You know that expression “A watched pot never boils.”? It refers to one’s impatience while cooking. You stare at the still water in the pot hoping desperately that it will turn bubbly so you can get on with making your spaghetti.
Along the same lines, I would like to propose a new expression: “A watched baby never naps.”
Today, I was stir crazy. I did not want to be indoors at all. Consequently, I was hoping my child would nap in his stroller. He was obviously tired. He exhibited all the classic symptoms: eye rubbing, crying, general crankiness. Yet he wasn’t falling asleep.
Then I realized the reason he was staying awake was because I kept checking every other minute to see whether or not he had progressed on his journey to Sleepytown USA.
So I forced myself to stop micromanaging him. It was hard, but I checked my impatience and did it.
A funny thing happened: he fell asleep as soon as I stopped watching.