Looking for Answers Before Bed

Brian couldn’t sleep.

He lay awake in bed, doing his best to ignore the episode of “Friends” airing on television, hoping to fall asleep. He was sure his daughter would make her way into the bedroom at any moment and climb into the bed, which meant he’d have to choose between staying in bed and getting assaulted all night by his toddler or move to the couch to give his daughter and his wife more space.1 His thoughts had slowed somewhat but he recognized the familiar weight that they still seemed to hold.

The day had been full of contradictions and confusion, an odd mix of positivity and borderline despair, as many days had been recently. Continue reading “Looking for Answers Before Bed”

A Little Night Music

T had been asleep on the couch for about a half hour when I woke her. It had been a long week for her, from shuttling S to errands and the beach to dealing with various bouts of sibling drama each evening. I had tried suggesting that she go to bed when I first saw her eyes starting to close but she protested that she was awake. I let the episode finish, knowing full well that I would have to fill her in on the details of the end of the show when she was ready to hear them later on. She began stirring when I rubbed her shoulder, lifted her head up and looked at the clock.

“I fell asleep,” she said, squinting up at me. “Sorry. Did you finish the episode?”

“It’s fine,” I answered. “You didn’t miss much.” Continue reading “A Little Night Music”

Unconventional Lullabyes

I made my way into the dark-ish room and closed the door softly so as not to wake E. It was still easy to see; the late sunsets of summer evenings meant that the light was still poking through the blinds, even though it was close to 8:00 PM. E had fallen asleep almost immediately after T and I had put the kids to bed a half hour earlier. S, though, had begun crying and was standing in her crib when I walked in.

“Mommy?” she asked expectantly, holding out her arms to be picked up.

“No, you’re not getting Mommy,” I answered. Continue reading “Unconventional Lullabyes”

Things That Go Bump In The Night

I don’t remember being afraid of the dark.

I’m sure I was; I think all kids are afraid of the dark when they’re young. I know I had a night light in my room when I was little but I don’t remember when I stopped using it. I also don’t remember if the night light was for me or for my younger brother, with whom I shared a room (I’m going with my brother, since I was eight years old at that point). I do, however, remember being creeped out when my family spent a holiday at my aunt’s house and I slept by myself in the study. It wasn’t the dark that scared me; it was the print on the wall of the Mona Lisa with a monkey’s face instead of a woman’s. Continue reading “Things That Go Bump In The Night”

Sleeping on the Edge (Again)

I’ve been having trouble sleeping lately.

Some of it is because I have things on my mind. I spend my days writing progress notes and service plans and working with families to help them find ways to improve their kids’ behaviors and develop more positive and productive relationships. There are always tasks I know I haven’t finished or conversations from home visits that I haven’t been able to shake by the time I go to bed. There are also the typical parent and husband thoughts that keep me up, like how things are going to change when our new baby comes or thinking of ways to keep a strong relationship with T while we’re both so occupied with balancing work and taking care of our family.  Continue reading “Sleeping on the Edge (Again)”

Bedtime

The room is dark.

The lamps on the street below cast vague shadows onto the walls of the room. The windows from the building across the street reflect the alternating red, yellow and green from the traffic light at the corner, while the white security light shines brightly on the sidewalk. The bushes in front of the building still blink with tiny dots of orange Christmas lights even though it is the middle of January. A car’s headlights throw shapes onto the wall that move across the room as it drives by.  Continue reading “Bedtime”

Peace: The Beach

It’s quiet.

Not silent, since I can hear the breeze making its way through the air, the faint sensation of salt tickling my nostrils, but quiet, nonetheless. The ocean laps at the shore, voicing soft greetings as it’s waves curl and shift from green to white before fading quickly into the sand. Some young children run into the water just in time for a larger wave to playfully test their resolve, sending most of them squealing back to steadier ground. The bright orange umbrellas whip softly in the wind but hold their posts like sentries protecting a town’s citizens.  Continue reading “Peace: The Beach”

The Five Stages of Sleep Deprivation

I have some good news and some bad news.

Good news: there have been signs of progress in E’s sleep training. Last week, on consecutive nights, he slept straight through until 4:30 and 5:15.
Bad news: he woke up three times during each of the following two nights.1

Good news: E only woke up once last night.
Bad news: it took him close to an hour and a half to fall back asleep.

Good news: T has been able to get a better night’s sleep because I’ve been getting up to put E back down at night.
Bad news: there is no bad news here. T chases after E all day, every day; I can deal with being tired at work.  Continue reading “The Five Stages of Sleep Deprivation”

Where Did You Come From?

E somehow ended up in our bed last night.

The “somehow” seems confusing, I know. E is a toddler, almost 20 months old, so we assume that he didn’t make it out of the crib on his own. His upper body strength is actually pretty impressive, as I’ve seen him basically do pull-ups on his bookshelf and hoist his body up over the railing on his crib.1 That being said, it’s hard for me to picture him getting over the railing while still holding on so that he could drop down to the floor and land on his feet without hurting himself.  Continue reading “Where Did You Come From?”

Strep Throat Can Be Good For You

I’ve written a number of times about my admiration for the work my wife puts into being a parent. She’s home with E every day, feeding him, playing with him, cleaning him up, cleaning up after him, making sure he doesn’t set the apartment on fire1 and everything else a mom needs to do. She does an amazing job, even when she’s not feeling her best.

Which brings me to last week.

You might have noticed that’s it’s been about two weeks since I published my last post. The first week was just really busy with work, as I had to prepare a presentation for the entire department, in addition to my usual responsibilities of home visits and other paperwork.  Last week was a little different, though. T wasn’t feeling well on Monday evening and woke up Tuesday morning with a fever above 103, so I took a personal day to look after E and let her recover a bit.  Continue reading “Strep Throat Can Be Good For You”

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