Getting into a routine ... sort of...

Well, when he hit about 4 weeks old, the Little Guy got his first cold. It probably made mom and I more upset than it is making him. They say babies will have colds for 10 to 14 days. We are on day 11 and it looks like it is almost done.

Our baby's cold taught us a good lesson about parenthood - expect the unexpected. We did not expect him to catch a cold, but he did, and it has interfered with the routine we thought we were starting to get into. Eat, fuss, calm down, sleep, wake up, change diaper, repeat. The cold lengthened the amount of fussing time and caused the sleeping time to become more erratic.

Now that the cold is coming to an end, the baby will return to his routine... or not! I have learned to be prepared for anything.

One change that is certainly welcome is that his "calm down" time before he falls asleep is getting longer and longer and he is more alert during it. My wife and I are using more toys, books, movement, and talking to stimulate that little brain of his while he is awake and paying attention (a little bit).

Maybe the bigger lesson here is that you will create routines for the baby, but they will only last a few days until you have to create a new one. But they are routines nonetheless and, darn it, we are sticking to them!

If anyone remembers the "routines" they had when they were raising a newborn, please share!