The bedtime routine with my little guy often turns into a power struggle. That little one doesn’t know how lucky he is to get so much uninterrupted sleep! He also doesn’t realize that the full night of sleep he gets results in more smiles and happy moments the next day–for both of us. 

 

Last night was particularly challenging. On my guy’s third trip to the bathroom (within ten minutes), I was helping him pull up his pajama bottoms when he put his hand on my shoulder and said, "One day I will be a grown up and then I will stay in bed all night long." Sometimes my guy knows exactly what to say to calm my frazzled nerves. 

 

His little words reminded me that these moments are fleeting. As hard as bedtimes can be, they are only a blink of the eye in the grand scheme of life. One day he will be a grown up. He will stay in bed all night long, he will brush his teeth without a fuss and he won’t need me to remind him to eat his chicken. But he also won’t ask to snuggle me for just five more minutes or tell me he misses me when he is at school. I won’t get to applaud him for jumping over a crack in the sidewalk, kiss him goodbye in front of his friends or make his day by handing him two Tic-Tacs.