Thursday, October 25, 2007

Sleep and clean in the mommy world?

I'll be short and sweet on this thing. But I just want to say it, because I don't get it. In the book I'm reading it talks about "Mommy Guilt". It states you need to sleep when the baby sleeps--and that is okay. But then I also hear from people that you got to clean your house when the baby sleeps, because when else can you do it. If you don't vacuum when the babies awake and you don't vacuum when the babies asleep, when do you? I get it. I'm tired. I want to sleep. But I also want my house to be clean. And since I started working spending one night staying up to the crack of dawn isn't working. So when do I clean? When she is awake I want to spend time with her because I'm away from her for 3 full days a week. But I do vacuum when she's awake because it's easier to find time to just put her in the swing and vacuum real quick then to get her asleep enough and hope it doesn't wake her up.

So to all the mommy's out there. I don't want to hear both. I want to hear the answer--which one is it?

4 comments:

Nicky Stade said...

You have to do it when you can...it's especially hard because you're not home 3 days a week. I'm telling you, give Flylady.net a try for a good month and see if that helps!

It's perfectly okay to let her occupy herself for awhile so you can get some housework done. Her brain will not rot! If you want, you can still talk to her from across the room--while she's in her swing, talk to her about what you are doing, sing the ABCs, tell her a story (make one up if you have to!)...or just let her enjoy the sights & sounds of the swing. She needs to learn to keep herself occupied, or else when she's 3 years old instead of 3 months old, you'll really have a hard time getting things done! (And maybe by then, she'll be helping you!)

And that doesn't mean she has to be in the swing for hours on end, if you don't want her to be. Let her play on the floor on a blanket for awhile. Or clean & hold the baby for equal amounts of time--clean for 30 minutes, then take a 30 minute baby-holding-break, then clean for another 30 minutes, and so on...

Eventually you will find a balance. But an important thing to remember is that you will probably never have as clean of a house as you did before kids. As she gets older, the messes will get bigger. ;o)

Alexis said...

Nicky has good answers... I'm also a fan of putting baby in a sling and doing the chores then.

sharkiepatronus said...

I am not a mommy, but what Nicky and Alexis say makes good sense, I was just looking for an excuse to say hi!

Nicky Stade said...

Okay, I created a movie inspired by your post, so check it out on my blog! LOL (It's really campy & cheesy...)