Friday 23 May 2008

Sleepy Heads

I went upstairs to look at the children.

First the boy. He's 6 and wants to grow up NOW. He's sleeping hard, worn out after 13 hours of non-stop activity. He's had bed hair all day, and now it's even beddier after sleeping on it still damp from the bath. He's lying on his side, high up in his cabin bed like an infant king. One skinny leg with scabby knees is out and over the blue monster duvet. His free arm hugs the cub that's been his smelly bed-mate since he was born, and he holds on tight to the last surviving scrap of baby-blanket. His lovely full lips are open, drooling a bit on the pillow, doing that pretend sucking thing that he does in his sleep. Perhaps he's dreaming of the warm, snoozy baby milk years.

Next the girl. She's 8, and veers from toddler to teenager and back again. Her beddy teddy is lying on her chest, watching me through the dark with round black eyes, protecting her while she sleeps. She lies on her back, arms thrown wide in pink nightie, on pink pillow, under pink duvet. She was swept away by an enormous yawn as she settled down, insisting "I'm not tired" as her eyes closed. Her face is round like the moon, picture perfect with wide-apart eyes and long, long lashes. As a baby, she turned her head from side to side as she stirred in her sleep, and she still does sometimes. With a murmur and a sigh, she dreams of fairies and kittens and Daddy coming home.

They seem so grown up sometimes and so young when they're asleep. Sometimes I'm afraid to go to bed; I sleep so heavily and I don't want to leave them alone - even if they are just down the hall. I wonder how much of our quirky little life in 2008 they'll remember when they're big. In their slumber, some of it is being filed into their brains' long term memory, some into short term memory, and some is going straight to the shredder.

30 comments:

  1. They are lovely to look at while they sleep aren't they?

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  2. Beautiful descriptions of your children....I can almost picture them - if nothing else your blog will be there for them to read in years to come. Lx

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  3. Lovely... treasure the moments because in a few hours they will wide awake and you'll be wishing they were sleeping!

    :-Daryl

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  4. this is very sweet, gbs. i love watching my kids sleep. of course i don't watch the 21 yr old sleep cuz he doesn't live here lol but when he was younger, he was just so cute. well, all my kids are cute..but that's beside the point hehehe. i know they'll remember enough :)

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  5. I hope you enjoy every loving minute of it, because it flies by.

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  6. Nothing better than a sleeping child :-) That didn't really come out right! But they do look angelic, vulnerable and innocent & it brings out all the maternal instincts that make you want to eat them up!

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  7. I love watching children sleep. Babies especially when they gurgle and make faces. Oh you are making me feel like I've missed out. Lovely post. Debs x

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  8. That was a beautiful post, and reminded me of watching my own children when they were young. My older son called in last night to borrow our sat nav. He's now nearly six foot and very broad in the shoulders - I looked at him and remembered him as a young child and it's like thinking about two different people! It's hard to get the head round the transformation - so yeah, enjoy them at this stage, and at every stage!

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  9. My son quite happily talks to me when he's asleep if I pop in to see him. Never remembers it, but makes more sense than some adults I know.

    Lovely post

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  10. Aah! They're gorgeous when they're docile...

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  11. I guess the only answer is photo's. Lot's of photos.

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  12. Aaaww! What a lovely description. Every night I go and look at daughter asleep before I go to bed and wonder how long it will last.

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  13. You have spoken for all of us parents. Bless you for your eloquence.

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  14. Ahhh I love watching them sleep. Oh, not your kids, mine, LOL.
    That was beautifully written and so true. Miss E is nearly 8 and she veers from toddler to teenager too.
    Sometimes if you stroke Miss M's head as she sleeps this huge wide smile spreads across her face and my heart nearly bursts.

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  15. You are such a great story teller woman. I felt the tranquility of the room, the safe and secure environment and saw clean, sleeping children in the own little dream worlds. Lovely!

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  16. And you know that trite bullshit about how you've got to enjoy them now 'cos they'll grow up in a flash - well it's true. Mine are whopping 24 and 26 now, but still little girls.

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  17. Hey kiddo .. were you kidding about the Siamese Twins?

    :-Daryl

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  18. Just read this for a second time - and enjoyed it even more!

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  19. That's a Mom moment you'll never forget.. I might not either. ;) Lovely post and thanks to David for pointing it out.

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  21. Watching our babies sleep...isn't that what being a mom is all about? Protection like that is priceless...the kiddies just don't know that yet...beautiful post that every mother and father can relate to. Thank you for sharing your babies a little with all of us
    Sandi
    ps
    David sent me by...congrats on mention in Post os the Day

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  22. A sleeping child is the closest we get to the angels

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  23. I came over here thanks to David of "Authorblog", and what a great post this is! I am a mother of four, and those moments when they are in their beds (possibly all of them! *smile*), sleeping like little angels, are moments for cherish forever. Thank you for sharing these with us!

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  24. They bring us so much joy and we must try to enjoy every moment before time get away.

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  25. Ahh, I love looking at my three girls when they are asleep, it's absolutely gorgeous.
    A lovely post!

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  26. What a lovely 'sleepy' post. And don't they smell good when they're asleep? Well maybe not teenagers but definitely little ones:-)

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  27. What wonderful descriptions of your sleeping angels, I would have loved to have children, but not now to be, but beautifully described moments like that let me live vicariously! Thank you.

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  28. Sometimes it is just so good to watch them sleep, and remember the little miracles that they are.

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