first expecting Natalie, I used to play LOTS of lay-on-the-couch games with Z – unfortunately, now that I have two, it’s not as easy…but I do still enjoy playing ‘sleep’ on Mommy’s bed. 🙂
Ah, it is true. I am a lazy parent. Hey, Veronica! You in there? I haven’t heard back yet from Ozsale’s customer service, but they do keep sending me emails wanting me to shop, so maybe it is ok?
Oh, this was fantastic!! So clever, and who hasn’t done these games.
Fabulous post. Really enjoyed it. Thank you.
fabulous suggestions! yes i am a big fan of lying down games.
i have one 2and a half year old and a 7 month old and it seems i am forever trying to get somebody to sleep – though i cant even stay awake through ten mins of a movie or the first chapter of a book! you are so right, it IS a cruel joke!
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