Bedtime Rituals

Gwen is not a minimalist. Bedtime has evolved into a fairly involved scavenger hunt for Greg and I to recover the myriad of blankets, pillows and stuffed animals which must watch over Gwen while she sleeps.

A typical night currently involves Blankie (always blankie), the tattered pink, green and purple blanket which accompanies Gwen everywhere. Blankie also has a twin, Other Blankie, which I purchased on ebay to serve as a stand-in for Original Blankie when I wash it. Blankie and Other Blankie must be found and given to Gwen so she can begin to wind down. As they go with Gwen everywhere and she rarely carries both at once, one Blankie is usually easily found while the Other Blankie is in a remote location in the house somewhere.

Then there is Henry, the the leggy stuffed animal cat which Gwen selected from a whole barrel of other Henrys last Christmas. Henry often goes with us in the car and is usually found in our van around bedtime.

Seahorse is a seahorse rendition of a Glowworm and has been with Gwen since before she was born. I used to play it's 7 minutes of music to Gwen when she was still in my tummy. We took it to the hospital with us and it kept her company the day she was born. She hasn't always been so attached to seahorse, but it's received an increase in popularity over the past month.Seahorse is often found on the upper floor, in one of our bedrooms, sometimes under the bed.

PurpleDuck is a purple platypus beanie baby who usually sleeps at Gwen's feet. This creature is usually in Gwen's room, but has migrated as far as the living room downstairs.

Bee Pillow she recently received for her birthday and is a large pillow that looks like a bee. She doesn't sleep on it, but it must be near her bed. This fluffy creation is always in Gwen's room (so far, it's life at our house is still just beginning)

Lastly there is Pillow, which is a real pillow that she likes to sleep on. That, plus a normal blanket to tuck her in at night and the bedtime ritual is complete. Almost.

Then there is lotion for her cheeks, 'lipstuff' for her lips and a quick hairbrush.

THEN 2 stories, though occasionally we'll stretch it to 3 if she's been good (but never 1, that simply won't do) hugs and kisses all around, me to rub her back for 5 minutes and lights out.

It never feels involved until you're walking out of her room and give a big sigh. If you've done it right, she'll go right down, if not, there is wailing at her door and stern words from us which end in her sobbing on her bed at the unjustness of sleeping in general.

But eventually, she falls asleep. Quietly snoring amongst all her little animal friends and a fan blowing gently in the corner. I imagine there is a curve, up until a certain age her bedtime collection will continue to grow, and then decline past that age. Blankie has been the first in and I imagine it will be the last out. I hope there's enough of it left for me to hang on to for a while. I'll miss these round-ups one day.