Sleeping well?

SINCE becoming a dad, everybody wants to know how much sleep I’m getting.
‘Are you getting much sleep at the moment?’ people ask, staring at me accusingly and checking the bags under my eyes. And – so far – I’m always pleased to report that I’m sleeping pretty well, thanks very much.
We’ve been lucky with Harry. He’s now content to go for up to six hours between feeds, which means we’re only getting up once during the night.
I have to say, that’s far better than I expected. The first couple of nights after Harry came out of hospital were tough. Melissa and I hardly slept – a combination of nervousness and excitement – and Harry seemed to pick up on this, crying for long periods.
Despite this, we were so worried about missing a feed that Melissa even set an alarm to wake us after six hours ‘just in case’.
Of course, there was no chance of sleeping six hours at that early stage and I began to understand how a combination of a lack of sleep, together with the weight of responsibility that comes with being a new parent, can make for a fractured atmosphere.
Fortunately, it didn’t last. Melissa discovered the benefits of dummies (or ‘soothers’ to give them their slightly more appealing trade name) and Harry suddenly began to settle more easily at night.
That’s not to say it’s easy, and some nights are certainly more difficult than others. Given the choice, of course I’d rather have eight hours of uninterrupted sleep but, until Harry decides otherwise, it’s simply not an option.
I wouldn’t change it for the world, though, even if it does mean looking just a little bit more tired than I did six months ago.

Annoying new parents

I am suffering from annoying new parent syndrome. I can feel it gradually taking over me, but I'm powerless to do anything about it. As soon as somebody so much as asks how the 'little one' is (and, let's face it, most of the time these people are just being polite - we've all been there), I start rambling on about 'my Harry', how much feed he had last night, how he's grown, and so on. I mean, it's not as if I'm the first person this has happened to, is it?

So, here and now, I'd just like to apologise to all those people who have been affected in recent weeks. I should also like to thank my nan for gently pointing out the problem.

She may be 92 but she handled this delicate issue in a way that would have most management consultants reaching straight for their PDA. Rather than dive in with a direct 'please stop going on about being a parent, you're boring me', she presented me with a cutting from a newspaper which featured a columnist pleading with Chris Evans to stop talking about a being a new parent. There was no need for any discussion, the point had been made.

So, with that subtle warning in mind, I've decided to write a column about being a new dad (seriously). However, I promise to try and keep it interesting and, failing that, short.

By the way, while Melissa was in labour, I promised to say something nice about the midwives at the Wrexham Maelor hospital. They were all fantastic, particularly Alison Roberts and Laura who spent 12 hours helping bring Harry into the world while putting up with me hopping from one foot to the next and asking if everything was ok every two minutes. Thanks.