Bedtime: the WORST, and then BEST time of day.
A few weeks after we brought our newborn baby boy home from the birthing center my husband and I started establishing a bedtime routine. I had heard from other parents, and read in ALL the baby books, that a bedtime routine was absolutely necessary for the sanity of the parents and the health of the baby.
It almost sounded like if we didn’t strictly adhere to it that something awful would happen- he wouldn’t get into his preschool of choice, we would be blacklisted in the parenting world or even worse- he’d never STTN (that’s sleep through the night for all of you people lucky enough to not know what it means).
So, each night we would fill his baby bathtub, I’d put on the “lullabies from around the world” CD, and we’d let him lay in the warm water for a few minutes. Then, we’d take him out, coo over him for a few minutes as we dressed him into a cute little footed sleeper and then I’d take him to his nursery where I’d nurse him to sleep and put him down.
For the next couple of hours we’d enjoy our quiet time, then my husband would get ready for work and I’d head off to bed, ready to face the night wakings.
It was actually quite easy getting him to sleep, it was usually the hour leading up to bedtime that was the hardest.
Starting that bedtime routine became something I looked forward to every night, and was a moment we all really loved.
Fast forward a few years, and bedtime is now a very different beast over at our house. Our family has grown, as we added another son to the mix a few years ago. Creating a bedtime routine for two boys, 3 years apart, who share a room has not always been easy. Some nights it was complete chaos, with the older one yelling because the younger one started crying, or knowing that no matter what, one will wake the other in the morning.
Now it’s just an explosion of LEGO that needs to be cleaned up, two parents who easily start losing their patience for bath water that refuses to stay in the tub, followed by little naked boys running around avoiding PJs and teeth brushing. But then somehow, a quiet settles in.
Both my sons have outgrown breastfeeding now, and as soon as each one was old enough, it became Daddy’s job to take care of bedtime for them. Having a singer for a father comes in handy, especially when the only bedtime song Mummy knows is Rock a Bye Baby (and not even in tune).
My husband will sing whatever the boys request, which can range from Queen to The Beatles to The Beach Boys, but lately it has been Buddy Man, a song they made-up with lyrics that change based on whatever adventure Buddy Man was up to that day.
When the last tiny eye closes, we can finally relax. A glass of wine, a Netflix show, or many nights my husband is still getting ready to head to work. Another day over. Full of parenting wins and losses, of laughter and tears (or laughter leading to tears, as a friend always says). Bedtime has come and gone and all over the world you can almost hear it: a collective “ahhhh” from every parent out there.
So, to you Moms and Dads, who make it through bedtime each and every night…only to do it again the next day- CHEERS TO YOU!
