The wake up call

I woke up at 4 am to the sound of our daughter crying, “Hey Mama, I hold ‘ee!”

And just like that, Anson and Maddox had crawled into bed with us. When Daddy confirmed that it was 4 am, I sent them both back to bed, but not before I warmed up their snuggle creatures (you know, those little stuffed animals that you can put in the microwave?) and tucked them both back in.

They were back at 4:30 am.

“Hey Mama, I have a cookie?” Maddox asked.

And thus, on the morning of the arrival of Baby Tiger Ram, I’ve already been up over 2 hours and it isn’t even 7 am yet.

I guess sleep was a thing of the past.

A little potty humor

I mean, it HAS been a while, right?

Anson crept into bed with us this morning. On weekends, I usually will allow this earlier than normal, as long as he stays still and quiet. I reminded him of these rules, he agreed to abide by them, and we went about going back to sleep.

A few moments passed, or maybe I fell asleep and woke back up again… I’m not sure. But I woke to Anson whispering, “Mama, I have to go poop. I’ll be right back.”

I couldn’t help but chuckle and hope that Zeb had overheard his stage whisper.

Anson returned, and I realized something was amiss… I hadn’t heard the toilet flush.

“Anson, did you flush the toilet?”

“No. I didn’t want to wake up Maddox.”

It’s a good excuse, but we don’t leave poop in the toilet, bro. So I responded, “That’s okay buddy. We don’t leave poop in the toilet so can you go back and flush, please?”

“But mama, it was a pretty big one. It’ll probably take lots of flushes.”

This was too much for me. The laughter shaking my body was definitely waking up Zeb, and also, once you have a laugh like that you’re pretty much up for the day.

 

Bday and baby bonanza

We are in the thick of getting the house ready for Maddox’s Woodland Creature-themed 2nd birthday party… which is funny, because there are still decorations from her 1st birthday party hanging up in our hallway.

Specifically, I’m talking about the banner I created, featuring Maddox’s monthly baby picture from birth through 11 months.

This morning, Maddox came racing out of her bedroom and, upon spotting me, ran into my arms for a Good Morning Hug. Then, she saw her birthday banner.

She pointed and said, “I have a baby!”

“That’s YOU when you were a baby,” I told her.

“No….” she said, smiling. “I have a baby in my tummy.”

“You don’t have a baby in your tummy,” I chided. “MOMMY has a baby in her tummy.”

“Right here?” Maddox pointed to my chest.

I laughed, “No, right here,” and showed here my protruding tummy, which she happened to be pretty much perched on.

“No, right here,” she corrected me, and pointed to her own tummy. “My baby cute!”

Oh man. Wait until this baby comes… it’s going to be a madhouse around here.

 

Two cuties, snug as a bug…

This morning, Maddox woke up before 6 and started hollerin’. “MOMMMAAA! Momma momma momma momma!” She wasn’t distressed. It sounded like she was bored.

I needed to get a start on the day, but bed felt sooooo good. The hollerin’ subsided, but by then, it was too late.

I was awake. So, I got out of bed.

I heard Maddox say excitedly, “She coming!” when she heard my feet crinkle the plastic runway we have going from our bedroom to our entry way. But, instead of hanging a left to go into Maddox’s room, as a 35-weeks pregnant person does, I headed straight for the bathroom.

The sound of the toilet flushing elicited another outburst from Maddox. “She go potty and now she coming!”

The door to Maddox’s room was ajar. And when I approached the bed, I found not just Maddox, but Anson laying down next to her.

“Hey! What’s Anson doing in here?”

“I came in when Maddox started crying,” Anson explained. “And, when Maddox was coughing, I covered her mouth for her.”

“I cover mouth like this,” Maddox repeated proudly, showing me proper cough etiquette.

Ugh, these two.

I love their burgeoning friendship, the sweet way Anson plays with his sister, the way they sometimes band together in solidarity when it’s not quite time to get up for the day but they’re ready to wake up.

And I can’t wait to see them love their new baby brother or sister.

Being blunt in the morning

After an early bedtime last night, I was somewhat expecting the kids to be up early this morning.

Anson rolled into our room sometime between 5 and 6 am.

I was too tired to put up much of a fight, which inevitably backfired. I informed Anson that he could stay in our room as long as he went to sleep: lie still and don’t make noise.

Which he did.

The result was that I fell back to sleep.

Briefly.

“Mom. You’re snoring.”

Get out of here, kid.

 

Starting your day right

Anson snuck into our room a few times last night. I promptly sent him back to his own bed on each occasion.

My alarm went off at 5 am, and I groggily dismissed it and snuggled back down into my pillows. Whatever I needed to get up for this early can probably wait a few minutes.

Then, Anson showed up at my bedside, slinging a leg up on to our bed to get in for a cuddle.

“Buddy, it’s too early for you to get up so you need to go lay back down in your bed,” I reminded him.

“I know, but I just remembered how much I love you.”

Oh, my heart.

Sure, he could be manipulating me, but he also might just be the sweetest. I’ll take the latter.

Me vs. Morning People

I love getting up early and having the house “to myself” for an hour or so before the kids get up and start jackin’ with things.

And today, when my alarm went off at 5 am, I actually got out of bed, fresh(ish) faced and ready to kickstart my morning with a caffeinated beverage and some deep reflections.

Within a few moments of kicking my feet over the side of the bed, I heard Maddox shout, “MOMMY MOMMY MOMMY!”

I vainly attempted to get her pacifier to her so she’d go back to sleep. She wanted to “Hold ‘eee!” which is how she says she wants me to hold her.

I asked if she’d go to bed if I put her in my big bed, and she said, “Yea.” So I went in there and tucked her in but the instant I tried to leave she shouted, “WAIT!”

So I lay down next to her, and she settled down, and for about 10 minutes we just laid in that bed and I pretended to be asleep so she’d get the hint. Instead, she kicked me (like he brother often does) in the back, and rolled over incessantly, and would randomly say a word or two.

Maddox usually sleeps past 7. A 5 am wake-up for the baby girl didn’t bode well for daycare. But I suppose that’s not REALLY my problem.

And then, Maddox started rubbing my back and shoulder. I was lying with my back to her, and she reached her sweet little hands over my shoulder softly, just like she would if I were hold ‘eeeing her and she wanted to hug me back.

It was the sweetest thing, I kind of just decided that if she was up for the day, that’d be okay.