Let it Lie

This week I've been enjoying Magda Gerber's RIE approach to parenting. A lot of her ideas seem similar to the Montessori principles of independence, free choice and unrestricted movement. Being a Montessori kid myself, these ideas seem safe and happy, like the rest of my childhood warm fuzzies. However, Little Pecky is still so small that I feel weird just letting her lie on the floor all day, so she still spends quality time in my sling and sitting (the horror!) in my lap while we read The Rainbow Goblins. I'm probably misinterpreting the RIE philosophy. Surely you're allowed to read to kids with them in an upright position, yes?

My only problem with the RIE approach is that I have been so trained to say "lie" instead of "lay" that every time I go to lay LP down to change her diaper, I end up saying, "I'm gonna lie you down now." It's like I never left Virginia.

Anyhow, it's been a fun challenge to be totally focused yet completely hands-off with the babe as she plays. I have noticed that she's having a lot of fun moving her body while she's on the floor. I dropped some colorful napkins around her to grab and suck on. When something catches her attention, say, a silver-threaded scarf or a freshly-split winter squash, I pause and let her have her fill of exploring it before we move on. It's really a very leisurely and mindful way to spend the day. Plus, I'm getting more stuff done around the house while she wiggles happily on the floor.

Sometime during the second day of this floor-intensive experiment, Pecky got the memo that it was crunch time, and she's been doing ab work non-stop ever since. She's probably done 300 crunches today. Two nights ago she tried to start her insane workout at 4:30 am, which sucked. So last night I swaddled her, and left her swaddled all night. It was good for both of us, I think. I imagine that being a baby is sometimes like having full-body restless leg syndrome. I do not regret forcing her to abandon her early morning Pilates, as we both woke well rested and chipper this morning.