Comforts

Each night we have a pretty good routine going when it comes to getting the boys ready for bed. They get baths-sometimes together, sometimes apart-then they brush teeth and climb into bed. With Preston it's always a wiggly-fest. He doesn't want to wind down until I'm at my wits end. His latest demand is that his covers go on his body in a particular order-and yes it's a beating, but if I've learned anything as a parent it's that you have to pick your battles and since I know the order that he prefers it's not really a big deal...until the striped blanket is missing like it was the other night. I don't know why the striped blanket must go on top, but you would have thought that the world was ending because I thought it would be ok to just go with the frog blanket on top, but oh no! we had to search high and low. Thankfully it was finally found in his chair at the dining room table.

Now with Peyton the "Blue Blanket" has practically become a part of the family. It started out as one of those super thick fleece blankets, but after 8 years and a million washings, it has been reduced to a threadbare piece of cloth. Apparently it holds some mesmerizing smell too because that is Peyton's comfort-to smell the blanket. I guess it could be worse. He could still suck his thumb. I have no doubt that "Blue" will be making it to college with him someday.

Now, when it comes to actually going to bed each night, Peyton has a "script". As soon as I tuck him in he says to me,

"I love you, I'll see you in the morning, you're the best mom in the world, how long are you staying up?"

There are no pauses between any of those statements. It's all blurred together...to which my response most nights is "I love you too, probably about an hour, I'm pretty tired". Most nights I'm up more than an hour, but I've become so accustomed to saying it like he has become accustomed to saying what he says. I've been wondering here lately how long he'll keep that up. How sad will it be one day when he just says "Good night"? Maybe that will be when he and Blue are off at college too.