An angel must have heard me...

Okay, so I don't really believe that, but it's a cute thought. :~)

Anyway, earlier this week, I was catching up on writing in Brennan's journal and at the end, I said something along the lines of, "You're such a terrific baby in every way, and if there was just one thing I would ask, it's that you sleep better." Well, wouldn't you know it? As of that night, he has been waking up just once - that's right, ONCE - during the night. His bedtime routine also has shortened considerably in length. Before, we'd give him his bath, put him in his night-time diaper and pjs, read 2-3 books, and sing and bounce, sing and bounce, sing and bounce. This could go on for at least 20 minutes. Now, we give him a bath, put him in his pjs, read the books, and sing a couple songs, and he conks right out.

He has also started falling asleep on his own for naps. All I have to do is look for his sleepy signs (which I did before, so that hasn't changed), put him in his crib, give him his pacifier and teddy bear, and tuck him in.

I thought maybe it was a fluke, but he has done this consistently for four days now. And even if this is just a "phase," I sure am glad for it. If I were smarter, I would be getting more rest, too, but:

1. I stayed up WAY too late on the first two nights because I "just knew" he was going to wake up just as I headed to bed so I "might as well stay up." He didn't, and I felt kind of dumb the next morning.

2. Too many thoughts have been going through my head, unrelated thoughts. About multicultural marriages. About where Brennan will go to school. About what musical instrument I want him to play. About whether or not I'll ever get to have a career in an environment I want to teach in. About whether or not I'm meeting Nich's needs and blessing him every day as his wife.

I guess this is what happens when a multi-tasking, hyper-organized, likes-to-stay-busy woman becomes a stay-at-home mom. All that frenzy is stuck in my head now, because being a mom forces me to slow down in actual life. I find myself listing to Nich all the things I accomplished throughout the day when he comes home, as if I need to validate my status as a stay-at-home mom, as though the inner performer in me is saying, "See, see? I DO a lot of work!" It's funny and weird and I really shouldn't need to do that.

But that's just me.

However, I have been making a point to write almost every day, whether it's here, in my journal, or in Brennan's journal. I also try to read my Bible every day (the reading it through in a year plan went out the window last month), and since we started making a ritual of going to the farmer's market and the library every Saturday morning, I've been reading two books a week, too. This is how I maintain sanity, through words, lots and lots of words.