the great backwards sleeper experiment

so i know i've talked about taking internet parenting advice with a grain of salt. and i usually do. but i had read a trick awhile ago that seemed so simple and easy, and of course i thought "what could go wrong?" yeah, if there ever were any great words of regret, those are it.

here's a bit of set-up: my kids don't like wearing clothes. i might have mentioned this once or twice. i really don't think it's that big of a deal, as long as we're home and don't have company over. i say let the kids have freedom over their bodies now, and there's less chance of secret exploration later. plus, if there's no shame and taboo built around being naked, it's something that'll seem less interesting when i know they'll try to be defiant later. or at least that's what i'm betting on.

anyway, now that dear fish knows how to unbutton buttons and unzip zippers, it's sometimes a struggle to keep her clothed. and the random nudity happens to bug some people around here. she also likes to rub her belly as she falls asleep. i honestly think that came about because she used to play with her ears and suck on her fingers while trying to sleep, but then she had all those ear problems and now doesn't like her ears messed with. so it's rubbing her belly like a little budda that knocks her out. and of course, rubbing her naked belly it what makes her happiest.

now, the only way to have a naked belly while wearing a one piece sleeper is to unzip it all the way. which brings us to unacceptable nakedness. and even when people weren't helping her, she figured out how to unzip herself. so i went online looking for any suggestions for solutions to my random problem.

one, which seemed simplest, was to cut the feet off of a sleeper, probably one they've grown a little to long for, and then put it on backwards. then the zipper is on their back and they are unable to unzip it themselves. and being that fishie had a few sleepers she'd grown too big for, i figured i'd give it a try.

yeah, let me say we're never doing that again. i don't if it felt funny for her, or if the zipper up her back kept bugging her, but she didn't sleep well last night. like i had to hold her for hours until she got comfortable. which also meant i didn't sleep well last night.

now i suppose i could have dressed her properly, and just turned the sleeper around, but i wanted to give it at least one night. and yes, she didn't unzip, but if being half naked to play with her tummy helps her sleep, i'm all for it.

i'll start worrying about her sleeping naked when she's older and there's boys involved. for now, she can do what she wants as long as i get sleep too.