Good morning time

Now that our second baby has arrived, my husband and I have taken the stance "been there, done that", which is not as bad as it sounds. Having lived through the sheer terror of first time parenting, it's much easier to go with the flow. We weren't perfect the first time, but we still have an amazingly smart, funny and verbal 3 year old. This time, we can relax, because even the new challenges seem less intimidating.

One of our new challenges is sleeping arrangements. Our big boy has been on sleeping in his own room since he was around six months old, and has been in his big boy bed since the spring. Pre-baby, my husband and I were pretty proud that we had successfully dodged the "crawl into bed" bullet that some parents face. Our guy got into bed and stayed there until one of us came in to get him at "good morning time". Of course, he would sit in bed and holler "Dad! Dad! Hey, Dad! Is it good morning time yet?" until we got there, but who cares when he's in his own bed? What good parents we are, I thought smugly.

The arrival of our little girl has changed all that, of course. The bassinette at the foot of our bed sits empty every night, because our little peanut is snuggled next to me. Yes, I know that co-sleeping has some dangers for the unprepared, and no, I do not anticipate that I will squish my baby. Sleep, sleep, sleep, for everyone, including my husband, who is NOT on maternity leave. Because I'm breastfeeding, my little peanut and I don't have to wake up for feedings. It's delightful! Win, win, win, right?

Well, it didn't take long for my big boy to realize what he was missing out on. Bed, with Mom and Dad? I want in! He still goes to sleep in his big boy bed, and he'll stay there for most of the night. But now, we go to bed knowing that at some point we will awaken to the sound of running feet, the door, and our big boy saying "Hi! Can I climb in?" And our queen sized bed gets a little bit smaller, as our squirming three year old makes himself comfortable. Blankets are adjusted, and pillows are shared, little knees find the hollow of my back. Just when we're all settled in, and eyes are closing, our little chatterbox will start his morning discourse, anything from dreams to breakfast to what's on the TV that I keep on for light. Without further ado, we are up. Well, my husband is up, and he and the little man head downstairs. On a good day, this happens at 5:30. On a bad day, like today, it happens at 2 AM.

My husband wants to make our bed as boring as possible, so he won't want to come in. My guess is that as long as his baby sister is allowed to be in the bed, he will want the same thing. My secret is that I love it when he comes in. I love it when he puts his head on the pillow facing me and says "I want to look at you, Mommy". I love it when he tells me about his dreams (usually about construction vehicles or baby dinosaurs) in a loud stage whisper because we're having "quiet time". I love it when he sits between my husband and I and softly rubs our arms, just like I rub his when we're singing our lullabies together. I just love the sensation of being warm in my bed with all of our little family snuggled beside me. The day will come soon enough for both of them when the last place they want to be is with us. I will enjoy this phase while it lasts.