Night-Night, January 1

My favorite time of the day, I must admit, is bedtime. I love the routine of it. It is one of the few things every day that mostly go off without a hitch. Most likely because the boys are too tired to put up a fight, but I can imagine it is my superior parenting skill, right?

It begins when dinnertime ends...usually about 6:30 0r so. All I have to do is start the bathwater and the level of excitement in the house immediately triples. The boys rush to the bathroom, if they haven't followed me in already, only to be ushered right back out again as the tub fills.

Once the boys are undressed they run their cute butts to the bathroom door. I get them in the tub and proceed to play hair washer/toy retriever/life guard for the next 20 minutes. Liam usually plays an imaginary game or wants to sing songs. Connor waits until my attention is on something else for a millisecond and tries to stand up in the tub while I grab for him as images of his slipping and hitting that adorable yet devious little noggin of his run through my head. Once all the bubbles from the bubble bath have disappeared or there is enough water on the floor to take a bath outside of the tub, we pull the plug.

The boys are dressed for bed and have some milk while we watch Wheel of Fortune. I swear this is the highlight of Liam's day. Something about the combination of the spinning wheel, flashing lights, and LETTERS. Specifically the letter "I". Yeah, I don't get it either. He shakes like a jackhammer whenever a contestant buys one though. Once the show is over, we wait, and hope that numbers are on that evening. Nothing tops a night off like the Daily Lottery. Again, I think it's the spinning, flashing, and NUMBERS. Even Connor gets worked up over the numbers.

Quick trip to the bathroom for 'Tooth Time'. The boys each stand on their step-stool and we brush our teeth. Momma gets a shot at each mouth first, then the boys have at it. I have never known two kids more excited about a tooth brush. But hey if it ain't broke, don't fix it, right?

Then we're off to bed. Kisses for Daddy and up to the boys' room. First Connor is put in his crib. He proceeds to pull off his blanket and squirm up to the corner as soon as he's set down. Then it's time to tuck Liam in. Quite the ritual. First he makes himself comfortable on his pillow, then it's time to put on the comforter, then his soft blanket. Lately he's been asking for a few stuffed animals to sleep with. Unlike most kids who put them at the head of the bed or snuggle with them, Liam wants the animals on his head. They help keep the light out in morning he says.

Last thing before saying good night are the songs. It started with Daddy rocking Liam to sleep when he was a baby. Once Connor came along we took turns, but someone sings songs every night. We're not talking lullabies mind you. Current favorites include Dance, Dance, Dance by Steve Miller Band, almost anything in the John Lennon songbook, and Ripple by the Grateful Dead.

A quick goodnight and we're off. Momma and Daddy time. Gotta love bedtime.