3:00 A.M.

Micah: Mooooma, I mnmnmnununungcucgmn my bed.
Me: (with one eye open) You peed in your bed?
Micah: No, I mnhjnbhgfthbnhguhunmn my bed.
Me:  You pooped in your bed?
Micah:  No, I minunubvbghftgyhnbjkm my bed.
Me: You threw up in your bed?
Micah: No, I minuhynmnfutchnjium my bed.
Me: (really listening now) So this has nothing to do with poop, puke, or pee?
Micah:  No, I fell out of my bed!
Me:  Well, go get back in your bed.
Micah: Okay.

It is 3:00 A.M. in my bedroom, welcome to my world!

Man At The Window

Tonight I put the boys to bed a little later than usual since they had all taken late naps.  Jonah and Micah had been in bed for about 30 minutes and Noah was still up enjoying some Lego time without little ones crawling all over him.  Joe and I were watching the History channel, and I could hear the younger boys still playing quietly in their beds and had already gone in twice to tell them to go on to sleep.  It was a little after 9:00 when Jonah came out of their bedroom saying that there was a man knocking on his window.  I told him that I was sure there was not and that he needed to go on back to bed and go to sleep.  As I was convincing him to go back to bed, Micah came out of their bedroom saying, man-knock-my-window.  I scolded Jonah for putting ideas into his younger brother's head, took them each by the arm and lead them back to their bedroom.

As I entered the bedroom I heard a noise at the window. I turned to look and there at the window was a light skinned black man with a beard and ball cap, staring back at me.  I let out a scream that I did not even know I had in me and Joe came running.  I'm not sure what I even told him but he went outside to see what was going on.

Turns out it was a man who was looking for Joe to do some hauling for him.  He said he had knocked on the door and no one came, so he went to a window that had some light shining in it to try and get someone.  Are you kidding me?  What person in their right mind goes to a business owner's home, on a holiday, after nine at night, and knocks on their windows, in order to ask them a question about their business?  Our phone numbers are listed everywhere...why not just pick up the phone and call?  If I have anything to say about it (and I am pretty sure I will) we will not be doing any hauling for this man at any time.

After I had recovered from my own near heart attack, I then had to have a heart to heart with my children about safety without scaring them senseless.  They now know that they did the exact right thing by coming to me and that Mommy will definitely listen from this point forward.  They went right to sleep after I had prayed with them, but I have a feeling I will be up for quite a while longer.

Melissa, if you are reading this, I now understand why you do not sleep with your windows open.  I honestly had never even given it any thought.  We live in the country, away from all of the city crazies and crime.  I don't even have a key to the lock on my door and we have always slept with our windows open every time the weather would allow.  After tonight's episode, I am rethinking my stance on that very issue!

Daddy, Daddy, Daddy, Mommy

Our kids are usually really good about bed time and going to sleep when they are told.  However, there are always exceptions to the rule!  Last night after we put the boys to bed, Joe went on to our bed and I stayed up working on lesson plans for next week.  (Home school post to come soon.) 
Anyway, I was sitting in the front room and could hear through the monitor in our bedroom (that was sitting on the nightstand beside the bed that Joe was sleeping in) Noah calling for Daddy.  He must have called for him for about five minutes.  I did not answer because he was calling for Joe and Joe was sleeping (or pretending to).  After calling for Daddy for about five minutes and getting no response, Noah then utters "Mommy" just one time.  Before Noah has even finished saying the word, Joe calls out to me "Denise, Noah wants you!"
Ugh!  Now tell me, do you believe even for a minute that Joe slept through all of the cries for Daddy, and only heard the one cry for Mommy?  I didn't think so either!

Big Boy Bed

Our bed plan for the boys is still on track. Another milestone has been accomplished...Jonah has been sleeping in his big boy bed (the bottom bunk) for over a week now. He thinks it is great and when he gets tired, he will say "night-night" and go climb in himself!
Unfortunately, we are still in need of some protective head gear. Not only does Jonah like sleeping in the bottom bunk, he also can climb all the way to the top bunk by himself. That in itself is not really a problem...it is the getting down that he has a problem with.
Noah is still sleeping in his top bunk every night and is excited to be sharing a room with Jonah. We will see how long it takes before the excitement wears off and he is drawing a line down the middle of the room with masking tape.
Micah will be transitioning to the crib this week. Hopefully he will sleep better in there. The past couple of weeks he has been waking up at least twice a night to nurse. Not good since I had gotten used to him sleeping all night....I don't like going backwards!

Top Bunk Drama

As much as Jonah loves to climb to the highest spot possible, Noah is terrified of heights. Noah climbs up just fine, but when he gets to the top of something, he freezes and can not come down. He has a mental fear, but it causes a real physical reaction. His whole body starts to shake and I think he is on the verge of hyperventilating. I always feel bad watching him on playgrounds because he will never climb anything higher than two steps. Just an example of how bad it is; When he has a doctor's visit, he is more worried about getting down from the examination table than anything else.
Noah and Jonah's rooms are connected with a Jack and Jill bathroom. Noah's room has bunk beds and Jonah's room houses the crib. Micah is still in the bassinet in the master bedroom. The original plan (when Micah outgrows the bassinet) was to move Noah and Jonah in together (Noah on top and Jonah on bottom), and put Micah in the crib in Jonah's old room. We were beginning to think that would never work. Noah got to the point that he could climb to his top bunk, but still could not get down. There were times when I was pregnant that he would get up there and be too afraid to get down by himself. I could NOT lift an eighty pound child down from the top bunk, so he would literally have to sit up there until Joe came home from work. It is amazing that we never had any bathroom emergencies during that time...but I digress. Jonah would have been glad to take the top bunk, but I am not comfortable with putting a nineteen month old on the top bunk. Can you imagine me trying to explain that one at the ER in the middle of the night? Our other option was to put each boy in his own room, since we have a beautifully decorated spare bedroom junk room and bath on the far end of the house. However, I really wanted to have all of the kids together.
Anyway, all of that to say this...Noah decided on his own that he was old enough to conquer this fear and climbed up to his top bunk and started cleaning it off throwing everything (jackets, blankets, toys) off and all over his room. He even climbed down all by himself. He was SO proud! Last night he begged us to let him sleep up there. We relented and he did great!
I will probably wait to move Jonah until a couple of weeks before we move Micah. Right now it looks like we have a couple of months before we have to move Micah, but phase one of our plan is in effect!

Yummmm Chocolate

We gave Noah and Jonah a rare treat this evening, double chocolate ice cream. It was so much fun and an even bigger mess! Double chocolate ice cream was probably not the best idea as a Friday night treat for two boys who are rarely allowed to have sugar and never allowed to have caffeine. Nearly three hours after their bedtime and they are both still wide awake. I have learned my lesson!!!

Hip Hip Hooray!

Jonah sleeps every night all night in his crib. However, Noah is not as cooperative. I have been determined to get Noah to sleep in his bed before this new baby arrives. Up until now I have not had very much luck. He says that his room is too scary and instead sleeps on the couch until Joe leaves for work, then climbs into bed with me. Having him in bed with me is not going to be an option considering that I will be returning from the hosptial with staples holding me together.
Last night was a milestone for us. After trying everything in the world, Noah finally decided that it was time for him to sleep in his own bed. I read him a story, helped him say his prayers, tucked him in, and he was off to dream land in his own bed. He woke up at about 2:00 and tried to climb into my bed. I sent him back to his room with instructions not to get out of his bed until the sun was putting light through his window. Amazingly, he did what I told him! He did not wake up again until 7:00 this morning. Hopefully the next couple of nights will go as smoothly as last night.