My husband calls it ‘feathering my nest’, and it borders on compulsive, but here I am, the mother of a newborn, dealing with a nesting instinct that has caught me unawares.
To be honest, I doubt that there is a condition called post baby nesting.
Certainly we all experience some nesting instincts when pregnant and prior to labour – anyone else have the urge to clean the whole house the day before going into labour? – but afterwards, isn’t that the time when we’re content to just sit down and enjoy baby? And by sitting down I mean sleeping with our eyes open.
Yet, here I am, just four weeks after the birth of baby number 5 feeling the urge, and giving in if I’m completely honest, to a spate of cleaning and de cluttering. Sorting through children’s clothes packed in, or about to be packed into, vacuum storage bags. I’ve been removing any too well worn, donating surplus, and repacking those we’re keeping. Our spare room, the site of my sorting, has become a land of clothing mountains waiting to be moved onto their final destinations.
Newborn baby clothes, soon to be repacked as Master 4 weeks is bulging out of 000s, are not the only sizes I’m working through.
Practically every bag in storage is on my list and yes, I’ve already tackled my closet. Maternity clothes have been dispatched into their vacuum storage bag, breastfeeding friendly clothes are now in prominent places and the few items that are not ideal for breastfeeding are towards the back.
The pantry cupboard is next on my list, the bookshelves that contain the kids books already reorganised, and I’m gearing up to invest some money in fine tuning the storage in their built in bedroom wardrobes because they’re not ideal for sharing and have way too much hanging space.
And, as you might have guessed, the list doesn’t end there.
Of course, I am pacing myself, which is a little unusual for someone of a choleric temperament, but given that my sleep levels are not quite optimum at this stage, and I’ve got five kids at home, I know that I need to be realistic. But I can tell you, I’m itching to keep going, I just lack the energy (and the uninterrupted time) to complete the tasks!
Have you ever experienced post baby, or postpartum nesting? Or am I the only crazy mum around here?
Originally posted 2016-06-13 23:37:28.