For the most part, we’ve been pretty lucky when it comes to the various much-feared baby phases. We’ve managed to make it through sleep regressions, moody periods, and lifestyle transitions fairly unscathed. We’ll read about he horrors of the 4-month sleep regression or of week 23 or whatever–and we’ll grow anxious as they approach–but we’ll usually get through them with little more than a blip in Finn’s behavior. He’s a good baby, and we’ve been lucky.
Yet, Wonder Week 26, which is a relationship-focused developmental phase, has definitely made itself known in our household, and Finn is pretty much checking off the list of expected behaviors:
Increase crankiness? Check!
Stranger anxiety? Check!
Not wanting to be left alone for a single second? Check!
Watching our every move, ensuring that we don’t leave his sight? Check!
Sleep changes? Check!
During this developmental phase, babies become aware of distance for the first time. If they see you walk away, they know they can’t come after you; they know you are beyond their reach. If you leave the room, they recognize that they are alone. If a stranger comes near, they become cautious.
Our baby who never understood the concept of stranger danger–and who would go to absolutely anybody–has now cried at the sight of his babysitter, his pediatrician, and his Mimi–all people he generally loves. Luckily, he still loves us. And he loves his nanny. THANKGOODNESS.
He’s grown increasingly clingy, too. This is cute, of course, as we want him to want us (we’re needy mommas like that), but it is also a little annoying. He no longer will play in his room for long periods of time without our direct supervision. He HATES his play mat, as being flat on his back means he can’t easily monitor our every move. And he’s constantly turning his head, even in the car seat, to make sure that we haven’t left his side.
His sleep has suffered just a bit, too. Though, because he is really the best sleeping baby I know, I feel guilty even complaining about it. We always put him down for naps awake, and he used to fall asleep with relatively little fussing. Sometimes, he wouldn’t fuss at all. For the past couple weeks, though, he has been fighting naps pretty badly. There are times when he goes right to sleep, but there are also lots of times when he screams for a good 5-10 minutes, and we have to go in to soothe him. He eventually falls asleep, but I hate to see him get so upset.
Oddly enough, his bedtime routine has improved. Whereas he used to fight bedtime, he now goes in his crib awake, and he usually falls asleep relatively quickly and without much drama. He’s also still sleeping solid 10-11 hour stretches. So, that’s a miracle.
Right now, he’s in his jumpy, whining a bit because: 1. He’s hungry. 2. He’s getting a little tired. 3. I’m more than 3 feet away, and that’s just not acceptable.
The good news is that that, after this phase, there should be TONS of developmental leaps: language connections, assisted standing, throwing, feeding, etc.
So, never fear, there is light at the end of this clingy tunnel. That is, if he ever lets us leave him long enough to find it.