Last time, I boldly proclaimed that it was time for Cool Baby to leave babyhood behind, specifically in the areas of bedtime and potty training. Here is the much-anticipated
COOL BABY NIGHT-NIGHT UPDATE
We’ve almost always had to be in the room for CB to fall asleep. We had a bedtime routine, and while the routine stayed the same, it started at a different time every night. And we never knew when he was going to fall asleep–sometimes it took 30 minutes, sometimes it took an hour and a half. It was especially frustrating on nights when we had plans (ok, i’ll admit–when LOST was on).
A couple of weeks ago, we were determined for a change. One night, I started the routine at 7:00. I briefed him on the night’s agenda ahead of time and at every step:
- put on PJs
- brush teeth
- read 2 books
- sing 3 songs
- I go out so he can go to sleep
CB going to sleep in his room by himself?! That was the stuff of dreams. I was always amazed by our friends who put their kids to bed early and alone.
The night’s routine went well until the moment of truth. I broke the news that I would be leaving the room so that he could go to sleep. He resisted. I was sure that it was going to end badly. But then I was inspired by a glimmer of wisdom that could have only come from God.
I reasoned with CB that his best friends go to bed all by themselves. And so does the little boy in his favorite book. His mood shifted from despair to curiosity. I could see the gears turning by the look on his face:
(insert friend’s name) goes to bed all by himself? I guess I’d never thought about that…
And the battle was won. CB agreed that going to bed all by himself wasn’t something to be feared, but was something that the cool kids did. He wanted in. I guess that the neurotic desire to be like the cool crowd starts early. Maybe it’s genetic – poor guy never had a chance.
Since that night, the bedtime routine has been nearly automatic. No longer would I put him to bed only to realize that it was then time for me to go to bed.
This new freedom has been so sweet, and it wasn’t even hard fought. Now if we can just get him to take naps.
The other night, we hosted our friend Polina (aka Truly Cool Parent), who was in town for New York Fashion Week. She came to dinner with her wardrobe stylist-slash-art director Nikki. We dined on coconut chicken curry and the finest durn cupcakes in New York City (my apologies for rocking the worlds of Magnolia and Billy’s advocates).
Polina and Nikki are the queens of fashion photography in Indianapolis, so Cool Mum and I quizzed them on their line of work because the only thing we are more clueless about than parenting is fashion. We loved hearing stories as micro as working out details for a shoot and as grand as effecting cultural change in Indianapolis.
Since we moved up here, fashion has occupied more space in my consciousness. Not that it ever occupied much. (What do you mean Hypercolor shirts went out of style? You press the shirts, AND THEY CHANGE COLOR! These are shirts of the future, if anything.)
I even went on an online clothes shopping binge towards the end of last year. Winter was coming, and I didn’t want to alternate the same two sweaters that I did during our first winter here. Thanks to Slickdeals, I picked up better-fitting jeans, Merino wool sweaters, two corduroy blazers, a wool pea coat, and a crate of slightly irregular purple Z. Cavariccis (no i didn’t).
Despite my shopping spree, I still feel fashionably inadequate; my clothes just aren’t cool enough. It doesn’t help that a lot of friends here work in fashion and design and always look swank. And it especially doesn’t help that after dinner with Polina and Nikki, Cool Mum asked me if I think that my hairstyle is outdated. Apparently, she does because this is not a typical after-dinner cleanup question.
Even when I have decent clothes, my fashion sense is bankrupt. I could be the all-time champion of Project Run-away. One day I went to work sporting a nicer shirt (that happened to be striped) and my cool new pinstripe dress pants. CM pointed out (after work, of course) that I shouldn’t wear striped tops and bottoms together. I checked online, and one commenter on a forum called the combination “horrific.” That makes me long for the days when CM called my clothes choices “not bad.”
How’s your fashion sense: Fetching or retching?
Leading up to Christmas, I was feeling that my storytelling reserve was empty. It must have been all of those overlong, self-obsessed New York Story posts that I churned out. So during some free time during Christmas break, I stumbled upon this revolutionary new practice that would improve my vocabulary, fuel my imagination, and teach me from masters of the written word: reading.
I have rarely read for recreation. I read the Lord of the Rings series and a few books like it because, despite my looks, I am a big nerd. People usually mistake me for a small nerd, me being 5′5 and all.
I picked up some good deals at a used bookstore and Amazon. Since Christmas, I’ve read
- Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman
- The Eyes of the Dragon by Stephen King
- American Gods by Neil Gaiman
- The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon
- The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
- Stardust by Neil Gaiman
I spend at least an hour on the subway round-trip everyday; I have plenty of reading time. After looking for the strong points within each storyteller, I’ve felt refreshed when it comes to my own writing. Now I just need to put down some of these page-turners and start writing!
What kind of books or which authors do you like to read?
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