Bedtime

I have to admit it...bedtime is one of my favorite times of the day.

I feel horrible. I have 3 wonderful children. They are blessings...honestly I know that deep down to the core of my being. And as often as they make me crazy, there are twice as many times they make me laugh and laugh and laugh.

That being said...I love bedtime. Oh, the quiet, the peaceful quiet.

Lately, putting Lily to bed has become my secret pleasure. I so rarely get alone time with that girl, we really relish our bedtime routine. I get her a cup of milk and pick her up. She says goodnight to everyone, "Bye, A-ew! Bye, Muck! Bye, Dog!" and she almost always leaves out Daddy (break his heart). I carry her upstairs and plop her down on the twin bed that is set up in her room (unless it is a bath night, in which case we just come directly from the tub). She drinks her milk while I change her diaper and put on pj's. Then I turn off the lights and lay down in bed with her. We read Goodnight Moon...and she points out the mouse and says "ushhhh" in this sweet little voice when we read the line, "And the quiet old lady whispering hush". Then we read Goodnight Gorilla...which has very few words, but we've got a little routine of what the animals might say. She tells me that the gorilla has stolen the keys, "Uh-oh, keeesh, Mommy." She does this awesome imitation of the surprised face the zoo keeper's wife has when she realizes there is a gorilla in her bed. She puts a finger to her lips and says, "Shhhhh" when the gorilla sneaks back behind the zoo keeper's wife. And she always snores at the end when the gorilla falls asleep.

Then we cuddle up and sing songs. Always these songs, always in this order. Baa baa black sheep, Twinkle twinkle, ABC's, and Baa Baa black sheep again. While singing, I tickle her or kiss her to the rhythm of the song or she shoves her Night night in front of my mouth to make it sound funny. There is much giggling, and not very conducive to going to sleep. After singing Baa baa for the second time, I ask her if it's time to get into bed. She usually says, "Nigh nigh bed". I lift her up and put her in her crib.

And that's it. She very rarely puts up a fuss after that. Then it's time for Mommy's quiet time. But I just love those last few moments before she goes to sleep. No tantrums. No frustration. No screaming. Just lovely Lily and Mommy time.

-sigh- Contentment is this.