Thursday, February 02, 2012

Early bird life

early bird life by allisonandmatt
early bird life, a photo by allisonandmatt on Flickr.

'Round here, Evan is usually our earliest riser. Well, except for Matt who gets up at 5:30, so he can leave by 6:30. More often than not, Evan wakes up before Matt leaves. Once we hear him talking, we go get him from his crib in the room he shares with Tobin, hoping T will sleep longer. At the very least, Tobin has instructions to stay in bed until 6:30--a directive Evan is too young to follow. I should add a caveat here: there have been times when 6am Evan wake-ups don't seem that "early," especially when he's been in one of his 5am wake-up phases. In any case, boys sleeping until 7am are rare, celebrated moments.

Ev's charming from the get-go, warning us in a very loud whisper as we pick him up from his bed: "Shhh, Tobin's sweeping!" He immediately wants orange juice and dry cereal (we've yet to convince either boy that milk goes well it) and, if Evan wakes while Matt's still eating breakfast, Matt will keep Ev at the table with him while he finishes his coffee and checks the Internet. He's often persuaded to play some sort of video for Ev's entertainment. On this particularly morning, Evan went and got his own "'puter." And adorably, checked his email and the beginning letters of numerous animals. Once Matt gets up from the table, Evan comes to find me, eating my breakfast and drinking my beloved coffee on the couch, watching Sportscenter. I try to be up by 6am, which allows me to get about a 30-minute headstart on the boys on days that Evan sleeps later--or at the very least, allows me to shower and/or eat breakfast with another adult in the house.

Right around the time Matt leaves, Tobin usually emerges, apparently already up and watching the clock until his permitted wake-up time. I allow myself to finish my coffee before getting up and starting our morning routine around 7am. The boys eat breakfast while watching PBS cartoons, while I pack Tobin's snack and get their clothes set out. I harbor the tiniest bit of guilt that they watch television every single morning, but it's what works in this season of our lives by keeping them mostly occupied while I am motivated to and able to get things done. Sometimes I feel like that hour is my most productive of the day! Lauren has not yet caught on to the early bird trend (thanking my lucky stars, knocking on wood, crossing my fingers!) and will usually sleep until about 8, which allows me to get the boys and myself mostly ready and if I'm really productive, the kitchen cleaned. When she wakes, I nurse her and then I'm running around changing diapers, wiping faces, settling sharing disputes, brushing teeth, reading books, finding shoes/jackets/backpacks, up until we leave the house at 9 to take Tobin to school.

Things start early and quickly around here, which makes me all the more thankful for baby naps and Matt's arrival home from work most days before 5pm.

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