Big Night… and Big Day for the Little Man

When Mommy B and I moved into our house, the bedroom across the hall from our master bedroom had been kind of designated as the “guest bedroom” – mostly because that’s what the previous owner had used it for and had left us some furniture in it to be used as such. However, for the last three years or so that room had become the nursery for both our babies. Before Alli was born, we had moved all the furniture (including a queen-size bed) down the hall to a previously unused bedroom and that room had become the guest bedroom. We painted, decorated and put together all the necessary baby furniture that you’d expect in a nursery in the “room across the hall.” Alli lived in that room from when she was two days old until she was just over a year old. Then Aiden lived in that room from when he was three days old… until yesterday.

That’s right, yesterday afternoon Mommy B and I pulled the ‘ol (and last) switcheroo – we moved Aiden’s furniture out and the guest furniture back in, then moved Aiden’s furniture down the hall across from his big sister. Now both children have their own “big kid” rooms! We did this for a couple reasons: 1) both rooms at that end of the hallway almost mirror each other – they are the same size and have the same walk-in closets, 2) they are both the same distance from the 2^nd bathroom, and 3) they are both further away from our bedroom. After spending the last two and a half years within whispering distance of both our infants, both Mommy and I agreed that a little distance would be in the best interest of all parties involved. OK, so I’m exaggerating on the closeness of the “room across the hall”, but the fact that we gave up on the whole baby monitor thing after about three days should serve as evidence enough that we were looking forward to getting both kids to the other end of the hallway.

And last night, my little man handled the change like a champ. He was probably tired from the weekend’s festivities, which means we could have put him down on a bed of nails and he would have been sawing logs within a couple minutes. Regardless, he didn’t make a sound all night and slept until about 6:15am! Much like his big sis, he took the whole thing in stride and didn’t seem too out of sorts when he woke up this morning in a “new” place. I’m hoping this trend continues and he grows into his new room much like his sister has grown into her room. After all, these are the rooms they’re going to have until we either move to a new house or they go off to college!

I have to admit; it was a little strange moving all his furniture out and taking the decorations off the walls yesterday. I thought back to the countless days and nights I spent in that room for various reasons – moving furniture out, cleaning, painting, constructing baby furniture, decorating, replacing the ceiling fan, troubleshooting why only that room didn’t have electricity, moving girl clothes out and moving boy clothes in, redecorating, and most of all, the number of hours sacrificed rocking a sad/sick/tired child back to sleep. I’m surprised there isn’t a circle of worn carpet from the incalculable laps Mommy B and I logged in that room with a baby on our shoulder. I’ve seen every hour of the day on the clock that sits on the nightstand next to the rocking chair. A handy tip to any soon-to-be parents out there: think long and hard about how you decorate the nursery, because the only people who will care about how it looks will be you, at 3:30am, when you’re sleep deprived beyond belief. Maybe you’ll think twice about that smiling clown doll you were contemplating putting on the dresser exactly eye-level and opposite the nursing chair. Just sayin’…

Today is also a big day for Aiden, as he starts his first official day in the toddler classroom at school. This means a flurry of changes for him – from spending lots of time outside (which might possibly be his all-time favorite thing) on the toddler playground, to sleeping on a cot during nap time instead of a crib! Over the last week or so, they’ve been bringing him down to this classroom so he could get used to the new surroundings. He already knows the teacher because she’s usually helping out in his “old” classroom in the mornings when I drop him off, so that’ll make things easier for him. They’ll also begin making more intricate artwork that he’ll get to bring home and show us at the end of each month. I remember this was about the time when Alli really started to blossom and expand her knowledge and vocabulary. Now, I understand that boys are different and learn at a different pace than girls do, but I can tell he’s a smart kid already – just by the way he annoys his big sister.

He’s being walking on his own for almost two months now and he’s so curious and loves to explore (especially outside). I know that being in the toddler class will just open up even more possibilities and opportunities for him since he’ll be able to put those walking skills to good use. I’m hoping the changes he’s gone through yesterday and today aren’t going to throw him for too much of a loop, but I know it’s all part of the growing process. Hopefully his newfound freedom in the new classroom will make him even happier and willing to learn, even if that means getting dirtier and some bumps and bruises along the way.