The Bedtime Grind
Our bedtime routine starts with the bedtime feeding. You could count the periodically preceding bath as the beginning of the routine, but we only bathe them every other night, and there’s too much splashing and screaming involved in the bath for it to relate to any bedtime preparation ideology.
All three children eat before bedtime. Ian and Tory get bottles, while Abbie snacks on a glass of milk and any Tasteeos she stashed away earlier in the day. I keep thinking she should be old enough to go through the night without a bedtime snack, but she thinks otherwise, as evidenced by the way she hovers under my feet like our dog at dinnertime while I prepare the boys’ bottles. Our dog would probably get a lot more table scraps if she could learn to tug on my pant leg like Abbie.
The standard feeding procedure is I hold one boy, Ellie holds the other, or a Boppy stands in if she’s at work. While we feed, Abbie takes a couple sips of milk, chases the dog for 20 minutes, and then finishes her milk at our prodding.
We rotate children depending on which one is infuriating momma more by squirming in her lap instead of eating. I may be more patient with their writhing, or I may just have a better lap to contain them while they fidget.
Ellie and I are exhausted by the time this feeding rolls around, me from chasing the kids all day, and Ellie from spending an evening listening to me complain about it. This is often our first chance to sit since supper, and even that is frequently interrupted by trips to refill the Tasteeo bowl or protecting our plate from Abbie’s prying fingers. After the boys finish eating, I usually sit motionless for a couple minutes while children crawl around me. I’m waiting for my second (at least) wind to hit, which usually happens about the time the television program we’re watching goes to commercial.
As Ian crawled on me last night, he grabbed his bottle from my lap. It was empty; I think he just enjoys chewing on the nipple because it reminds him of happier times when he still had room to eat. He rocked back with the bottle in his mouth, setting both feet on the ground. He continued rocking back, lifting his front off my knee, and finally achieving a vertical position that could best be described as “standing unassisted.” He stayed this way, chewing on his bottle for I’d guess a solid ten seconds before falling back to the floor. Ellie witnessed about half of it as she spent the first five seconds ensuring the dog didn’t hurt Abbie while cavorting about the room, and vice versa.
This is the longest he’s stood unassisted. He’s stood for a couple seconds at a time in the past, but that was after I stood him up. I could also make a spoon stand upright for a couple seconds at a time if I balanced it right before letting go. This was him pushing up to standing and letting go of his own accord, and correcting his balance once he got up there.
This is a scary milestone; they’re on the cusp of walking. Once they can walk, a new world will open. They’ll have free range of the house. They’ll be able to move in three directions simultaneously while I’m trying to round them up. They’ll be able to hover under my feet while I prepare their bedtime feeding.
All three children eat before bedtime. Ian and Tory get bottles, while Abbie snacks on a glass of milk and any Tasteeos she stashed away earlier in the day. I keep thinking she should be old enough to go through the night without a bedtime snack, but she thinks otherwise, as evidenced by the way she hovers under my feet like our dog at dinnertime while I prepare the boys’ bottles. Our dog would probably get a lot more table scraps if she could learn to tug on my pant leg like Abbie.
The standard feeding procedure is I hold one boy, Ellie holds the other, or a Boppy stands in if she’s at work. While we feed, Abbie takes a couple sips of milk, chases the dog for 20 minutes, and then finishes her milk at our prodding.
We rotate children depending on which one is infuriating momma more by squirming in her lap instead of eating. I may be more patient with their writhing, or I may just have a better lap to contain them while they fidget.
Ellie and I are exhausted by the time this feeding rolls around, me from chasing the kids all day, and Ellie from spending an evening listening to me complain about it. This is often our first chance to sit since supper, and even that is frequently interrupted by trips to refill the Tasteeo bowl or protecting our plate from Abbie’s prying fingers. After the boys finish eating, I usually sit motionless for a couple minutes while children crawl around me. I’m waiting for my second (at least) wind to hit, which usually happens about the time the television program we’re watching goes to commercial.
As Ian crawled on me last night, he grabbed his bottle from my lap. It was empty; I think he just enjoys chewing on the nipple because it reminds him of happier times when he still had room to eat. He rocked back with the bottle in his mouth, setting both feet on the ground. He continued rocking back, lifting his front off my knee, and finally achieving a vertical position that could best be described as “standing unassisted.” He stayed this way, chewing on his bottle for I’d guess a solid ten seconds before falling back to the floor. Ellie witnessed about half of it as she spent the first five seconds ensuring the dog didn’t hurt Abbie while cavorting about the room, and vice versa.
This is the longest he’s stood unassisted. He’s stood for a couple seconds at a time in the past, but that was after I stood him up. I could also make a spoon stand upright for a couple seconds at a time if I balanced it right before letting go. This was him pushing up to standing and letting go of his own accord, and correcting his balance once he got up there.
This is a scary milestone; they’re on the cusp of walking. Once they can walk, a new world will open. They’ll have free range of the house. They’ll be able to move in three directions simultaneously while I’m trying to round them up. They’ll be able to hover under my feet while I prepare their bedtime feeding.
posted by Matt at
12:01 AM
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