Thursday, November 12, 2009

The Big Girl Bed -- Step One

We co-sleep. With breastfeeding, it just seemed natural. It hasn't been easy. I think co-sleeping impacts the couple more than the parent and child. Thankfully I have a very supportive husband who understands the importance of attachment parenting and parental teamwork.
We're now moving towards another stage in co-sleeping, transitioning to a big girl mattress. We moved her mattress next to ours. Tonight, I will try to see if she likes her space.
I call it her space because it essentially is. It's her little nook. I read somewhere young children like little corners and areas where they can explore and have downtime.
I'm hoping her bed will be one of those places. I put some of her stuffed animals, her blanket she never uses but her mom uses when nursing and her flashcards and a book on her bed this morning. I also rotated the two nightstands to make a 45 degree angle book nook for her to sit near and hideout if necessary. She spent all morning going back and forth between the two.
My husband and I rushed to get a crib and looking back, if I had known that we'd be attachment parenting inclined, we would have saved our money. Now my husband calls it the most expensive laundry basket he's every bought. Thankfully, we'll be able to convert it to a full sized bed for her later.
I don't think I knew much about attachment parenting until after TG was born. I met a few parents in the nabe and from what I described of our situation and our views, they suggested we may be AP-ers. I went home an read up on AP at the API website and it was as if things started to click.
I was reading all these books on parenting and they didn't feel like they meshed with my views but AP seemed to make the most sense to me.
I know it's not for everyone and I think in parenting just like in life, one path does not fit all. And who knows, I may change my parenting style as my daughter grows.