Let me preface this with a request: please refrain from telling me “you think you’re tired now!” Or “just wait; it gets worse.” Or “wait until they can x, y, and z.”
Save it. I don’t need that right now.
So my little guy started crawling a couple of weeks ago. He had been scooting for a while, but now he has greater mobility. I’m proud, I’m excited (I promise). I am also exhausted. Now that he can go where he wants, I feel a greater need to hover.
Not only does he crawl everywhere-this is fine, the floors are clean, the outlets are covered, there are no choke hazards or breakable-but he is ready (in his mind) the begin walking. He attempts to lift himself up on any platform he can find: tables, legs, shelves, his bouncer, the floor vacuum, etc. The problem there is that HE IS STRONG ENOUGH TO STAND ON HIS OWN, but he is still learning to balance.
We have caught him several times, but he has slipped surveillance a couple of times when I looked away and fallen backwards.
The whole ordeal has me following him around like a helicopter. I am familiar with the term, but I was hoping I wouldn’t become one.
This leads to the big issue: now that he can crawl and stand, that is all he wants to do.
Naps? No! Sleep through the night like just a month ago? Ha. Absolutely not.
He fights naps. He fights sleep. He is in a new stage altogether, and it feels that I am getting maybe an hour here and there to catch my breath before he wakes again.
Tell me it gets better. Tell me this is temporary. Please. I love him. I’m just tired.
Create safe spaces where you can leave him and he can practice skills safely. We have a 9 month old and a safe gated area for him to crawl and practice standing and falling while mom and dad get things done. You don’t have to hover over him 24/7
Baby jail my man. Set it up, put a rug under it, maybe with a little extra pad, leave no objects inside which can cause substantial harm, off you go. If your 8 month old is like mine, he loves crawling over pillows as an obstacle.
As a friend of mine with a 1.5 y/o told me yesterday: You can’t make a space injury-proof, but you can reduce the risk of *serious* injuries pretty well and that’s as much as you can do.
Practice is the only thing that will help him get there. And try to get yourself into a tizzy. Maybe get a big playard or create a yes space where you don’t have to hover. They learn by falling
It gets so much better!! He has found a new form of freedom and strength. He’s growing and quickly he will find his balance and you will not feel the need to hover so closely. All this is temporary. Your doing wonderful!!!
It’ll pass. For my second kiddo I had to take her for walks to get her to sleep. She used to nurse to sleep, then the world became way too interesting. She stopped napping for us really early, too (18 months? 2 years?) but she would nap at daycare.
I used an activity table for my first kiddo, and my mom bought a walking toy for my second to help them build skills.