From the minute all of us mamas announce our pregnancy, the advice begins!
I think it is part of being initiated into the mom tribe and most of the advice I really appreciated, but it hit me the other night, as I was lying in bed with my almost 8-year-old, that I am still ignoring the advice given to me by many moms — do not sleep with your kids or let your kids sleep in your bed.
I get it. I really do.
I know this isn’t the best habit, but I guess you could say we’ve always gone a bit against the grain where bedtime is concerned. I nursed my babies to sleep. I held them and cuddled them even after they were asleep. We let them suck their thumbs. *gasp*
My son, the boy who made me a mama, will be 8-years-old next month and I still lie with him. It isn’t as much about the cuddles anymore, although at his age I will take those when I can get them— it is about our conversations. It is the only time of day when I get a glimpse of what is going on in his little head.
Typically, he is silly, energetic, constantly moving and just goofy, but at night, when things quiet down we have the best chats and he finally tells me about his day.
Some of our most serious chats happen in bed by the glow of his nightlight:
“Mom, can someone get married twice?”
“Mom, what was your favorite part of today?”
“Mom, what does the rainbow flag mean?”
“Mom, my teacher said the FUNNIEST thing today!”
I do not know when he will outgrow needing me at bedtime, or how long he will let me so freely into this thoughts, but my hope is that in the years to come, forever and ever, he knows that even if it is in late at night or the wee hours of the morning, my ear is open for him.
