When you tip toe to the baby’s bassinet, carrying the sleeping baby ever so slowly, being careful not to make a peep, and you’re almost there and then…… suddenly you bump into an elephant! It had to be the elephant…the toy that makes loud obnoxious trumpeting elephant noises! UGH! That toy has never seemed so loud before! And of course the baby wakes up laughing—eyes popped open as wide as can be. He grins at me like “Nice try. Play again!” Getting the baby to sleep is not for the faint hearted!
My other biggest challenge in getting the baby to sleep or to nap is his big noisy sister. She loves him dearly and I don’t know what it is about him falling asleep, but she just can’t resist coming over to give the sleeping baby another kiss. It’s precious, but I cringe, because she’s not very graceful and it often leads to a second round of rocking him to sleep and tip toeing across the room, and well, we know how good I am at not bumping into elephants and things! I swear every time I whisper to her to “be very quiet” it’s like a cue for her to drop something that’s super loud. I think she gets nervous and tries so hard to be careful that she trips over her own precaution.
She also has a chronic door slamming problem….it’s not a mad slam, it’s just a hyper 7-year-old can’t remember to slow down for two seconds slam! Maybe the baby will get used to it. Hey, it might sound crazy, but my little sister (who’s room was located beside our laundry room) said those sounds used to drive her crazy, but that the sounds of washers and dryers eventually began to soothe her and help her sleep!
I always thought kids had good memories and I was the forgetful one. They sure seem to remember things they want to remember. I cracked up yesterday evening when I walked into my daughter’s room and on top of her messy dresser, there was a pair of pants and a shirt laid out nice and neat on top of a million little toys. Beside the shirt was a little note that said “Wear this shirt” and an arrow pointed to the pants where the note additionally stated “with these pink pants.” I guess she had a lot of things on her mind that day and was afraid she’d forget the clothes she picked out for the next morning!
Well if they didn’t do these crazy silly things, I wouldn’t have anything to laugh about. That’s what makes them so precious and special. Kids are so much fun. Anyway, if you’re having trouble sleeping—try turning on the dryer! And if you are feeling forgetful—write yourself a note! See ya next week, and in the meanwhile, watch out for elephants!