April’s wake-up in the middle of the night was before 4:35 am. With my firstborn in his first month, I think that was about the time of the 3rd wake-up in the middle of the night. If the loss of sleep makes Elly cry, then she’s going to be doing a lot of crying. Fortunately for Elly, Canada had 15 weeks of maternity leave back in 1991, so she does not have to go to work in the morning like John does.
Load distribution. He changes the diaper while she goes to the bathroom. He passes her off and gets mom something to drink while she nurses her. She puts the baby and herself back to bed and he hugs her until she goes back to sleep.
My son was very colicky and hubby and I had a system that worked for us but we were still very stressed and tired. I never had another child. Both circumstances and desire to never go through that again helped in making that decision. 12 years later and we’re still glad we never had more. Hats off to the families that added to their brood after going through all of this!!! Wow!
While you are going through the midnight feeds and the potty training etc, etc, it feels like forever. Bur when you look back on it it only lasts for about two years and then one starts to feel more civilised again. :)
You never change the diaper before feeding or you’ll have to change it again! Elly should know that by now. Unless, of course, there was a big mess BEFORE eating.
Elly forgot about “back to sleep”, the current recommendation that newborns sleep only supine (not prone or side lying) to help prevent SIDS. Of course, when my babies were born, we were taught to put them down prone in order to prevent aspiration. I say sleep them in any position in which they sleep best!
I don’t think I have ever been as exhausted as when I was up all night with my babies. My husband often said he’d take on half the nighttime routine, but when he had to go to work in the morning and I was nursing, it just made more sense for me to handle it all.
Ours would fall asleep around 6:30 at night and sleep to around 6:30 or so in the morning. One grandmother said to wake him up and feed him and change him during the night. The other grandmother said leave him alone let sleeping babies sleep and that he would let us know if he needed something as seen in the strip above.
A stay at home mother’s (full time mother) work is never done. Bless them. It is up to the man to man up and assist will all tasks around the house and not just go away to work for the 9-10 hours away from all the tasks the mother does.
To illustrate how men and women approach a problem differently, I once suggested putting the kid in the shed. I assured her the boy would be fine. This was in the early morning. I survived my foolish idea, just barely.
Because of medical issues, my first daughter had to be bottle fed. Even though I worked full time, my wife and I shared the middle-of-the-night feedings. It was a monumental hassle. However, there were trade offs. After one 3 AM feeding and burping, I was playing with my newborn and she gave me the biggest, first ever smile. My heart burst with love and joy, and that alone made it all worth while.If having babies was as bad as some make it out to be, nobody would have more than one.
I always liked the one where baby Elizabeth is crying. John gets up, brings her to the kitchen, and puts her in the high chair. However, John is so spaced out that he goes to refrigerator, gets a drink, then shuts off the lights and goes back to bed. The last panel shows Elizabeth in the dark, still sitting in her high chair.
Templo S.U.D. over 4 years ago
ah, motherhood
howtheduck over 4 years ago
April’s wake-up in the middle of the night was before 4:35 am. With my firstborn in his first month, I think that was about the time of the 3rd wake-up in the middle of the night. If the loss of sleep makes Elly cry, then she’s going to be doing a lot of crying. Fortunately for Elly, Canada had 15 weeks of maternity leave back in 1991, so she does not have to go to work in the morning like John does.
PoodleGroomer over 4 years ago
Load distribution. He changes the diaper while she goes to the bathroom. He passes her off and gets mom something to drink while she nurses her. She puts the baby and herself back to bed and he hugs her until she goes back to sleep.
Nicole ♫ ⊱✿ ◕‿◕✿⊰♫ Premium Member over 4 years ago
My son was very colicky and hubby and I had a system that worked for us but we were still very stressed and tired. I never had another child. Both circumstances and desire to never go through that again helped in making that decision. 12 years later and we’re still glad we never had more. Hats off to the families that added to their brood after going through all of this!!! Wow!
JudyHendrickson over 4 years ago
Ohhhh butshe already has a full time job wit3kids now!!!!
JoanHelen over 4 years ago
While you are going through the midnight feeds and the potty training etc, etc, it feels like forever. Bur when you look back on it it only lasts for about two years and then one starts to feel more civilised again. :)
GirlGeek Premium Member over 4 years ago
She probably woke Lizzie up as well
dlkrueger33 over 4 years ago
You never change the diaper before feeding or you’ll have to change it again! Elly should know that by now. Unless, of course, there was a big mess BEFORE eating.
Kkrnc74 Premium Member over 4 years ago
Elly forgot about “back to sleep”, the current recommendation that newborns sleep only supine (not prone or side lying) to help prevent SIDS. Of course, when my babies were born, we were taught to put them down prone in order to prevent aspiration. I say sleep them in any position in which they sleep best!
Gerard:D over 4 years ago
Lynn’s Comments:
I don’t think I have ever been as exhausted as when I was up all night with my babies. My husband often said he’d take on half the nighttime routine, but when he had to go to work in the morning and I was nursing, it just made more sense for me to handle it all.
The Pro from Dover over 4 years ago
Ours would fall asleep around 6:30 at night and sleep to around 6:30 or so in the morning. One grandmother said to wake him up and feed him and change him during the night. The other grandmother said leave him alone let sleeping babies sleep and that he would let us know if he needed something as seen in the strip above.
BlitzMcD over 4 years ago
That very last panel speaks volumes.
Super Fly over 4 years ago
Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time.
DatsunMan over 4 years ago
A stay at home mother’s (full time mother) work is never done. Bless them. It is up to the man to man up and assist will all tasks around the house and not just go away to work for the 9-10 hours away from all the tasks the mother does.
Redd Panda over 4 years ago
To illustrate how men and women approach a problem differently, I once suggested putting the kid in the shed. I assured her the boy would be fine. This was in the early morning. I survived my foolish idea, just barely.
greero00 over 4 years ago
Because of medical issues, my first daughter had to be bottle fed. Even though I worked full time, my wife and I shared the middle-of-the-night feedings. It was a monumental hassle. However, there were trade offs. After one 3 AM feeding and burping, I was playing with my newborn and she gave me the biggest, first ever smile. My heart burst with love and joy, and that alone made it all worth while.If having babies was as bad as some make it out to be, nobody would have more than one.
tripwire45 over 4 years ago
She doesn’t actually have to get up at a certain hour to be at a job, so she can sleep until the baby wakes up. John, on the other hand…
USN1977 over 4 years ago
I always liked the one where baby Elizabeth is crying. John gets up, brings her to the kitchen, and puts her in the high chair. However, John is so spaced out that he goes to refrigerator, gets a drink, then shuts off the lights and goes back to bed. The last panel shows Elizabeth in the dark, still sitting in her high chair.