The Myth of “Sleep when they sleep.”

The piece of advice I heard most often after Emily was born was, “Sleep when she sleeps.” While this is an excellent idea in theory, for me it has been virtually impossible. Emily is now 6 months old, and here are the number of times I have successfully napped while she napped. Drum roll please…

ONE!

I remember that splendid morning when I finally accomplished my “sleep when she sleeps” goal. I had been attempting it for months. Emily was about 4 months old. She was asleep in her bassinet. I laid in bed. And I couldn’t believe it, I FELL ASLEEP! It was blissful. It was wonderful. I felt fantastic when I woke up. I told myself, “I need to do this again!”

It has never happened again.

When Emily was first born, I found it hard to nap because my hormones were going nuts and my mind was always racing. I would lay down and my mind would go crazy. It would take me at least a half hour to wind down and get my mind to chillax. And then pretty much every time I started to drift off, she would wake up.

As Emily has gotten older and her naps have become (a bit) more predictable, I take that time to do things like eat, clean, shower and pay bills. These things are kind of important- especially the eating part!

So while I dream of one day falling into a blissful sleep while Emily naps, I accept that- like all things parenting- it’s just not that simple. So many ideas are good in theory, but we live in reality and have to figure out what works for us.