I have found it a little bit below impossible to take care of a baby while doing something full time, or even part time, on the side.
Yes, you can always sneak out 30 minutes of cleaning stuff or 20 minutes of the baby nap time to write or work on your project, but you almost always end up using these precious 30 minutes to do something more important: taking shower for one, preparing food for the baby for two, and eating your own lunch for three.
It’s almost impossible to take a nap while the baby is napping too, because it might take you ten minutes or more to fall asleep, and by this time the baby has already had half of his nap time. By the time you’re drifting to sleep, the baby’s crying, leaving you with massive headache and a more tired mind than you had before you decided to take a nap.
And no, you can’t take shower in peace. You only have to do the mandatory, and not taking your time, because you never know when the baby is going to wake up and cry.
And the baby’s crying. You will, in this particular order, try to soothe the baby by rocking him gently, checking on his diaper, rocking him again – a little bit more passionately than before – until he’s asleep, or feeding him.
But a baby, really, is a gift.
When you play with him, and he returns your smile, you will feel your heart melts a little. When he is startled, or making a curious expression, or hugging his teddy bear and looking at you with his googly eyes, you will feel it’s worth it. When he is sleeping soundly, knowing that you will always be there to cuddle him when he wakes up, you will feel love.
And oh, at the age of almost 22, I am proud to say that I can take care of my baby nephew. He is, at this moment, the cutest thing on earth (fyi, he’s sleeping. Ask me again when he’s crying and see if my opinion changes).
Ps. Auntie loves you, baby boy <3.
