The Real Deal on the Guessing Game

We had a great routine going! Her naps and sleep cycles were predictable, she mowed down food like a champ, and she loved every second of bath time. Then it all changed. 

She must be teething. 
Maybe she's under the weather?
We probably did too much today; she's overstimulated. 
Perhaps we didn't do enough today; she's understimulated. 
Too long of a nap. No, too short of a nap. 

Or maybe, just maybe...
SHE'S A BABY. 

We're on the cusp of our panda becoming a toddler - when we stop counting months (eleven! What?!) and start counting years. And yet, we still play the guessing game. We'd love to have a reason for her crappy sleep and disgruntled mornings. For the whining and whimpering and out-and-out tears that we had rarely seen before. After an entire night of the little one needing parental soothing every three hours, I begged for a full set of teeth in that tiny mouth just to give me a reason for the madness. Alas, this was not to be.

 We wonder. We guess. We flounder and we adapt. And then it changes. Again! But that is just infant and child development: the months of exponential learning, where every morning dawns on a new, more knowledgeable, more skilled little human. You can guess the reasons behind the changes all you want (growth spurt! Sleep regression! House too loud, too quiet, too dark, too bright!) but it all comes down to the same thing: her rate of growth is at the speed of light. And that's a good thing!

I'm a worrier by nature, as I'm sure I've admitted in this blog before. So I'm frequently searching for reasons, for answers. If I'm able to point a finger at why, then perhaps I can do something to fix it or prevent it next time. But you know what helps more than this (likely) fruitless search for answers? C.T.F.D. Calm the F Down. You, my dear reader, are doing superbly, and all is well. Your little one is fine, and all the current hard times are a mere fraction of the beautiful years ahead. So relax. 

No strategy works every time. But no one hardship remains forever either. I remember comparing bad nights with a mama friend who was similarly struggling. I asked, "is it more teeth? Or another cold?" She said "nah, just crazy baby stuff." So chill. That's the difference between a newbie and a veteran. 

So rookie mamas like me, please know: C.T.F.D. :)

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