I have decided my daughter stands a pretty good chance of becoming either a lawyer or a hostage negotiator.
From the time I pick her up from day care in the afternoon it begins. "What are we going to do tonight?" My answer is usually the same, go home, make dinner, eat, take a bath and go to bed. When you live an hour away from work, there isn't much time at the end of the day to really "do" anything. The negotiations begin; "can we go out to dinner", "can we go visit XX person", can we go and do and go and do... I am afraid she is in for quite a disappointment when she finally realizes that life is not about going and doing all of the time.
After we finally come to terms with going home and eating another boring dinner, the negotiations begin in earnest. "Do I have to take a bath tonight" - Yes, "can I sleep with you tonight" - No. "Please, oh please, oh please for tonight, just tonight, just this once, I promise." I usually let her sleep with me one night a week on the weekend. That way I am not as concerned about lack of sleep or disruption of the daily routine. Even with that, every night we go through this.
"My room is ugly", "I'm scared" or "you are so far away it feels like you are in California" are a few of the arguments I get. Now, my daughter has one of the cutest rooms I have seen for a kid. She has a super comfortable bed and I even let her sleep with the light on. She just hates to be alone. I don't blame her, I hate it too.
Personally, I would let her sleep with me every night if I could get her to sleep without me having to be in the bed. I have my evening ritual of face washing, futile exercising, getting things ready for tomorrow, etc... Which means I am not in bed until at least 9:30. That is way too late for her to be up as we get up at O'dark-thirty every morning.
After having the same discussions, night after night after night, I wonder how she manages to keep after it. She never gives up. She never stops trying. Her attempts at negotiating become more and more sophisticated as the weeks go by. She has even tried black mailing me a time or two and she is only 5. I am in BIG trouble!
O'dark-thirty...love it!
ReplyDeleteThey only get worse as they get older. Peanut says the same things to me. Thankfully she will go to sleep without my having to go to bed at the same time...I couldn't have her in my bed every night any other way...I love my short-lived spurts of having the bed to myself on the rare occassion I get her into her own bed.