I like the premise of the thread but I dunno - I find the practical side is so different to the theory. I've got two gremlins and what works for one doesn't work for the other. There's no one absolutely correct way of raising children so just cos someone is doing things different to how you would do it doesn't mean they're wrong or you're right.
So my advise is generally, don't stress too much.
First, you're not alone and your circumstances are not unique. Kid is crying through the night or not sleeping well or not eating? Don't stress, there's plenty of other parents going through the same thing. I dunno, I found comfort when talking to other parents to find out they were going through the same and worse than me.
Second, don't worry too much about your child hitting certain milestones at a certain age. Yes of course you should monitor that they're developing OK but don't worry that your child isn't potty trained by month x or walking by month y (cos you know, Sally's child was walking when they were 4 months old and doing long division by 8 months). I don't know of any graduate that received their degree in nappies. They'll get there.
Which leads me to point 3 - don't compare. Don't worry that little Lucy can already talk while your kid is eating sand; of my two kids one walked earlier than the other, the other talked before their sibling. Also us parents generally only tell others the positives about our children while ignoring the bad, so yeah Lucy might be talking but is also swearing or stealing candy from other babies or whatever.
The rest, ag, you'll figure it out. We all do.
So my advise is generally, don't stress too much.
First, you're not alone and your circumstances are not unique. Kid is crying through the night or not sleeping well or not eating? Don't stress, there's plenty of other parents going through the same thing. I dunno, I found comfort when talking to other parents to find out they were going through the same and worse than me.
Second, don't worry too much about your child hitting certain milestones at a certain age. Yes of course you should monitor that they're developing OK but don't worry that your child isn't potty trained by month x or walking by month y (cos you know, Sally's child was walking when they were 4 months old and doing long division by 8 months). I don't know of any graduate that received their degree in nappies. They'll get there.
Which leads me to point 3 - don't compare. Don't worry that little Lucy can already talk while your kid is eating sand; of my two kids one walked earlier than the other, the other talked before their sibling. Also us parents generally only tell others the positives about our children while ignoring the bad, so yeah Lucy might be talking but is also swearing or stealing candy from other babies or whatever.
The rest, ag, you'll figure it out. We all do.
Generally I've always been a light sleeper so night duty came my way 90% of the time unfortunately. Now you can see it in the relationship I have with my kids, so night time duty isn't just bad.
