Yesterday afternoon, Brooklyn returned to the fold after a six-week absence. Her surrogate caretaker is out of town for six weeks, and failing to find a substitute until K gets home, I decided to just go for it and take care of both my son and my dog together on my own for these next 3 weeks. My main concern has been how to coordinate Brooklyn's walk schedule and the baby's sleep schedule. It's only been one day, but so far, we have managed to find a balance. Last night, we did a late night walk at about 10 pm. The baby was slightly fussy, and started screaming when I put him in the Ergo - he is just so temperamental when it comes to that thing!! We ended up successfully using my Ultimate Baby Wrap. I was completely out of practice with my dog walking and as such have made mental notes for subsequent walks - like WEAR CLOSED SHOES at night. I had sandals on and stepped in what I could only imagine was dog poo, since I couldn't see a thing, or perhaps wet soil. Not really sure. My sandals are still out in the hallway outside our front door, just the thought of cleaning them exhausting. I had to wash my foot too. Another thing to remember: the BABY TOUCHES EVERYTHING, so I have to be extra careful when picking up Brooklyn's poop. There's like an imaginary zone around the baby's hands, and if anything is within a certain distance of reach, it's going in his little fingers. WEAR POCKETS - I was a mess looking for my hand sanitizer under poop bags under my keys in my little satchel. I still have to figure out what the best way is to take the baby out at what point of the day. This morning, after being woken up about three hours earlier than we are used to, at 8 am (still civilized), I opted for the stroller, because of the sun. Mid-day we used the wrap again, since it was overcast - BRING BABY'S HAT. I have a different leash for Brooklyn if we use the stroller, the kind that extends and retracts, so I don't have to navigate the stroller around trees in the grass. Tonight, the baby actually fell asleep during our walk, in the wrap once again. I feel like I will get the hang of this, it seems manageable enough, but it does definitely take a little more effort. But I've decided to take the approach to not make it more complicated than it actually is, which it actually isn't. I still stress a little about the timing, and all day my walks have ended up being an hour earlier than I'd like, at Brooklyn's barking request. I've put a puppy pad out on the balcony, hoping that it can serve as a virtual backyard and take care of any inopportune urges to go outside. She took one sniff of the pad and looked at me as if to say, "Are you kidding?" We'll see.
Another thing that was concerning me was our sleeping arrangements. During the pregnancy, I hadn't planned on bed sharing, and so I didn't bother to train Brooklyn to stay off the bed. Hindsight is 20/20. Last night, after managing to get Brooklyn off the bed three times, with congratulatory treats as a reward, she ended up spending the entire night...on the bed. At the foot of the bed, at least. I'm a wuss. Plus, when it came time to actually go to sleep, the baby was crying, the walk having given him a second wind. I didn't have the energy to calm him down and get Brooklyn off the bed.
It is great to have Brooklyn home, although it does make me miss K even more, I guess because he's the last piece of the puzzle that completes our Vegas household. And Brooklyn is being such a trooper, because she is definitely not getting the attention she is used to - and she does often look dejected, which makes me feel so bad! But the good thing is that the baby is older, so when he is actually playing, my hands are free to cuddle Brooklyn, which she definitely appreciates. Having Brooklyn home and tending to both her and the baby is akin to what I can only imagine would be having a toddler and an infant - although nowhere near as intensive. I'd better get some sleep, not sure what time Brooklyn is going to get us up tomorrow. Stay tuned...
No comments:
Post a Comment