Story Time

For those of you who know us well, you know that we have very specific bed time routines in our house.  It's funny because, they definitely change over the course of time.  But, for a good couple of months, we do nearly the exact same thing every night with each kid. 

Alex is currently in the "I want to procrastinate and do anything that I can to avoid actually having to lie down and go to sleep" routine, which happens to be the EXACT same routine Avery was in at his age.  This includes reading two books, rocking in the chair, pulling moo-moo cow 4 times (he has to pull it all 4 times - if I even attempt it - we have to start all over again), getting into bed, him saying, "mommy, mommy, mommy" in this really annoying "I'm just trying to procrastinate" voice and then asking for a sip of water and then me getting him the sip of water and then him asking if it is full and me saying no and him drinking it and then saying that his belly hurts and me saying that of course it does because he just swallowed a huge air bubble when drinking and that the only thing that will make it feel better is sleep and then him finally laying down, saying "good night!  have a good nap!  I'll see you in the morning when you wake up!  I love you!"  Seriously.  I do this exact same thing every night.  Like, exact same conversation, exact same everything. 

And, then?  I go into Avery's room.  Her routine is much easier.  By the time I get in there, Josh has already read books, so I just get to lay with her for a while and talk.  However, recently? She has thrown a bit of a kink in the routine.  She has asked me to tell her a story. Now, as you all know, I'm an accountant.  I'd like to think that I'm not your typical accountant in that generally I'm a bit more fun, entertaining, etc.  However, when it comes to creativity?  Not much there.  Or, at least not when it comes to actually having to make things up.  But, this is actually ok because Avery specifies whether she wants a story that actually happened or if she wants one that didn't happen.  9 times out of 10, she wants one that actually happened.

I'll be honest - while somewhat stressful having to think of stories, this has really been a great thing for both of us.  It has allowed me to go back in time and to remember all of the great memories that I have from growing up and it has also allowed her to hear about the things that I used to do when I was her age and to gain an understanding of my childhood, which I think is really cool.  And, not only that, but it gives me an opportunity to really try to teach some life lessons through some of the stories.  Some of the stories so far have included:

1.  Trips to Hawaii as a kid (and specifically, me singing Christmas Carols the entire way up Haleakala)

2.  The time that Mom and Dad surprised Lexi and I with a trip to Six Flags for the day and while there, I let go of Dad's hand and kept walking even though they stopped (don't worry, we found each other again) - this was clearly a great one to teach the "If you ever lose us in public, this is what you do" lesson.

3.  The first time I was ever asked to audition for a solo and how I was so excited.  But, then, Mrs. Zupan ended up asking Tara Hart to do the solo instead of me - Lesson here?  Things don't always work in your favor, but you need to keep your head up and support your friends and be happy for them even if it makes you a little sad.

4.  The times that Lexi and I used to fight and as a punishment, Mom made us hold hands for an hour - Lesson?  Don't fight with your brother because holding hands with him for an hour would really suck (ok - it was said in a nicer way).

5.  How I used to be in Brownies and that Grandma was the Brownie leader and we used to do things like go to hair salons and get our hair done as a troop and then go to dinner - Lesson?  Getting pampered can create a bond and teach lessons just as well as camping in the woods.  :)

6. How Auntie Sara and I first met - she was sitting all by herself in the lunch room at Wales Elementary in 1st grade and I asked her to sit with me to have lunch - Lesson?  Be nice and include everyone. 

And, then you have the made up stories - so far, we have only had a few of these, thank goodness.  We have had an ant and a bee who were friends at school and who invited each other over so that the other could get a sense of the chores that they have to do every day and then the magic dragon who came and saved a little girl and her family on a cruise ship that ran out of gas (yes, this was clearly taken from some current events - I can only be SO creative here). 

And, what's really cool is that she follows me and either makes up a story of her own or just tells me about her day. 

I have to say - this current routine may be my favorite so far  - I'm hoping it lasts for, oh, I don't know, 30 more years...