An Epiphany

My sweet little Meg Caroline reminds me so much of my little Launa Virtue. She looks a lot like her and I have a sneaky suspicion she is also going to be quite spunky. The pediatrician said "Wow, this baby's got an opinion!" She also doesn't sleep so hot at night. Who needs that, right? When I had Launa, I read like three different sleep training books and was insistent that I was going to do it, whether she liked it or not!! They said that no child have to cry it out more than three days, that's all it takes. Um... that child psychologist has never seen the sheer will of my eldest and youngest. I have been so worried that my children would never sleep. All the studies suggest if they aren't put on a schedule as a baby, they will struggle forever. Launa is now 5 and actually gets tucked in and sleeps through the night in her own bed probably at least 95% of the time, so I feel relieved. Kate however did great as a baby and now is a complete terror, so what do I know? Today I was reading reviews of these books I've read to see if there were other people who tried those methods and found no success whatsoever. I found a description of a "high needs baby", and it was like an epiphany. The first category was INTENSITY. The babies will show signs of being really intense, needing more physical contact, not liking to go to other people, etc. Talk about hitting it on the nose!! It was like someone had exactly described Launa and Meg as infants. It somehow made me feel better that having a baby that refused to conform as other babies do wasn't all my fault-- sometimes they just are how they are. I sure do love my little troop of "non-conformists", although I could use a little more sleep about now!! :)