Storytime

Ever since I was pregnant with Lia and got too big to do all the things with Ian I used to do, it's been up to Jeff to get Ian to bed. And since Lia's been nursing, I haven't really resumed the bedtime story routine with Ian until recently. On occasion I manage to get her to bed first and then go in with Ian. He tells me, "Tonight I'm gonna read with Daddy and tomorrow I will read wit' you, OK, Mommy? And then tomorrow, will be Daddy's turn and then tomorrow will be Mommy's turn, OK?" Last night Jeff had to go pick up Timmi and I thought I had Lia down, but of course, she popped her head up as soon as I put her in her crib, which is very unusual for her. She likes to hang onto the crib bars, so she looks like she's been incarcerated and is itching to get free. Since she was being quiet, I left her there and went over to Ian's room to read with him. He's really into Dora and wants to read Dora every night (thanks to Julian and Claire for all the Dora and Diego books!). So we read the first one (Dora Goes to School) and one of the Spanish phrases was el autobus. After I read the passage, Ian quietly said, "Mommy? Your Spanish is not very good." Ouch. Oh, yeah, Mr. Smartypants? (Apparently, he also corrects Jeff's Chinese pronunciation.)

While we were reading that first book, I heard Lia start to cry. I asked Ian what we should do. "Don't go get her, Mommy." So we finished the story first and then I told him I had to go get her because she was crying harder now. He said that he thought she was afraid of the dark. So I got her and brought her back to read the second book with us. She was all smiles and seemed very excited to be doing something out of her routine. She lay quietly between me and Ian while we read the second book, only occasionally trying to grab the book. She would turn towards me every few minutes and stare at me, then smile. Ian tried giving her hugs and kisses. I had to prevent him from loving her too much and smothering her. When we finished the book, Ian asked, "Can Lia sleep with me, Mommy?" I told him that she was too little, but that both Lia and I would keep him company for a little while. He was very happy about that. He's always asking me or Jeff to stay "a little longer" after we finish reading. (The other night he was such a stinker. Normally, he sucks down his milk in seconds, but because I told him I would stay with him until he finished his milk, he took FOREVER to drink it.)