Sleep

There was never a child so lovely but his mother was glad to get him to sleep. - Emerson

Mom's favorite things

(to the tune of "my favorite things" from The Sound of Music)

- Written by Hilary Weeks

When I don't constantly nag at my children,

and they just do their chores, like sweeping the kitchen,

when they put the toilet paper back on the roll,

I feel like I've witnessed a small miracle.

Bedtime and naptime and bedtime and naptime

Bedtime and naptime and bedtime and naptime

Did I mention it's nice when the kids are asleep?

These are a few of my favorite things

Every parent can tell you that sleep quickly becomes a very precious commodity post childbirth. Getting the children to go to sleep and stay asleep, especially without direct paternal intervention, is the subject of many books, articles, and discussions between pretty much any mom you may bump into.
I don't really have any more advice to add than what is already available, but I was looking through my pictures the other day and realized that I have a TON of shots of the boys while they are asleep. They are cute and all, but I think the sheer number of pictures says a lot more about me than it does about them.
I love everything about naptime. I love that it breaks up the day into neat little segments. I love that I have a few minutes to myself, I can clean, sleep, read, or whatever I want. And it's quiet, I love the quiet. I also love the renewal; after naps, we've all had a break and are happy to see each other again, we get to play some more!


There is one other perk that I'm afraid not everyone gets to enjoy - my kids talk in their sleep. It is a hilarious insight into the workings of these tiny developing minds. Here are a few of my favorites:

The other night, JJ was growling in his sleep - growling. Before he could talk he blew raspberries and babbled.

Ian has asked for specific toys in his sleep (the blue train, the green car, balls, blankets. . .).

Walking past his room I heard, "I suppose we could mumble mumble. . . "

He also woke up one night screaming "Wash my hands Mommy! Wash my hands!" I said "Fine." and he immediately went back to sleep.

Recently, he was adamant that we go to Grandma's right now, so that he could see Uncle Spencer.

I'm not really sure what a psychologist would make of all this - and I don't think it really matters. For us, it is just another thing about having children to make us smile before we drift of for some much needed sleep.