It all started about 6 months ago when he randomly one day told me he didn't want to sleep with his blankey anymore. He had never been overly attached to it so I didn't think much of it. He still usually always slept with his Kitty stuffy and somewhere around that time had started to fear the dark after sleeping in it his whole life and had asked us to leave Daddy's hallway closet light on.
Fast forward to last week when he out of the blue asked me if when Coal was better at the vets would he be coming home (swallow back sob while answering). I calmly as I could reminded him that Coal had died and would never be coming home to us again. That day he asked me if he could call his stuffed kitty Coal now. I said sure you can and he ran upstairs and I didn't think anything of it. A few nights later I walked into his room at bedtime and I notice Kitty facing the wall sitting on his folded up blankey in the corner of the room. I asked him if he wanted me to grab Kitty for him and he so grown up said to me "Mommy, that's Coal now and that's his bed" and just like that, no more stuffy in the bed either. For two nights he attempted a different stuffy but he really just isn't interested. I am sad, but I get it that its time. I'm curious to see how often he will however bring her to my bed with him as that seemed to be where she would appear the most frequently.
Now for the light...this one came out of left field completely. His fear of the dark started overnight sometime around 6 months ago or maybe a little less. He asked Daddy one night to turn on the closet light so really no harm in it so we went along with it. After Jim started going away to work I would turn the closet light off when I went to bed and for awhile it worked, but then I noticed James was coming into my bed almost every single night. When Jim was home last we talked to him about staying in his bed and that if he was waking up and was afraid that we would start leaving the light on through the night again (so annoying but better than bed sharing with a crazy kicked and talking 3 year old!). Jim's been gone this time for 9 nights now and only last night did James crawl in with me. I kicked him out sometime around 2 am to go back to his own bed and what do I hear that wakes me from a dead sleep at 3 am? James saying to me "Mommy, you can turn that light off now, I'm not afraid of the dark anymore". And just like that I got up, turned it off and happily crawled back into bed in the darkness. I credit those Bearenstain Bears books for that one. We've been reading the In the Dark book for a few weeks now and Papa Bear explains to Sister that the dark is not scary, it's just your imagination that makes you afraid. Well, holy heck, it worked! Tonight I put him to bed and walked away with no lights on and he even pulled the covers up over his head as I left :o)
Next up will be removing the rails on his bed (he's a big mover and I worry how many times he will fall out!) and possibly attempting some night time potty training (this one may be tough as he's also a very deep sleeper apparently).
I can't believe we are now just under 2 months away from the big 4th birthday and every single day he amazes me with how grown up and mature he is. I'm so proud of the little man he is becoming and every day I am proud to be James's Mommy.
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