Bedtime Routine

After our bedtime routine (books, etc.) here's the bedtime dance:

Thing 1 and Thing 2 go to bed.
Thing 2 talking and singing herself to sleep. Gets up. Wants water
Thing 1 needs to pee.
Thing 2 needs to pee.
Thing 1 wants water.
Thing 2 wants a story (whines when I say no).
Thing 1 wants a lullaby (whines when I say I'll be in later after Thing 2's asleep).
Thing 2 wants to hold my hand and wants a lullaby
Thing 1 wants another hug and kiss
Thing 2 wants another hug and kiss
Thing 2 starts to sing
Hubby yells at Thing 1 to go back to bed.
Thing 2 asks if daddy's mad at Thing 1
Mommy loses her cool and tells Thing 2 to stop talking and sleep
Thing 2 pouts and sniffs
Thing 2 finally falls asleep
I sneak out and check on Thing 1
Thing 1 wants a lullaby
Thing 1wants a story (whines for no story)
My leg falls asleep, I leave the room
Thing 1 sneaks out of bed
Both parents shout "Go back to bed!"
Thing 1 sneaks out of bed exclaiming "I can't sleep by myself"
Hubby sits in Thing 1's room to tuck him in
Thing 1 wants a lullaby
Hubby leaves b/c he can't sing
Thing 1 falls asleep
Thing 2 wakes up and wants mommy
Thing 2 gets out of bed again
Thing 2 falls asleep on the floor
Thing 2 wakes up (2o minutes later) and wants water
Thing 2 goes to bed

I wake up in the middle of the night with both kids. The sneak into my bed while I was sleeping again. I swear, they're breaking me down!

Tears of sweet sadness

Last night, as we normally do on Wednesdays, the kids and I had movie night. Toy Story 3 came out on DVD, and so naturally we had to get it and watch it ASAP.

Movie loaded, kids had their cups of milk, popcorn was popped, and we're all snuggled away on the couch with the magic blanket covering us.

We were ready!

And then the sadness started. There's a scene in the movie where the toys tell of how a teddy bear gets lost. I hear little sniffles coming from Thing 2. I look down, and there was the biggest frown on her face, and tears down her cheeks.

I ask if she's okay, and she starts to bawl "NOOOOoooo" as she buries her head deeply into my shoulders, sobbing uncontrollably. I know these cries. These are those cleansing cries I have every so often, usually once a month. These cries are good for the soul, and often over exaggerated by an event (such as a sad movie or story). They are the built up tears that flow uncontrollably, and washes away the sadness from the soul.

I just didn't think that these tears would start so young. At 2 1/2 yrs old, Thing 2 had these soulful sorrowful tears.

It was so sweet to see her tear stained cheeks, wet eyes, and extremely sad frowny face. I looked at her and said "it is sad, isn't it? It's okay to be sad, and it's okay to cry when you're sad". Which, of course, made her cry even more. Once she got it out, she tried to explain (in the best blubbery way she could" that the teddy bear was lost and didn't have his mommy.

I gave her a reassuring hug and told her, that it is sad he didn't have a mommy, but his mommy will always be with him, even when he can't see her. And, that mommy is always thinking about and loving him, just like her mommy loves her. More than words could say. I hugged her so tight and told her that I'm not going anywhere, and that I'll always be with her and love her.

After giving her another piece of cheesy popcorn, we resumed the movie.