This last Saturday we left Henry with a babysitter for the first time ever. Yes, he's already six months old. Yes, I know how crazy that is. My little sister watched him once when she was visiting, but he was like 3 months old and hadn't even reached the, "Wait mom, where are you goinnnnng?!?!" stage so it totally doesn't count.
Everyone kept reassuring me that things would be fine. "He's in good hands, just enjoy your dinner, don't waste any time worrying about him, etc..."To which I replied, "I'm actually not worried about Henry at all, I'm more worried for you and the way he is going to act when we're away..." See, somewhere down this road of babyhood, Henry decided that it was a good idea to scream (and I mean SCREAM. holy, bloody murder) every time his mama was away for longer than 20 minutes (seriously, I've timed it...)
Saturday night I packed his little bag for the first time. Seeing his extra outfits and diapers and toys and list of baby care instructions made my heart melt. I dressed him in his cutest, not-fat outfit so that just in case he was a holy terror the sitters would think, "Awwww, well at least he's a cute, tiny baby!!" and all would be forgiven. We had a serious talk about how important it was that he act totally awesome so that we can get away again sometime and G and I headed out for a nice dinner and drinks with the family I work for.
We had a blast. We ate fish and drank martinis and champagne and talked with real adults about real adult things! How lame is it that this is the first time we've gotten away for longer than an hour?
When we got back, Henry was sound asleep on the sitter's shoulder. I was so proud of my little man who had obviously been an angel the entire time. As I walked in the room, the sitter looked at me and said (jokingly), "Honey, I need a drink... or a gun". The other sitter said (probably not jokingly), "Wow, I can tell why some mothers suffer from postpartum depression."
omg, HENRY!!!! Seriously dude? We talked about this!!!!!
Apparently my "little angel" had started screaming before we had even pulled out of the driveway. He cried for 3 1/2 hours straight. 3 1/2 hours!! He refused to eat any of his food or drink any milk. He didn't want to be put down but he didn't want to be held. He didn't want to watch the TV but he didn't want to be in a quiet room. He didn't want the other kids to touch him but he didn't want them to be too far away. What a stinker, right?
I still feel so bad for the people who volunteered to watch my horribly rotten child. I wonder how many sitters in our city Henry is going to scare off by the time we move. They all have a list of families you do not want to babysit for, right? And Henry totally signed us up- our name on the top in bold font, capital letters.
I think it's going to be a long time before G and I go out again....
Everyone kept reassuring me that things would be fine. "He's in good hands, just enjoy your dinner, don't waste any time worrying about him, etc..."To which I replied, "I'm actually not worried about Henry at all, I'm more worried for you and the way he is going to act when we're away..." See, somewhere down this road of babyhood, Henry decided that it was a good idea to scream (and I mean SCREAM. holy, bloody murder) every time his mama was away for longer than 20 minutes (seriously, I've timed it...)
Saturday night I packed his little bag for the first time. Seeing his extra outfits and diapers and toys and list of baby care instructions made my heart melt. I dressed him in his cutest, not-fat outfit so that just in case he was a holy terror the sitters would think, "Awwww, well at least he's a cute, tiny baby!!" and all would be forgiven. We had a serious talk about how important it was that he act totally awesome so that we can get away again sometime and G and I headed out for a nice dinner and drinks with the family I work for.
We had a blast. We ate fish and drank martinis and champagne and talked with real adults about real adult things! How lame is it that this is the first time we've gotten away for longer than an hour?
When we got back, Henry was sound asleep on the sitter's shoulder. I was so proud of my little man who had obviously been an angel the entire time. As I walked in the room, the sitter looked at me and said (jokingly), "Honey, I need a drink... or a gun". The other sitter said (probably not jokingly), "Wow, I can tell why some mothers suffer from postpartum depression."
omg, HENRY!!!! Seriously dude? We talked about this!!!!!
Apparently my "little angel" had started screaming before we had even pulled out of the driveway. He cried for 3 1/2 hours straight. 3 1/2 hours!! He refused to eat any of his food or drink any milk. He didn't want to be put down but he didn't want to be held. He didn't want to watch the TV but he didn't want to be in a quiet room. He didn't want the other kids to touch him but he didn't want them to be too far away. What a stinker, right?
I still feel so bad for the people who volunteered to watch my horribly rotten child. I wonder how many sitters in our city Henry is going to scare off by the time we move. They all have a list of families you do not want to babysit for, right? And Henry totally signed us up- our name on the top in bold font, capital letters.
I think it's going to be a long time before G and I go out again....
19 comments:
AW BUMMER! well, josh and i have never done anything by ourselves yet. NOTHING. for one, we don't know anyone here to even watch wyatt... plus all his co-workers are dudes and none of them are going to want to watch wyatt.
i can't even imagine how evil wyatt would be. i think henry and wyatt are kindred spirits.
Oh, noooo. : (
Henry! haha.
If I was near you guys, I'd totally help you out!
: )
Oh no! We used to babysit for my sister-in-law's daughters and their youngest always screamed the WHOLE time. It was hard for us, but we always got through it. You'll find someone who can handle it, and who will be willing. You deserve a night out here and there.
And... I'm sure this is just a phase! Henry will do better next time :-)
Jess: I know, right? My mom says we have "strong willed children" and that although it's hard now, in the long run it will be awesome because we will have determined leaders, rather than easily persuaded followers...hmmmm.
Lydia: I would never want you to experience that! I'd loose you as a reader, for sure ;)
Mandy: I'm not sure even super nanny herself could handle my spoiled little mama's boy, oh wow oh wow. Someday though, this kid will be used to us leaving...right? (fingers crossed!!)
Well there is always Nanny McPhee with all of her magical powers...
Like WHOA!
What if you put him down for bed before you left? How long does he typicaly sleep?
Aidyn was colicky so I never left him with anyone but my mom, but I alwayssss felt bad!
Now that he's older, he does fine.. but I still put him to bed before I leave. I hate hearing him upset when he knows i'm leaving!
...But he is SO cute! Well at least you know you got a little man who knows what he wants! : ) (Is it bad that I am looking forward to my baby being this age and really attached to me? I am probably going to be eating these words really soon!)
Great blog!
-M.
This happened to us whenever we tried to even hold one of my neices when she was that age. She refused to be held for very long unless her mom was there. We tried babysitting for them once and I will never do it again at that age! She screamed for a good hour and by the time the parents got home I wanted to run away and never come back. I think the key is to be sure to socialize your baby and get it used to other people at a young age. My sister in law hardly let any of us touch her baby for a long time so that has something to do with it I am sure.
yea Hendrix does the same. we went to a wedding about a month ago. he screamed the whole time. pretty much 6 hours straight.
i left him with my mom, dad, brother, and aunt and they just took turns passing him around tryin to distract him. the only thing that made him happy was the dog. he laughed at her a few times and then went back to screaming. so basically i go NOWHERE with the hubs.
annoying but hopefully short lived
Oh man, what a bummer!
I am glad to see that I'm not the only one more worried about how the sitter will survive as opposed to how the tot will survive. I figure he's way less likely to break compared to their sanity. And I guess this is the case for Henry too. Crud.
oh no! maybe DO try it again, but for shorter periods at a time until henry kind of gets used to it? mama and daddy's need some time alone!
Oh No's!! But you dressed him in a super cute non-fat outfit! ;) :D At least you got ONE night out?? Poor H, just wanted his momma!
oh! how tough! he just loves you soooooooooo much! Allie, I just think you're the bees knees and SUCH a BEAUTIFUL mother! go you!
awww little Henry! In a way this story made me smile because at the end of the day he's just so cute and he just missed you guys! BUT I totally understand that you'd feel bad for the sitters! I would too. Either way, don't let it stop you from going out again.. how else will he get used to you being away?
P.S. You guys looked super adorable! Love your dress/headband <3
im glad you blogged about this but woah! henry. whats the deal little man? mommy and daddy need to go OUT! i am terrified of leaving corbin for this very reason. but i know i need to. shoot, hes almost one and ryan and i have NEVER gone out without him. its pretty much insane!
it must be in the air..because my 16 month old would start freaking out everytime i tried to even walk out the door of my church nursery. it was horrible!! hopefully henry will grow out of it..so mommy and daddy can have a date night
Awe. This made me laugh but also made me feel bad. Don't think so negatively! Not only are there always newer babysitters, but Henry will also start to change his habits... and babysitters change too! There's a lot of hope, you'll see.
You're great. <3
Calvin comes to mind, huh? ;-)
Poor kid, hope it´s easier next time!
Chrissy: Yes! DO you have her number? I think it's the only way we'll ever be able to go out again!
Brittany: good to hear it gets better eventually! he only sleeps for two hours when he first goes down at night, so i don't think sleeping him and then leaving would work :( we have thought about that though!!
mandy: i totally get that! it was a pretty awesome feeling coming back and realizing that he just needed his mama so bad. he was incredibly happy once he was in my arms, and you really can't beat that feeling!
shelley: yeah, i think that's a lot of it. henry needs to get away from me more. he cries even when i leave him with g!
adriana: 6 hours straight?! he's totally got h man beat, although i'm sure henry would have done the same thing if we were gone for that long. i wish upset babies were easily distracted...then maybe we'd be able to get away more!
mason's mom: yay! i'm so glad you feel that way too. i know my kid is tough as nails (and stubborn as all get out too!) so i'm not so worried about him. those poor sitters though...crying for that long will drive anybody nuts.
becca: we are going home soon (yay!) and i'm going to try and leave henry with my mom as much as possible. he needs to get used to this!! :)
lovie's mom: yes, at least we got one night out! i'm going to cherish that night for months, haha.
sabriel: awww, thanks! yeah, once i was home and he was so happy to see me my heart melted. that is true love if i've ever seen it!
jessica: thanks! it was fun to have an excuse to get dressed up for once, HA! yeah, the whole thing made me laugh. he has me wrapped around his fingers for sure :)
jill: it's just so much easier to go out WITH baby, right? much less to worry about. i'm glad we're not the only parents who have barely gotten away minus baby!!
ashley: not yours too! these babies love their mamas! i hope you get to go out minus baby soon too!
dori: thanks!! it all made me laugh pretty hard too. i know henry won't need only me forever, so i am trying to cherish the times he goes crazy whenever i am away. on the flip side, it will be nice when g and i can get away for a bit without having to worry about sitters wanting to shoot themselves!!! ;)
iris: calvin, totally!!
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