Parenting an almost one year old
June 26, 2007
Sorry for the posting delay. My server has been having some issues lately, which has made posting difficult. It seems that most of these have been resolved, so I'm trying to keep my promise to myself of posting something every few days.
My son, Thomas, turns 1 year old in a month. I had a lot of preconceptions about being a parent before I became one, most of which have been overturned. One mistaken idea is that babies start out incredibly difficult to take care of but get easier from there. I heard tons of stories about screaming newborns keeping the parents up all hours of the night. While Thomas was usually a poor sleeper at that age, newborns still usually sleep 18-20 hours a day, just in small doses. This leaves some time for parents to get other things done, like sleep a little here and there, etc. Also, newborns are more like luggage and never move from the spot in which you leave them, which makes them less likely to get into trouble.
Now that Thomas is nearly a toddler, things are generally more difficult. He's a better sleeper. He can sleep hours and hours at a stretch, which is nice since I generally prefer uninterrupted sleep. On the other hand, he has like 5 teeth coming in at once, so sometimes he wakes up screaming because his mouth hurts. Also, he's gotten to be incredibly mobile, constantly seeking out new ways to injure himself or cause general mayhem. He especially likes toilets, the dog, and anything in boxes, drawers, or on shelves. His love for objects on shelves has driven him to attempt climbing furniture, regardless of the fact that he can barely keep his balance while on the ground, let alone half way up the dresser. All this combines to make taking care of him a more hectic than expected experience. Baby-proofing isn't just for baby-safety, but also parent-sanity. Now that our apartment is largely baby-proofed, I can take my eyes off of him for up to a minute before he finds something new, which beats the 3 second window we had before.
On the other hand, some things have become easier. Thomas can feed himself a wide variety of foods, including cookies, crackers, and fruit, so there's less need to be hands-on all through mealtimes. He also doesn't need to be entertained constantly since he is learning to make his own fun, even if his choice of fun is emptying the laundry basket of dirty clothes so he can climb in it.
I keep thinking my original idea must be true somehow. Eventually babies do become less work for their parents. After all, I don't take up all of my parents' free time any more. I'm just trying to figure out when that happens.
Thomas is also much more fun to play games with now that he's older and more mobile. He chases the dog around the house and tries to play tug-of-war with her. He likes to knock over stacks of blocks that I put up for him. He loves to take baths. He even has a good time eating. As he learns more and more, playing with him has become a lot more fun.