Clipping Nails

Clipping nails has always been a pain with Squiggle. I get it, I get it... no kid likes being held down or held still for anything. Yes, it's not fun for them. For Bobble, however, I was able to do this with much more ease than Squiggle. I would swaddle him up (as an infant) and just pull out one arm or leg at a time, or I'd nurse while my husband did the nails. As he aged, I would put on a Signing Time or a Baby Signing Time, watch with him for a few songs, then start trimming while he watched on my lap. Easy peasy.

Squiggle, however, is a different story. She doesn't care what show is on, what you are doing to entertain, who is doing it, if she has milk.. NOTHING. She just wants you to NOT hold her still.

Finally, about 2 weeks ago, I found my perfect weapon. Weird Al.



Not just any Weird Al, but his music video of TACKY. For some reason she loves it. He has many videos, and many animated ones. She doesn't care... she just wants to see them dancing at the camera to TACKY. Not only does she sit still and let me move and hold her fingers/hands any which way, but it is the PERFECT amount of time for me to trim all the nails on both hands! I'm finishing up the last nail just as the video ends.

I don't mind, of course, as I love Weird Al. His new album, Mandatory Fun, is only $10 on Amazon right now, and that includes a digital MP3 copy, as well. If that wasn't a good enough reason to get it, the fact that Bobble starts trying to dance like the people in the (above) video is! Every time he hears "Tacky", he starts dancing like mad. Love it!

What weird things have you done to trim your kids' nails?

Disclaimer: Thoughts of Fluff was not compensated for this post. All opinions are my own and may differ from your own. Post contains affiliate links.

Up all night?

I love music. Music flows through my veins... it always has. I love a wide variety of music, and one of my favourite artists would be Talking Heads.

I don't know what it is about them that I love so much. Perhaps it's the quirkiness of David Byrne. It could be that I can laugh at some of the lyrics and relate to others. It could just be that their songs are so darn catchy. Either way, one thing has changed for me in my enjoyment of the band since becoming a mother: the meaning of the lyrics in "Stay Up Late" off of their album Little Creatures.

I don't know the premise behind this song. I don't know how it was intended at all... it could have been meant as a jab at people without kids who don't understand. Then again, it could have been written by a person without kids who simply doesn't understand.

Listening to this song pre-kids, I sang along. I enjoyed the silliness of some of the lyrics:

Cute. Cute. Little baby.
Little pee pee. Little toes.

I enjoyed the instrumentation.

I just enjoyed it.

Now I'm a mother. I can't help but get frustrated at this song. I still love it, honest. It still just gets to me though:

Baby, baby, please let me hold him
I wanna make him stay up all night
Sister, sister, he's just a plaything
We wanna make him stay up all night

WHY WOULD YOU WANT TO MAKE A CHILD STAY AWAKE!? Seriously.. let the baby sleep! On behalf of all sleep deprived parents everywhere.... parents of children who are teething, colicky, sick, have day and night confused, or just simply don't sleep well:

LET. THE. CHILD. SLEEP.

I love you, David Byrne, but I want to smack you upside the head for that one.

What do you view differently since becoming a parent?

Disclaimer: Thoughts Of Fluff was not compensated for this post. All opinions are my own and may differ from those of your own. Post contains affiliate links.