Mama and Matthew

Originally uploaded by caseycasey.

Here is a picture of my favorite small person. This has been a pretty good weekend. There’s little in this world that I look forward to more than waking up with Matthew snuggled up against me.

Before Matthew came along, there were a few things I thought were non-negotiable. Breastfeeding, cloth diapering, and co-sleeping were the non-negs that topped that list. I wanted to breastfeed and cloth diaper, but I didn’t want to co-sleep. I liked my space in bed. I am a light sleeper. Our bed is our bed, not a family bed.

Desperate times call for desperate measures. After I started back at work, my lack of sleep caught up with me in a jiffy. At about a month back in, I decided that Project Casey Sleeps By Any Means Necessary would begin. And that meant bringing Matthew into bed with us.

I am surprised by how much I have enjoyed it. We’ve mastered side-lying nursing so I can just pop him on and go back to sleep. When he’s hungry, he’ll stir and then lunge toward my breast. And waking up cuddled against a tiny person who is at once also very big too is probably the best thing in the world. I think he benefits too - he gets in good Mama cuddle time, even if he’s asleep when it happens.

Of course, there are downsides, but they’re pretty minor in comparison. The major downside? Look at that skull. When it headbutts against your breast, you can’t help but wake right up.

Ah, little boy, how I love you.