Our 4am Fiasco
I began writing this post this morning, whilst Tot and Babe were napping. I ditched the usual 'quick-they're-asleep' chores, and instead I glugged coffee and started to write. I needed to recoup. This is because Tot woke up at 4 AM today. FOUR. A. M.
And 4am is a risky time, isn't it? It's uncertain whether Tot and Babe will go back to sleep or not. It's all about the quick reaction: muck about too much, and they'll think it's time to get up! So- when Tot randomly woke up at this unearthly hour, my husband bunged her into our bed. (It's our quick go-to method for getting her back to sleep at dodgy dawn times.) However, our plan failed. Epicly. Tot did not go back to sleep: she was bursting with energy like a spaniel on Red Bull.
Good morning indeed.
We kept Tot in the bed, under the belief that she'd fall back asleep eventually. She didn't.
Instead, she spread out. I do not understand how the smallest of humans can take up so much room!? I'm sure toddlers could have their own co-ordinates with the amount of space they seem to take up in a double bed? Once Tot had mountaineered upon our pillows, she babbled with joy and then belted the word: 'BEEBIEEES!' As many of you will know, there seems to be a real sense of injustice upon the entire parenting world that CBeebies does not start until 6am. It was wrong and deeply disturbing when my husband and I calculated that we still had TWO WHOLE HOURS until Show me flipping Show me was actually going to SHOW UP. Never before have I been so keen to see ten worms wriggling, waving... Several hundred times we said: "No Beebies. Go to sleep!" before we resorted to getting some of her books for her to look at. By this time of the negotiations, our littlest Babe then let out a bleet from her crib, so I brought her into the bed too. We now had two adults, a toddler, a baby, and a small library in the bed. Sleep was not really on the cards, but my husband and I figured that if we just stayed in the dark, and pretended we were asleep, all would be well. Our little Babe was fooled. She played along and went back to sleep. #oneparentingwin
But alas, Tot did not play along: the books were not sufficient for Tot, who then clambered towards my bedside table as if it were some exotic place to go! Personally, I think my bed side table is pretty dull. It usually consists of: a lamp; my specs; a litre of squash; breast pads (!) and my own book or two.
First of all, Tot wanted to shake my bottle of squash. Then she wanted some in her "Cup! Cup!" Next, she grabbed at my glasses...This was all shortly followed by our very own in-house 'light-disco' as Tot discovered the touch lamp! Yep. You can already guess....
Off, light, bright, very bright, off, light, bright, very bright, off...light... "NO MORE!" came our rattled response.
"Here! Look at this!" I said, thrusting Tot my own book (Happy Mum, Happy Baby- oh the irony at the time, huh...?!)
Well, would you believe that playing with my book was the solution? Tot seemed to be thrilled by just taking the book cover on and off. Also, the photographs printed in the front of the book kept her occupied for what I'm sure was close to an hour?! (You never know, it could be a cheap second birthday, come August...)
However, this anecdote does not end there. Things had been a bit blurry as we'd drifted in and out of slumber with Tot occupied. And I must not have noticed... But when I got her dressed later that morning, I found something down her top that was a tad unusual... I was a bit unsure whether to include this as it seems a bit weird to share- but nevertheless, it is the truth. And I was amused and amazed, all at the same time... Superbly, and oh so sneakily, Tot had somehow managed, in the midst of the morning, to peel the sticky part off of a breast pad and stick it- pretty accurately- down her top!! She must've got it from my bedside table and put it there, having seen me do it!?!
Therefore, I spent the rest of the day beaming with pride that she'd copied me!! And she'd figured it all out independently! Our one year old understood breast pads! Incredible! I considered texting round all the family to tell them. Surely this counted as a major milestone?!
Yet again I feel I can conclude that life with little ones is ever more bizarre.
Who'd have thought I'd ever be publicly sharing how proud I am of a situation involving breast pads?! Boy, how life changes. And I can conclude that I think our children are just brilliant- totally forgiven for a 4am start!
(P.S. I'm feeling a bit bad that Babe doesn't get much of a mention in this post. But she was asleep. I'm pretty convinced her time for antics will come....!)
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