I'm Not Tired!

Nicolas is NOT TIRED!

I feel most inadequate as a mother at bed time.

I have friends who will move mountains not to miss bed time.

They have super-sweet bedtime routines complete with quiet whispers, long cuddles, special stories and gentle goodnight kisses. They cherish these moments and wouldn't miss them for the world.

I, on the other hand, find missing bed time to be a guilty pleasure.

To not have to deal with the screaming, the crying, the stalling, the fighting.

I feel like a horrible mother for admitting it, but that's the honest truth.

Nicolas recently decided he no longer wants to sleep - "never more" in his words. The moment he senses bed time or a nap is eminent or that he is sleepy, he starts to moan - over and over again - "I'm not tired!" The chant continues without interruption until he has been pottied, diapered, pj'd and put into bed and realizes his story is about to be read.

He listens intently to the story until it reaches the final pages, and then the incessant chanting begins again and continues until  he passes out on the floor right up against his door.

Sometimes it takes 20 minutes, sometimes an hour or more.

Tonight, when I finally returned to the main floor, I had the extra-special pleasure of finding Lucas butt-naked, washing his potty seat in my bathroom sink. He thought the crusty pee-pee stuff needed to be cleaned off.

Great.

It took another forty minutes for him to finally wash his hands and put his PJs on, despite my encouragement, insistence and assistance.

Nicolas chanted his refrain the entire time.

Meanwhile, Analise, who had been fed and put to sleep while Lucas was washing his potty seat, woke after a 40-minute snooze.

She lay in her crib screaming while I cajoled Lucas into bed, quickly said his prayers and gave him a good night kiss.

She has been up ever since and utterly refuses to go to sleep.

Most nights are like this, to one extent or another.

So there it is, my guilty secret.

I hate bed time.