Thursday, February 17, 2011

A glimpse...

What a beautiful day. I practically skip to my car. I couldn't wait to pick up the boys and enjoy the evening. Granny told me the Boys were angels, which made me even more excited to get them home and go on a walk. We've been cooped up for 3.5 months and are ready to stroll around the neighborhood.

During the drive home, the boys drift off to sleep. By the time I got the boys inside they were starting to stir. It's feeding time. I make each of them a small bottle, just enough to tide them over while we go on our walk. They eat, I change clothes and were off. We stop and talk to our neighbors. They are perfect little angles. They coo on demand and grin and laugh. I'm so proud. What great kids I have.

My friend comes over for a visit and the boys are still in good spirits. She helps me feed the boys then we take them upstairs to the nursery for a short nap. Brooks lies down in his crib and falls asleep. Jackson isn't ready for a nap so I take him downstairs with me. He's rubbing his eyes and yawning. Busted little Jackson, I know you are tired! I put him in the swing and within a few minutes he is asleep. Ahh, a few peaceful minutes to get dinner made...yeah right!

I officially give up on trying to make dinner while at home alone with the Boys. Tonight was the final straw.

Like I said the boys went down for a nap around 7:30 pm so I thought it would be nice if I made dinner. Nothing fancy. Just a spinach/pasta salad. Doesn't require a lot of work or a lot of time.

The Boys had a different idea. While the pasta was boiling, Brooks who was asleep in his crib began to cry. I went upstairs to get him while Jackson was resting peacefully in the swing downstairs. I take Brooks and the Boppy Lounger (one of my favorite baby items) downstairs and lay him on the kitchen table so I can keep an eye on him while I finish dinner. Within a few minutes Brooks erupts again. Nothing will make him happy. I sing, I dance, I pull out the Sing-A-Ma-Jig. Nothing is working.

When crankiness arrives, bottle, bath and bed need to quickly follow. I grab Brooks and head upstairs, noting that Jackson is still sleeping soundly in the swing. By this time, Brooks is wailing. WAILING, WAILING, WAILING. I go into the bathroom to start the bathwater, to realize that I earlier had filled the sink with warm soapy water to wash all the bottles and had never finished the task (not surprisingly). With Brooks in my arms, I drain the sink and take out all the unwashed bottles and all their many parts.

Refill sink with bathwater.

Jackson is now WAILING downstairs. I set Brooks in the nap nanny (favorite baby item number 2) and march downstairs to get Jackson. Now both boys are crying. With Jackson in my arms and I make two bottles and settle in with the Boys for a feeding. One in my lap and one on the lounger. Bottles enter their mouths and all I hear is silence. SILENCE. I hear my Grandmother saying "Silence is Golden". Never a statement so true.

Brooks, the super fast eater, downs his bottle and is ready to burp. Brooks sits on my lap while I hold him up and pat his back all with one arm/hand while steadying the bottle in Jackson's mouth with the other hand. Brooks burps and down he goes on the nap nanny. Jackson putters around slowly drinking his bottle like always. He finally finishes and Brooks is now screaming again. A very quick bath for Brooks, a slather of baby lotion, diaper, warm jammies...he is ready for bed!

Medicine...Brooks has an ear infection so I run downstairs to get the medicine then back upstairs I go. Darn it...the dispenser is downstairs in the mess of my kitchen. Don't forget I started dinner and the kitchen is still a mess. Pots and pans, and opened canned goods are everywhere. I grab the dispenser and back up I go. I give Brooks his medicine (such a familiar childhood smell) and rock him a little in my arms to try and settle him before I lay him in his crib. Jackson is still crying. I bend down, careful not to drop Brooks, and put the pacifier back in Jackson's mouth. Jackson spits it out. Brooks eyes are starting to droop so to his crib we go. I lay him down and he is off to sleep. Thank you Brooks for not only laying in your crib without crying, but also for sleeping 7-9 hours straight every night.

One of two Babies has drifted off to sleep. Next on the list...Jackson.

Bath time for Jackson. A quick bath, slather of lotion, diaper, warm jammies. Bed time!

I rock Jackson in my arms and his eyes began to droop. He is so tired he can barely hold his eyes open. His head falls back and his arms go limp. I lay him in his crib and here we go again. Jackson HATES to go to sleep in his crib. He wants to be held and rocked to sleep. He arches his back, legs flail and screams. Nix that...WAILS.

Trent arrives home and I'm in tears. He tells me its ok and that he will take over. There is something about his deep voice that gets Jackson to sleep in a way that I can't.

In need of a break, I clean the kitchen. I pour myself a glass of wine to unwind from the evenings adventure and all I can hear is screaming. It sails down the staircase and it's booming through the monitor. I turn off the monitor only to still hear it. More wine. I'm just too tired and keyed up to eat...I will take it in my lunch tomorrow. More wailing. I hear Trent's footsteps across the floor above me going to Jackson to console him. Nothing seems to work. We finally let him cry it out. 30 minutes later (that's 30 minutes of very loud crying later) he is asleep.

Will Jackson ever grow out of this? I sure hope so. But the bigger question is how in the world does Brooks sleep through all that crying?

I take a shower to wash away the evening. In a few hours Jackson will wake up hungry and then again for a second time before the sun rises. Tomorrow I will wake to find my two precious children lying in their cribs with great big smiles so happy to see me. They will have forgotten about the evening, I will too.

Two Happy Babies (the next morning!)
Jackson is on the left in the Boppy Lounger and Brooks is on the right in the Nap Nanny.

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