Well, I sit here wondering if I should write this now, or wait until tomorrow. But, I think I want to capture this feeling now and talk about the result tomorrow.
Rewind one week. Last Saturday, Nicholas had his friend Nels over. They concocted a grand plan for a sleepover. But because it was such short notice, Nels' mom and I convinced the boys to save it for the following Friday. Now, you should know that I teach with Nels' mom, Lucy. So, this is about as easy as it gets. That being said, Nicholas has talked about it all week. He also informed me yesterday (after much coersion and swearing I wouldn't get involved) that he was most excited about the fact that he and Nels were going to sneak up after Lucy put them to bed and "play legos with flashlights". Wild men! He asked Michael for his special flashlight from when he was an MP. It was pretty cute. But, last night, Nicholas woke up at 1:37 a.m. Very upset, complaining of a headache and stomach ache (which is pretty common for him...he's got major tummy issues). In between complaining and moaning, he kept referring to his sleep over with Nels. --would he still be able to go? --should he go? --if he didn't go, could he go another time?. I started piecing together that maybe it was nerves. But then he barfed on me. Just liquid...no substance. So I simply assumed it was stress. Right after he bestowed his puke upon me, he said he felt better and was ready to go to sleep. 2:44 a.m. Nice. My little man got up this morning, ready to go, excited as could be. We got his bag ready. Toothbrush (didn't want toothpaste because he said Nels wanted him to try theirs), two pair of PJ's (one pair that is just pants, no shirt; the other pair, shirt and pants...needed to see what Nels wore), daddy's flashlight and clothes for the next day. I think part of the thrill for him was going to Lucy's classroom afterschool and not mine. He delivered his sleepover bag to her first thing this morning. At the end of the day, I went down to her room to get his backpack. He handed it to me, gave me a kiss and our I LOVE YOU hand signal and sent me on my way. Seriously, I could have cried. They were "happy tears" as my kids call them. I have no worries about his safety, I just worry about my baby. What if he needs me in the middle of the night? What if he doesn't get to eat all that he likes to eat? What if he forgets to go pee and wets the bed? What if he's thirsty? Will he get up? He didn't take his blankie, because of the obvious reasons. He didn't want his night light. Oh me. Yes, the logical me knows that this is part of growing up and no matter what happens tonight it is a natural progression of him growing up, but the emotional me can't believe this happening. For as frustrated as I get with them and as crazy as they can make me, it is yet another reminder of how quickly they grow up.
So, Jacob was thrilled with the prospect of a night alone, although he has been plotting his own sleep over adventure. We took him out to dinner at his favorite restaurant with Nana. Came home and he forced me to play Mario Kart Wii. (You should know that I truly despise the Wii). He had great pleasure in watching me try to play. He is thrilled with staying up late with mommy and daddy. All 3 of us have prepared ourselves for a grumpy Nicholas IF he does stay the night. That boy has to go to bed early, which we know he won't. I've got my cell phone next to the bed and turned the night mode off of the house phones. Stay tuned to see how the adventure went.
No comments:
Post a Comment