It's the morning following a night of little sleep because my toddler woke up WIDE at about 2am and didn't settle down until about 4 or so. He's a great sleeper and always has been, so this is somewhat unusual, but when it does happen, getting warm under my bed covers generally works to send him off to sleep. Not. Last. Night.
He was wide awake: singing, playing, talking, wiggling - all of that at his energy level usually reserved for 10am. I'm not sure why it happened, but I know I therefore didn't sleep either, and today is rough. But nights like these serve me well in a couple of ways: First, I'm reminded that he's always been a good sleeper so I've been lucky - far luckier than most moms I know; Second, it reminds me that he's still so young. There is a tendency to assume he's more developmentally advanced than he really is, because he's an amazing conversationalist. A M A Z I N G. And has been for a long while already. But when he's awake in the dark, next to me cuddling with me and his soft baby owl toy, holding my hand, or putting his face in my hand, I'm reminded of what a baby he still really is, and it helps to be reminded. All those milestones we are waiting to reach, patiently or more often impatiently, also make it easy to blow quickly through the stages at hand. We want them to grow, to expand, to explore, and it's hard, especially these days, to just let them "be" for a minute. I'm reminded to do just that, as much as possible.
Now, I need more coffee.
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