At three this morning I was awakened by my big boy. This boy who never comes into our room in the middle of the night anymore was standing over me with a terrible earache. And he wanted his mama. Several previous nights of being needed by my littlest (teething) baby had left me feeling very grateful for the fact that he had suddenly decided he felt well enough to get along without my help, and just in time for my middle of the night comforting abilities to be turned towards this boy who is getting closer and closer to my height every day. This boy whose socks I grabbed in a pinch the other day and they actually fit me.
So I led him back to his bed, thinking that there are few things that my snuggling/back scratching won't cure for this boy, but it became clear to me that he really was in a lot of pain and he needed some relief. We pulled out all the home-remedy rituals including the warm garlic oil drops, holding the hairdryer to his ear (I was skeptical but he said it really helped!) and putting a hot, cooked onion over his ear. By the time we were finished he smelled like an Italian restaurant! It was four in the morning now and even though he was feeling much better, he still wanted me to stay close to him. We got all snuggled into the guest bed together where he drifted off to sleep in a matter of minutes. And then, just as I was falling back to sleep, my tiny one decided that maybe a snuggle from Mommy would be so bad after all...
Yes, I was pretty exhausted at this point, mostly due to the sleep deficiency that had been building over the previous few mights, but partly due to having already been up meeting needs for more than an hour. But as I sat there with my tiny baby, I thought about the fact that those quiet, middle of the night times with my big "baby" were going to come few and far between from here on out. I was so glad that I could spend that time taking care of him and actually helping him to feel better. I was glad that when he needed help he wanted me, even though he's big.
And the "Thanks for getting up with me last night" in the morning? Payment enough.
So I led him back to his bed, thinking that there are few things that my snuggling/back scratching won't cure for this boy, but it became clear to me that he really was in a lot of pain and he needed some relief. We pulled out all the home-remedy rituals including the warm garlic oil drops, holding the hairdryer to his ear (I was skeptical but he said it really helped!) and putting a hot, cooked onion over his ear. By the time we were finished he smelled like an Italian restaurant! It was four in the morning now and even though he was feeling much better, he still wanted me to stay close to him. We got all snuggled into the guest bed together where he drifted off to sleep in a matter of minutes. And then, just as I was falling back to sleep, my tiny one decided that maybe a snuggle from Mommy would be so bad after all...
Yes, I was pretty exhausted at this point, mostly due to the sleep deficiency that had been building over the previous few mights, but partly due to having already been up meeting needs for more than an hour. But as I sat there with my tiny baby, I thought about the fact that those quiet, middle of the night times with my big "baby" were going to come few and far between from here on out. I was so glad that I could spend that time taking care of him and actually helping him to feel better. I was glad that when he needed help he wanted me, even though he's big.
And the "Thanks for getting up with me last night" in the morning? Payment enough.