For Better or For Worse by Lynn Johnston for December 07, 2008

Give her a tranquiliser… :D

Give her a bottle with 3 parts warm water to 1 part apple juice and let her figure out the rest. It always works at my house.

Yeah…..I remember those times. Wouldn’t trade them for a million bucks. I used to take my daughter and hold her in my lap and sit in the rocking chair. I’d rock gently while humming some tune and before too long she was asleep and I was fighting to stay awake! Beautiful moments. Spoil her? Maybe so, but they were bonding moments that have paid off quite well twelve years later!

Bravo, Dad. :)

Great dad, that John. I admire him for it. You wouldn’t have seen this in my house when the kids were growing up. Most men didn’t do such things.

My father was like this and my sons are too. Sorry I got a couple of lemons.

This is the way I was with Katie

I disagree…if Lizzie’s old enough to stand in her crib, she’s old enough to learn to sleep at night.

This is a difficult call! You just have to dig into your parent “inner guide”, with sensitivity. Sometimes the rocking is the thing to do. And someimes what seems heartless is the thing to do. I’ve done both! When my youngest daughter started to scream at bedtime (and I mean scream, but when I looked in the door, she was just standing there screaming! On purpose! And would stop to listen to see if I was coming!) I let it go by for 2 nights, then did what my mother did to my brother. After putting her to bed, I got a glass of water and as soon as she started the screaming, threw it on her. She was so startled! After a few comfortings. She went to sleep. The next night, I did the same thing and that was the end of the screaming! I know it may sound heartless, but I knew my child and that that was what I needed to do. Didn’t seem to harm her! She’s a wonderful daughter!

I MISS MY DAD!!!!!

I had the same problem with my oldest. With the youngest, I read (& tried successfully) to feed/burp them in the brightest, loudest room in the house, and then immediately take them to their bed for the night. Worked great! I don’t know if it would have worked with my oldest - he is an extrovert, and hates to be by himself.

ejcapulet: just to let you know, you should never ever let a baby go to sleep with a bottle with milk or juice in it. it can cause the most horrible cavities! i am a dental hygiene student, and i have seen the most heartbreaking pictures of children with blackened, corroded teeth due to sleeping with a night-time bottle. fyi!

It’s easier when they’re a bit older and you can tell them ‘I’m leaving now but I’ll check you in 10/15 minutes’. Then BE SURE to come back in that time. Repeat till they fall asleep. Usually just knowing that you WILL be back relaxes them enough that they calm down and fall asleep quickly - (they’re generally pretty tired anyhow!)

John! you already spoiled on Lizzie! tsk!

This strip looked much better than the old strips that we saw before.

This is so my life

These are all nice but I miss the new story lines. I know, I know. No scolding me about Lynn needing a break. I just had to say it, If she can do these she could do the new ones.

Is all this wailing to honor Pearl Harbor Day (Dec. 7th)? :)