Milestones

Why do parents push their children to grow up then complain that they grow up too fast, as well as we underestimate their readiness to blossom into little people while leaving their infantcy behind.

I believe this is something we all do as parents without realizing it. I can tell you from my experience and that of others around me, it's so easy see signs that your baby/toddler is advanced or ahead for his age when really children develop at very different rates. The range of what's normal is so very broad. I agree that there is nothing that makes us more proud to announce our 2 month old is sleeping through the night, or that our 9 month old is walking, or that our 2 year old is potty trained, or that our kindergartner knows spanish. Children are sponges and are born eager to learn and develop. There aren't many children who won't hit their developmental milestones within an appropriate time frame, so there's no need to push. Once a mom gets caught up in all the amazing things her child is doing, she will suddenly and unknowingly set the tone of how quickly she will nudge her children to grow up. I've been a bit guilty of this and have had to remind myself to take a step back, which is the complete opposite of how I've also way underestimated my children's readiness for new things or their ability to adapt to growing up.

I'd been debating moving Lauren from her crib to her "big girl" bed for months but to me she was showing no signs of readiness or desire. This weekend I made my decision that I was ready for a change, regardless of what she was telling me. Jill and I picked apart this topic off and on and both concluded that Lauren's unwillingness to happily sleep in her crib was indeed her way of telling me something I was not hearing. Was she ready, but didn't know it? She was really fighting bedtime and had begun to fight naptime too. So I decided I had to transition her sometime really soon. Yesterday I picked her up from the sitters to find out she had napped for 3 solid hours! this is normal for her which is why I can't understand her inability to sleep well in her own bed. She's napped in a regular bed over there since she turned 2 and I remember how I had made a huge deal back then about how I didn't see how she would do it, blah, blah, blah. Well she's done it fine every day for over 6 months.

I underestimated her. She went to bed last night with a smile. I waited all night for the slightest whimper, for her to call my name, or to hear her hit the floor with a thud. Nothing.

Nothing?

She did it.