A Change in Perspective

Okay soooo before becoming a mom I always thought....

I don't know why people let their kids dictate their schedules, I mean aren't you supposed to tell them what to do??

If you have never thought this then good for you, but clearly I was delusional!  Because since having Carter I am NO where near in charge of my own schedule.

I remember at the end of my pregnancy we were going to go to dinner with some friends and the husband had invited one of his old friends from high school and he said they couldn't go because they don't take their kids out at night.  I told the husband, hmmm that's weird.  I wonder why?  Seems weird to me, to be home at a certain time just because of your kids.

Well, fast forward 4 months and I am in the same exact predicament.  You see, now I am the mom telling people that we can't go out to dinner with them, because my baby needs to be in bed at a decent hour!  Am I really THAT mom??  Please bloggy friends don't tell me I am the only one besides the husbands friend....

I thought that I wouldn't be this way, and when we first had Carter, WE were in charge of our own schedule, we did what we wanted, stood out late with family and friends, and put Carter to sleep when we wanted to.

Three months later we were dealing with him still waking up at all hours of the night and never having a good nap in the day time.  You see a 3 month old that is not SLEEPING is not a very fun 3 month old.  Carter was CRANKY MC CRANKY!  So grouchy I was starting to call him Mr. Grouchy! (well he still is BUT it's different now).


So, I started reading "The No-Cry Sleep Solution"and at one point author says babies NEED routines, if you don't put your baby to bed at a decent hour they won't sleep throughout the night!  Then I thought to myself, wait?  So, I shouldn't let my 3 month old go to sleep with us?  Weird.  (dumb to think of it now, but I figured he didn't NEED a bed time because he didn't NEED to wake up at a certain time.)

So, I started giving him a bath around the same time every day, going to bed around the same time everyday and low and behold my little baby is becoming not so much of a grouchy pants anymore!  Can you believe it?!  I know me either!

So, now when anyone asks "Do you want to go to dinner?"  I say "as long as it's an early dinner say 5?" Unless it's at our house where we can put him to bed and then eat later.  Please don't judge me, because I too have become one of THOSE parents who's life revolves around their kids.

And, you know what?

I don't mind it.

I mean, when the husband and I decided to have a baby we knew that our lives would no longer be our own, I mean NOW we have a baby that depends on us every day to do the right thing by him, and create for him the BEST life that we possibly can :)  AND if that means I can no longer go out for late night dinners, that's completely fine by me!