Bedtime Routine

     So my big boy is 5 and my little one's are 2 years of age. They are finally out of my bed, people. I repeat to the world. They are finally out of my bed. *smile* Truth be told, I love co-sleeping. Cuddle time is everything. Instinctively, it just feels better. If I could continue to do so comfortably (even the King bed got too small) I would. So, I've developed a bedtime routine that assists in the transition. And this has worked wonders. It has 3 parts. Are you ready?

Part I
     Story-time. I don't have to tell you how magical books are, right? How significant it is to read to your child and etc, right? You know all of this already, right? Good. So I have the trio pick a book out (Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown and Please Baby Please by Spike Lee & Tonya Lewis Lee are the favorites for now) and I read it to them. This is extremely important because my son has issues with phonological awareness. So this helps facilitate language learning. My son then takes the book from me and "reads" it back to us. He mostly describes the illustrations however I make sure to applaud him as he smiles so proudly when he finishes. Even if he didn't get a word right. That's my boo.

Part II
     Prayer time. My son is the oldest so he usually leads us in prayer. The girls take their turn to lead every now and then. Sometimes we do the sign of the cross. We're still working on bowing our heads in respect. I mean, I am still fine tuning my concept of "God" (don't tell my Catholic mother) so as long as he says a prayer I am satisfied. What's most important here is being thankful for another night with loved ones by our side. 

Part III
     Meditation circle. This is a little unique. I don't believe that their concept of prayer is grounding enough for them. Our meditation circle calms them in a way that prayer should yet doesn't because they lack comprehension. We sit in a circle and take long deep breathes. No set number. When I feel our collective energy in the room settle then I stop. I pick a random number to count up to and we count aloud together. At the completion of our collective counting, we give each other kisses and say I love you. 

     Then it's off to bed. A little lengthy yet effective in terms of embedding the idea of bed time in their little minds. P 2.0 still cries sometimes but I can hear her brother and sister try to help her settle. "It's okay. Stop crying. You have to sleep now." It's the cutest. Slumber doesn't find my eyes until they've fallen asleep so yes I'm up eavesdropping. I'm their mother and I can do that. Whatever. *smirk* Don't judge me....I know I'm corny.