My thoughts on putting a child to sleep, and other things

I am really going to miss doing my pediatrics rotation. I have SO much time. Right now I go in to work at 9 am and leave by 5 pm, and I have at least an hour lunch break in between. In fact, today I had a two and a half hour lunch break, which I used to research osteomyelitis.

Our apartment finally looks like we've moved in. Theodore's room still needs a bit of work, but at least I can envision the final product. Before, I just felt overwhelmed, like we'd never figure out where everything was going to go. Unfortunately, it looks like the bicycles are going to take up permanent residence in the bathtub (the OTHER bathtub...we have one for bathing in). It's really getting to be a wonderful place for him to play in. With everything set up the way it is, I don't have to worry much about him getting into something he shouldn't get into.

So last night Theo had a hard time sleeping. Current thinking in the U.S. is that kids need to learn to sleep on their own by 4 months or so, and the way you do it is by leaving them in their cribs and letting them cry to sleep. I have mixed feelings about this, just because why should I expect my one year old to be happy about sleeping by himself when I in my mid-twenties hate sleeping alone? Now granted, if I am on call at the hospital or if Dad is on a business trip, I'll make it without standing up in my bed and screaming. But I can imagine Theo's thoughts on the matter: "Hey, how come Mom and Dad get to sleep together in the big soft bed, and I have to sleep by myself in this crib with a stiff mattress with nobody to hug me?" It really is unfair, I'd say. Well, yesterday, Theo was a very good boy. He was good at daycare, he ate all his food, he played quietly by himself at home when I needed to cook dinner, he didn't throw any tantrums, he smiled and giggled at all the right times, he didn't eat any bits of paper, he practiced walking, he used the plastic baseball bat to hit the plastic baseball (and nothing else), and he answered correctly when I asked him where are the lights. The only trouble was when it was time to sleep--he screamed when we left him in his crib, until finally we picked him up and he promptly relaxed and shnuffled to sleep. No extra fighting, it was like he just wanted to be around us. And I'm thinking, I guess he might get spoiled, but man, all he wants is to be snuggled, that's all he asked for the whole day! To me it was a fair trade.