blankets...

Every day I'm learning something new, whether it be about her or about myself. Yesterday I was on the phone with a good friend (has 3 girls under 5 years old, so I consider her the closest thing to an "expert" that I have in my life). We were going through a list of all of the possible things that could be getting my little one all riled up. Essentially, if she had an instruction manual, we'd be in the "trouble shooting" section. "Is the item plugged in?" "Is the power switch in the ON position?" Of course it's not that simple. But it made me realize that this little girl is, on a basic level, a guinea pig. She can't tell me what's wrong, so we run experiments, trying one thing, removing another, hoping that we'll find the magic combination. I need to also make the assumption that if we do figure something out, it could change at a moments notice as she grows and changes.

What I've also learned is that "blanket statements" are things that non-parents should never make. When you become a parent, those statements, which you stood by with conviction, can change. Don't get me wrong...you should have certain convictions that you won't sway from. For me, the "she won't sleep in our bed" statement will always hold true, no matter how tired and worn out I am (does the couch count as a makeshift bed?). It would be an easy fix (and has crossed my mind once or twice already), but that's always mattered to me. Other things, however, go out the window. It's so important to be flexible with these little people, and you really can not, in any way, know how you're going to be when they're actually here. So my advice to people that will eventually be parents - have certain things that you want to make sure you stick to (and make sure your significant other is on the same page), but don't tell the world (I have a big mouth and couldn't help but do that), because you may need to eat your words at some point, and that's no fun.