A day at a time...

It’s been a few days since we’ve posted, mainly because we’ve been pretty tired of an evening and even ended up in bed around 9:30pm a couple of nights (very early for us). We’ve now been home and week and a day and it seems so much longer. The days have been filled with playing, pushing anything that moves – but especially things with wheels around the house, fun and laughter, stories, nursery rhymes, wrestling with the boys (JM is a little less intimidated now and is actually launching himself into the action), food, play school, actual school for Will (who went back on Wed), exploring the house and backyard (Will gave JM a guided taste test tour of the veggie patch and herb garden), baths, jumping on the trampoline, visiting the park, checking out the chooks, and meeting more friends and family.

We’ve also altered sleeping arrangements fairly radically (if dismantling our rather large hardwood sleigh bed qualifies as radical). We had started JM in his own room with Will because he went down so easily for his nap during the day. We found pretty quickly however that he was waking late in the night and was distressed we weren’t around (despite Will being in the room with him), the length and intensity of distress increased over a couple of nights to the point it was very distressing for us too. So we made the somewhat difficult decision to bring JM on a mattress on the floor in our room, not knowing how long he would be need to stay and how Will would react. Another problem with that is that in our little room it didn’t physically work with our big wooden bed, so the boys got busy and took the bed apart. We’re now on our mattress on the floor next to JM on his mattress on the floor.

This had an immediately positive effect on JM and despite the fact he woke multiple times in the night to check we were still there (and wouldn’t go back to sleep unless he was physically on you, or you were next to him on his mattress), the distress had gone. Will thinks it’s a little bit unfair that JM gets to sleep with us (no room for him too!) but with typical graciousness has accepted that he can still come in to us during the night and sleep with us too if he wakes. All of this had been pretty exhausting physically (and emotionally), particularly for Liss who JM wants to go to in the night, but God has graciously sustained us, and in another way we are rejoicing that JM is wanting Liss in this way - another positive sign of ‘attachment’ happening. It’s also been great having Matt around so much, not just as another pair of hands, but to be on duty so Liss can catch up on a little sleep in the mornings and act as Liss’s personal Masseur! Last night he only woke a couple of times and Liss was able to comfort him with her voice and a reassuring hand. It’s getting better a day at a time.

As parents we are walking around with a grin from ear to ear... full of pride at our amazing sons who like us are embracing an amazing journey of learning and discovery together. xo