Sleep, Precious Sleep

No, that's not an announcement that Little Boy Blue has arrived.  Rather it's a chance for me to remember the good old days when Colin was on a good sleep schedule and actually took good 2-3 hour naps and went right to sleep somewhere between 7:30 and 8:30 at night.  Ah, those were the days.  For a while I thought those days were only temporarily gone but now I'm beginning to realize they might be gone for good.  It's not because he doesn't require as much sleep because his actions (laying on the floor, rubbing his eyes, and yawning) and behavior (whining, disobedience, and hitting) indicate otherwise.  There are some days we are blessed with a good, long nap but those days we can also count on a delayed bedtime - no bueno for this gal who loves a little alone time before her early bedtime.

This week has been particularly interesting in the sleep department.  First the blessed fireworks.  Wes, nor I, are big fans of fireworks in general.  We're just getting old and crotchety I suppose but does one really need to set off fireworks for the entire week prior to and after the 4th?  Does that make you a better American?  Deep breath.  Back on track.  So on the actual 4th, Colin wouldn't stay in his bed for love nor money!  Nothing I said, threatened, or did was changing his mind on going to sleep.  Finally, at 10, Wes decided to take him downstairs to watch the fireworks out the window.  Somehow seeing the annoying explosives through the eyes of a child made them a little more tolerable and less annoying.  After watching them for an hour, I could barely keep my eyes open and declared it time to go to bed.  At that point I knew the only way to get him to sleep was to lay down with him.  It worked.  Thank goodness.

The next night was more of the same.  More blasted fireworks coupled with a very inquisitive 3-year old, equals no sleep.  I wasn't willing to fight and thought perhaps if I went to sleep he would give up and follow suit.  Well again sometime after 10, I hear him in the hallway foyer watching the fireworks out the window.  I must have dozed off because Wes later informed me that he heard something upstairs around 11.  He was in the basement and got up to see what it was.  It was Colin sitting at the top of the stairs, holding a pair of scissors.  There was a tag in his shorts that was "bothering him" and wanted it cut out immediately.  Are you seriously as anal as your mother at the ripe age of 3?!  Wes took him to bed and he slept until 4am when he decided to get out of bed again and cry in our doorway for no apparent reason.  I ask you, will this fun ever end?

There was a glimmer of hope later in the week.  Wes and Colin had gone out to run an errand and Colin fell asleep on the way home.  Wes got him out, accidentally bumped his head on the car door, and laid him on the couch, all without him even budging.  When I got home Wes told me to feel free to make as much noise as possible to try to wake him up.  We had visions of dealing with a wide-awake child at midnight and that was not a pleasant thought.  So I banged pots and pans, cooked dinner, talked to Wes, yet Colin didn't budge.  Wes went over to try to physically wake him and he sat up for a minute, mumbled some mumbo jumbo about Captain Underpants and fell face forward the other way.  We proceeded to have a nice, peaceful dinner alone, while Colin continued to sleep.  Afterwards, I tried to rouse him again by rubbing his back, talking to him, etc but he wasn't moving.  Wes went ahead and carried him to his bed, where he slept for 13 hours!  He still woke up at 6:!5am but for once I thought he might actually be rested.  I'm not sure if that was too much sleep or if he still didn't get enough but he woke up whiney and grumpy again.  

This is just a phase.  This is just a phase.  This too shall pass.  Patience, Danielle.  Patience.  These are all things that have played over and over in my head over the last little bit. And the timing couldn't be better, right?  With Pete's arrival any day now!  I guess we don't get to pick the timing.  Advice would be great but I'll settle for a prayer at this point!!