My Mama Said, "Schedule is the golden rule."

It occurred to me that my son needed to be put on a regular schedule when he started getting antsy at night - and I suddenly realised that he was going to sleep based on our schedule, which fluctuated, to say the least.  So the routine I came up with included a morning bath and massage, two daytime sleeping sessions, playing and reading in between, an afternoon walk and and evening bath, to be followed by his nightly feeding and bed, all to take place at roughly the same time each day.

It has worked wonders in getting him more settled. He looks forward to the key activities that mark his day (especially since babies have no concept of time).  But there are times that The Schedule is disrupted.  He may have gas (not as unsettling as the dreaded colic) that keeps him up later than usual at night.  We may have an unexpected paediatrician's appointment.  He may have slept more (or less) during the day or had a visit from a doting aunt or new friend.  And I've come to realise that far from being inconveniences, these occasional surprises teach my son adaptability, a great life skill that I'm sure will come in handy later on; in being flexible, he learns to go with the flow of life rather than fight it.

Having your baby follow a schedule is a great "rule" to have, and you first have to know the rules in order to break them from time to time.  (Incidentally, according to my own schedule, I was supposed to publish this post yesterday...)

My Mama Said, "Wait, my child...wait!"

My grandmother was fond of telling my mother this little tale:

Once upon a time, there was a mama pig who gave birth to many piglets. She loved them, fed them, cared for them and nurtured them. One day, the most curious of the piglets asked the mama, "Why is your snout so big?" The sow smiled and answered, "Wait, my child...wait!"

The point being, I suppose, that we all turn into our mothers (a presupposition of which I am not entirely convinced). But I do chuckle at the story from time to time when I look at my son and see a version of my own face staring back at me. Anyone who has remarked to his father, "Sorry, eh, boy - but he's all his mother!" will report that I grin with satisfaction. He looks just like I did when I was his age and I have the baby pictures to prove it. I see myself in my son in other ways too: in his impatience, his pluck, his determination. And I see his father: his build, his even temperament, his sweet nature.

And it strikes me that if we see ourselves in him, he will also see himself in us. And that raises the bar. We have to be better. Better parents, better spouses, better neighbours, better friends, better citizens, better people - if we want to raise a man that can do something better for our world.