Matt is away this week on business, so here I am all alone with my 4 kids. When this happens, I am sort of a fish out of water, because although I am alone with them all day while he's at work, I am spoiled by the fact that he is a very hands-on dad. I am pretty much free after he comes home and dinner's ready--he and the kids clear the table and do the dishes, he does all bath routines, and he gets them all ready for bed (pjs, stories, teeth brushed, etc.) and gets Julia and Ben to bed while I take care of Emma. Plus my early risers (Julia and Ben) get up early with him in the morning and have breakfast, allowing me to sleep in a bit. Also, he only takes 2 business trips a year--and we usually go with him on this trip to Boston!
WELL. He left at 8 am yesterday, and the day went very well. We did some chores--laundry, filling bird feeders, straightening up. We played a massive game of Monopoly, watched a movie, we went to Target, where as I promised them a few weeks ago they could each get a small toy to make up for not keeping to our yearly tradition. Had an early dinner, and the three little ones took a really long bath together, playing in the bubbles. I decided to vacuum while they were in it. When Emma got out of the tub, she promptly went into her room and shut the door--she hates the vacuum.
About 15 minutes later, was done except for her room, so I went to open her door to let her know her room would just take a few minutes, and she could get back to her game. To my surprise, she was all tucked into bed, sound asleep! And it was only 7:15. So I read Ben and Julia some "Prince Caspian," we called Matt for them to say goodnight, and I took them up to bed. Rachel and I watched some TV together, and Matt and I were talking on the phone late when Emma came downstairs to find me.
Sigh. I tried to put her in her own bed a few times. Didn't work. So I put her in my bed, cursing to myself that the one benefit of being husbandless this week is having the entire bed to stretch out in. I had just fallen asleep (you know, that state where you're totally still and you now you're drifting off, but you're still aware of what's happening?) when I heard a kid go into the bathroom. Naturally, it wasn't one of the girls, who would have gone back to bed. It was Ben.
No, he didn't have to go to the bathroom. He was looking for Daddy. I reminded him Daddy's away, but I'd take him up and tuck him in again. Nope. He could sleep in Emma's bed; her room is next to ours, so that's better than upstairs, right? Nope.
"Mama," he said seriously, "I don't want to sleep alone."
Sigh. Again.
I let him into bed with us. These two kids don't take up as much room as Matt, it'd be fine. Hmmm. It would have been fine, except my restless little bean was diagonal in the bed, with her feet planted against my legs. When I pulled Ben in, I was completely locked in. Couldn't move at all. One good thing is that Ben is, no question, the best snuggler in the entire world. My girls are all over the place when they sleep, always have been. Ben just scooches into your body and stays that way. And he's warm. And his hair smells so nice.
But still. I would have given that up in a heartbeat if I could have moved a bit! Add the dog at the foot of the bed, 2 kittens in the crook of my knees, and a cranky but sweet old cat sitting on my hip....let's just say I woke up this morning feeling about a hundred years old!
Four more nights.
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