As I said in my previous post, I am out of town (in Washington DC–expect posts to resume Wednesday). My husband and I have been on vacation without our children. Yes, I miss them dearly! While we have been away, our children have spent their time with my parents and my husband’s parents. Here is where the benefits of Babywise come in.
Before I left, I wrote up a manual about the children’s days and their routines. Our parents have been able to easily follow these routines. The kids have been happy and have remained well-rested. Our parents have also been able to maintain their stamina (though my mom was tired at the end of her stretch 🙂 ) since the kids have regular naps and about 12 hours of nighttime sleep. I believe it has helped the kids to have something familiar while we have been away.
I of course allowed for flexibility. For example, I told them independent play wasn’t necessary for them, but advised that if the kids got cranky, independent play was a good way to help them get happy again. Since grandparents love to spoil and be with their grandchildren, I didn’t want to be picky about independent play. I am confident the kids will go right back to it with no problem.
I am very happy to know that my children’s needs are being met while I am away from them. I haven’t worried about them (excessively). I also like looking at the clock and thinking “Oh, they are just getting up from their nap right now.” It has been nice to be able to enjoy our vacation.
I am sure once we get back home I will have some “detox” work to do with my kids as I introduce them back to life in the real world without doting grandparents. I am anticipating some discipline problems. However, I am sure all of them will be fixed and back to normal after a few days–I will keep you all updated on the situation. I am happy we have Babywise to help structure our day and create a predictable routine.
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Reader Questions:
- bradysmom said…
I have a question in regards to schedule/vacation. We are going away for the first time, without our child. He will be about 8 months old and is splitting the time between our parents. I am so worried about leaving him with our parents because I’m afraid they won’t stick to his schedule. They don’t necessarily agree with the way we have chosen to raise him, and feel taht the schedule/routine is ridiculous. How do I articulate to him the importance that he stays on his schedule while we are away?? And any suggestions on explaining to them why we do this??Thank you so much.
August 6, 2008 9:12 AM
Plowmanators said…
I would try to tell them how he reacts if he doesn’t have his routine. You do what you do because you think it is what is best for him. You are his parent and in charge of caring for him. This is what you feel is best for him. He is happier, well rested, well fed, alert, smarter, etc. The hard thing with grandparents can be if they think they can do whatever they want to because they have raised kids. They don’t want to be told what babies or kids need, they want to do the telling. If they don’t stick to the schedule, they will most likely see first hand why it is important for him. The trick would be making sure they made the connection, and it might only be the second half that they experience difficulty. They might attribute it to you being gone. Write your schedule down so they can refer to it and see what baby’s needs are for the time.
August 6, 2008 10:38 PM
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