“And remember, never wake a sleeping baby!” my work colleague and mother of 1 told me as I waddled off to mat leave.
I have tried my best to follow this advice, but I keep failing. My problem is simple, I have not yet mastered the art of pausing all life around Alba while she sleeps. Yes, I have tried the noise cancelling apps and putting her to sleep with music, even baby reggae and sound waves which the internet claims to have a “special calming effect on babies." I knew it sounded fishy.
My mum friends have also been very helpful sharing tips that worked for their babies. But Alba has super-sonic hearing. She is all action and ready for action. A page turns, she’s up and ready to tear it! A voice whispers, she lifts her head and smiles at the speaker “thought I was sleeping didn’t you!” A bed creaks “ah mummy or daddy is awake, playtime!” A toilet flushes and she starts crawling, “someone is moving about, I must investigate!”
I have taken to writing longhand in the morning while I sip my coffee. This is not for any poetic or aesthetic reasons; I know the tapping on the keyboard will wake her. I therefore write my posts in a notebook then type them on my phone directly in the blogging app. This benefits you as the posts have become shorter.
I have also replaced my beloved Waterman fountain pen with a rollerball because it makes less noise when writing. My pen snobbery has thus far prevented me from descending into the realm of ballpoints, though I look on at Hasani’s writing done with these quiet instruments with envy.
My pen cover just fell on my notebook. Alba is stirring, I count in my head. Why do I count? I have no idea. But if I reach 100 and she has not lifted her head I cautiously resume breathing. I reached 53. Once again, I have woken my sleeping baby.
