Checking on My Babies

When the girls started sleeping through the night, at about three months old, part of my routine was to check on them before I went to bed.  A strict follower of rules, I always put them to bed on their backs, wrapped tightly in their swaddle blankets.  It wasn’t long before Baby A, in particular, began to flip over to her tummy, and she traveled quite a bit, too.  I’d usually find her 180 degrees from how I’d placed her, tummy down, fast asleep.

I would pick her up, and – still sound asleep – she’d resist against me.  I don’t know how she did it, swaddled so tightly, but I can only compare it to seeing a bug that’s gotten stuck on its back...struggling against all odds to right itself.

I would flip A over and place her back in the correct direction.  I would rub Baby B’s back, and then I could go to bed myself (even though I’m guessing by the time I made it down the hall, A had probably rolled over again).

My nightly checks continued until the girls were probably close to two, although at some point I finally gave up my quest for Baby A to sleep on her back.

One evening I came in to caress my babies’ sweet, sleepy cheeks, and Baby A woke up.  She F-R-E-A-K-E-D out, seeing me in her room.  At the time, were already dealing with some degree of nightmares (or something), and scaring her was the last thing I needed.

At that point I rationalized that the girls (still sleeping in zipper blankets) didn’t really need anything from me during the night.  If they did, they’d surely call out or cry…but otherwise I decided not to risk scaring anyone with a late-night visit.

It was only recently, when we made the move to big-girl blankets, that I began checking on the girls again.  It’s been such a sweet, sweet reminder to me of their infanthood.  Few things match the beauty of a sleeping baby (or four-year old)!

Harkening back to their baby days, my B is usually in a similar position to where I left her at bedtime.  She’s often on her side or her back, not having moved much.

I finally moved A’s pillow to the end of the bed she prefers (which just happens to be close to B’s head…so sweet!).  And I make sure she’s nicely situation on her tummy when I tuck her in.  Still, she usually manages to entangle herself in her blanket. 

As gently as possible, I try to find an edge to her blanket and pull it / roll her so I can cover her again.  She has yet to fully wake up, but a couple of times she’s said, “Give it to me!” I guess thinking I was taking her blanket away!  She tosses and turns, almost violently at times, swiping at her hair and fighting her way back to a comfortable position. 

Feeling her energy, I can’t help but be taken back four years to how my little beetle bug behaved then…bedtime sweetness at its best.