We converted Hannah’s crib into a “big girl bed” a little over a month ago. As you can probably see from the picture, she was rather excited by the change! So excited, in fact, that she invited most of her “friends” to play in the bed too.
The first few nights went pretty well. I don’t think she even realized she could get out of bed once the lights were off, and she was sleeping all night. As the days went on (or I guess I should say as the nights went on) she figured out she could get out of bed when she woke up. This let to us having a cute little visitor Saturday morning… a first for everyone.
Indulge a bit of a tangent for a moment here. Someone commented to me a while back that one of the many joys in raising kids was that you got to see them have first experience over and over. Every day is full of opportunities for your child to have “the best day of her life” only to look forward to another day full of new discoveries. When Hannah walked into our bedroom I realized that raising kids also provides an entire category (if I can call it that) of new experiences for myself that I wouldn’t have were it not for being a parent.
So, back to the story. Sleeping is going ok, but it appears she might be starting to get her canine teeth, and Christmas travel is upon us. Christmas was fun for everyone, but it was a LOT of stimulation for Hannah. By the time we got home I don’t think she knew which way was up, let alone what a normal day or night might be like.
Somewhere in there, she also figured out she could carry her little step-stool around and turn on lights. Previously it had just been something to stand on while she brushed her teeth. Now it has become a gateway to the power of light and darkness!
Having set the stage, I will now recount one of the first work-nights at home post-Christmas. Heather and I were kind of dragging as our bodies reluctantly adjusted back to a more normal early to bed, early to rise kind of schedule, and were probably sleeping more soundly than we normally would.
<approximately 2AM> I am woken up by a loud *CLUNK*. The first thing I notice is that there is light streaming into our room. The second thing I notice is that Hannah is climbing the step-stool she has just slammed down below our light switch. Some quick investigation showed that Hannah had turned on every single light on the floor, except the ones in our room prior to heading in. She had also started up her toy coffee maker. I suspect she felt sure she had a great start on a new day.
We are now a few weeks past that memorable night, and things are starting to be normal again. Along with providing a number of firsts, we may have learned a little about the implications of turning a toddler loose in the house 🙂
-Jordan
Nelsons 