Sunday, March 2, 2008

Bedtime Woes

I don't know if you've gathered it or not from some of my past posts, but I love reading to my kids. I just discovered a wonderful book I plan on writing a review about (sorry to keep you in suspense, but you don't even get the title yet, and no it's not anywhere else on here). I love discovering new gems like that and sharing the stories and lessons they hold for us.

I've been reading "Holes" with the boys. I've read it before, but the three of us are deep into it. The chapters are short, making it very easy to get sucked into the "One more chapter, PLEEEEASE!!!" Especially when I want to keep going with it too!

Last night we read for over 1/2 hour past their bedtime, but of course they can't jump their little hineys into bed as soon as we're done, even if they are already pajammered and brushed, so by the time lights were off it was at least 45 minutes past bedtime. And boy, did I pay for it this morning. I don't think I heard one kind word from either all morning. Sammy especially doesn't do well on less than normal sleep, and since we were in the getting-read-for-church rush it made it all the worse.

Tonight I said they had to be jammered and brushed AND on their beds before I started reading, and that I was going to quit 10 minutes before actual bedtime in case there was anything extra they needed to get up for after we were done. When everyone was ready and we could finally get going, we had 7 minutes to read (we watched a movie tonight that finished just after 8:00, so getting the girls ready for bed pushed back them getting ready). We had one longer chapter that actually took us 8 minutes to read, so when I was done with it I closed the book and got them settled in.

While Sammy was getting ready I told Adam that I love reading together even more than they do, and that it makes my heart hurt to have to cut the time so drastically, but that no way no how am I going to have them up if it means that I get punished the next morning the way I did today. I don't mean this to be a whiney post, but a lesson hopefully finally learned. We've run this cycle before here and there. Maybe I've got it now.

Even if I do hate it.

I feel like I'm the one the law is being laid down for. That stinks.

2 comments:

  1. I love reading to my son. He is 2 so we are still in picture books but I love climbing into the bed with him with a stack of books and reading. I love how into he gets too. He always wants more stories. After I read he asks for daddy to read and then when daddy is done he asks for me again. If it was up to him we would take turns reading all night.
    Oh, and I love Holes!

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  2. Well, you have to do what works! I get too tired to read more than a picture book at night so I read to my kids in the afternoon and they read their own books at night. That works for us.

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