I know what you’re thinking: How did you get 11 hours of sleep?? 
I only got 7.5 hours of sleep (although it was heavenly after the 4-5 I’ve been getting). Mr. Fynn slept from 8 PM (when he finally passed out) last night to 7 AM this morning. For the last couple weeks, he has been getting up at 4:30 or 5:00 in the morning. Now, I wouldn’t mind the early wake-up call if he was wide awake and pleasant to be around, but he was waking up tired because he didn’t get enough sleep and would walk around the house whining very loudly, rubbing his eyes, and crying when ANYTHING, and I mean ANYTHING would not go his way. For example, he melted down into a puddle of sadness yesterday when he couldn’t get the rings on his toy to work correctly. Whew. That was a long day.
We decided to try the blackout curtains this weekend. Sunday, he woke up at 6:30 and today he woke up at 7:00. He seems to be in a MUCH better mood today. Actually smiling and laughing and playing. All good things.
We’ll see if the good fortune lasts.
So, I was reading the information on the New York Times about the AAP saying that kids should be rear-facing until 2 years old. A very good suggestion, although a mute point for me because my enormous child surpassed the height and weight recommendations for rear-facing for his car seat at 13 months. I probably could have rushed out to buy a car seat…but let’s be honest…it’s $350. So, I’ll just have to live with the fact that I’m a terrible parent. It probably won’t be the first time I feel that way. In fact it isn’t the first time I’ve felt that way.
After reading the article, I decided to read the comments. Big mistake…huge mistake. It brought up that crazy thing for me again - the Mommy Wars. It really is a fascinating topic. Granted, I’ve judged other mothers. I really try not to, but I think we’ve all been there, even for a fleeting second. I always feel badly about it, especially in those moments when I feel like a bad mother while I’m home alone with no one watching.
I remember having a lot of rules when I was pregnant. I wasn’t going to let Fynn do this or that. I wasn’t going to let Fynn eat this or that. I now realize how truly crazy that is. I do look up to mothers who seem like they can do it all. Although I think that’s a complete myth. No mom can be perfect all of the time. All moms lose their cool and need a time out. All moms let their kids watch a little too much television. All moms cave when their toddler refuses to eat anything but chicken nuggets. I guess I got used to the idea early on that this parenting thing is like the “Worst Case Scenario” books. Just as long as Fynn is reasonably clean, happy, and well fed I suppose I can sleep well at night. Ha! Sleep well…what mom sleeps well?