Chronicles of Sleep and Independence

Ever since C&I transitioned into beds, our world has been rocked by sleep – not always theirs, but it seems to be at that moment in time was the last time that all four children would sleep through the night. That being said, I write this in peace, from a morning where no children are up yet (5:30) and for the first time in…. a long time….. everyone slept through the night last night. Funny that this is the first time I’ve gotten to write, but most assuredly will not be the trend. For the most part, it had been I&C waking up over the past couple years, then about five months ago, Isabelle stopped waking up and it was mainly just Carter. He usually doesn’t say anything, nor require anything, just needs to be walked back to his room. About 20% of the time, he’s upset and needs his little body regulated a bit to stop crying and go back to sleep – I’m never really convinced he’s “awake,” but I don’t know. Recently, he’s learned about a lot of things from a friend at school that he wouldn’t learn at home – those things are fairly scary and he says he has nightmares, but also doesn’t remember them the next day. About the same time Isabelle stopped getting up, my sweet, sweet Scarlett, with whom she shares a room started crying in the middle of the night. Why, you ask? 9/10 times she said she was cold. This then translated to bed time. Rather than a peaceful transition into dreamland, she would insist that: 1. Her teeth hurt and 2. Her feet are cold. Could these be absolutely true? Yes, but they weren’t in most cases. It became a running joke in our household (just between me and Justin) whenever we didn’t want to do anything that our teeth hurt and our feet were cold. The complaints continued on the nights where she was given medicine and socks. In fact, if given socks, the wake-up would be because her feet were hot. Since I’ve started tucking in her sheets (a little difficult – they’re still in cribs, but the mattress is on the ground, so I take off the crib top, make the bed, then put the crib back on) she seems to be a little less easy to wake, perhaps because her blankets stay put. It’s been a funny transition to watch.

Landon, on the other hand, has his own challenges – mainly with expressing his angry emotions. He is the sweetest boy, but gets very upset if he can’t do/have whatever he wants, and then prefers to use his mouth, feet, or hands to solve the problem. I don’t think I’m raising an enforcer, I think it’s just that transition phase before they can really express themselves with words, but we’re definitely working on it. He’s also insistent on doing things himself – including trying to buckle his car seat. What does insistent mean? Cue angry vibes if you don’t let him. There’s not always time for it, but when there is, we will let him. One of his favorite things to say is “I got it” in the most heartwarming little voice. That sense of accomplishment and pride is something that I want to bottle and save for later in life when things get hard.

The mice are stirring, so tata for now! Hoping to get some time to update on some other topics I’ve got written down soon. All in all, everyone is well, and we’re enjoying the nicer weather! It’s always such a welcome juxtaposition to the dreary cold.