LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! LET’S GET READY FOR AN ALL OUT FIGHT BETWEEN SLEEP AND A TODDLER!
We all hate to admit defeat. We feel that we can will ourselves to overcome anything. This even happens at an early age. No I am not a psychologist, but I have seen this through the actions of my youngest daughter Jordan. She will be two in July and already is showing she can put up a good fight. The problem is that she is fighting the inevitable. Recently in our many trips that we have made as a family, Jordan’s nap schedule has been altered and we all have felt the wrath of her sleep deprivation.
Her fight is the strongest in the car. She has a comfortable car seat and has her stuffed cat that she takes everywhere. Yet she just feels the need to scream and yell to notify us that she is tired. Blankets, sippy cups, movies, and music have all been used to aid in her sleep. Still she is not having any part of it. This past week coming back from Newark Airport we thought after some dinner she would nap. NOPE! To her defense she was great on her first ever plane ride. To Kentucky and back to New Jersey she was a champ on the plane.
As soon as we get into the car from dinner to go home, Jordan starts crying. While she bellows out her war cry she also lets out a big yawn.
DING! Round one starts. She cries a bit more and then throws her cat on the car floor. She then asks for her cat back. She asks to get down and we tell her that in “a bit” we will be home. She sees through our exaggeration and begins to start looking for things to throw in the car. Unfortunately all she has at this point is her cat, so she throws it again! You can guess that went as well as a fart in church.
Round two, we play some music to try and entertain her while her older sister sings to her. For a brief moment that works and she lets out another yawn. This round is scored as sleep winning round two.
Round three starts after the song ends and Jordan realizes that her kitty is on the floor. Crying then ensues and she gets louder to overshadow the music. Round three is won by Jordan.
Round four is a tough match to score. In the beginning a yawn is let out and she leans her head toward one of the head cushions on the car seat. Of course I jinx it by looking at her since there was no screaming from her. I can see that sleep has her on the ropes. Then all of a sudden a strong uppercut from Jordan knocks down sleep and she is back screaming and yelling. Round four is scored as a draw.
Round five starts as we are nearing our home. I hear nothing from her and I do not look back. We pull up to our house and she is out. Ladies and gentlemen we have a winner. Yes sleep wins this fight, but at what cost. We have to take her out of the car and her five minute snooze has done her no good. We get her out of the car and she wakes up to realize that she is not in her bed and she starts back up from where she left off in the car.
We give her the quickest bath possible and then put on her pajamas and get her into bed. There is no fight, no resistance, she holds up the white flag and begins to go off to dreamland. Sleep wins the second fight with a TKO!