When I was little, my brothers and I developed a sing-song way of saying goodnight to our parents…
…as they left the room we would sing out ~
Goodnight, sleep tight, don’t let the bed bugs bite! Love you!
{And if it wasn’t said, we just couldn’t quite get to sleep}
Now with Dino Boy, our own bedtime sayings have developed…
…after a kiss and a squish hug {a great big bear hug}
we will say, good night, sweet dreams, love you
and as I walk from the room I always say see you in the morning
I hadn’t realised how important this simple message of seeing him the morning had become…
…until I had to travel early in the morning for work…
and so I didn’t say I would see him in the morning ~ because I wouldn’t
Instead I explained that I would be leaving early, before he woke up
and that I would see him in the evening…
but until I walked out saying I’ll see you tomorrow night it hadn’t registered
He sat up straight as a pole and said but mum you didn’t say you will see me in the morning
and he looked stricken
So going back to his bed I wrapped my arms around him
and again talked him through how the following day would flow
Soon after he fell asleep…
And when I got home the following day we enjoyed a wonderful squish hug
*smile*
{and yes, the photos in this post are rather unrelated!}
Warmly, Kelly
12 Comments
I remember the bed bugs saying from when I was little too! We also say “See you in the morning” around here, with the addition of “Kiss, catch, in my heart”. Said from the door as we leave the room.
It is amazing how they attach to what we say. I always say “See you in the morning” as well.
How lovely…it’s so important to them to have a special little ritual i think! We always sing twinkle twinkle and then a hug and see you in the morning…have been doing it since the girls were babies and i was surprised at their reactions the first time i tried to be quick and not sing!!!
I love those little rituals…
I once told my five year old that the number one rule in this house is ‘there’s always time for one more cuddle’… he took that totally to heart and now at bed time we read, we cuddle, I say goodnight and just as I am walking out the door he says ‘you forgot the number one rule!’ and I have to come back for just one more cuddle!
The photos are beautiful. I think it’s important to have a little special activity, verse or cuddle for each child. Miss Possum catches my kiss and puts it in her pocket and I catch hers and put it on my cheek. It’s a must in out house too and makes for a contended rest.
Oh my..that’s so funny. My daughter and I say the exact same things that you said as a child. If I don’t say part of it she gets very upset and calls me back into her room!
I love the clown suit! But yes, bedtime rituals are so important to kids. We have some unfortunate ones which we’re trying to gently break, and it’s proving to be one of the hardest things for our family to do….
I think the photos go wonderfully with this post! Your garden looks like such a magical and beautiful place, I love seeing photos of it. I sing a bedtime song to R and our little “thing” is that each night he interrupts me just after I begin and he whispers “You have to get it wrong”. I sing the song and say at the end “Did I get it right?” He always says “You got it wrong!” and then he’ll sing me two new lines for the end, something he makes up each night and then I have to sing those two lines back. “Ah, you got it right” he finally says. Silliness, but we love it.
I I have a strict bedtime ritual with dimples now and it helped him transition into his room on his own and helped him stay sleeping through the night.
Our thing is “love u forever, see you when the sun comes up” & he’ll always reply love you to the stars and around mummy :- D
Just popping back to let you know I’ve featured this post at The Sunday Parenting Party this week. Thanks for linking up.
Aw! I love these sweet little family traditions. We always say “Up the wooden hill to Blanket Fair!” at bedtime. Thanks for visiting Waldorf Wednesday– hope to see you back soon!
http://ourseasonsofjoy.com/waldorf-wednesday-link-up/waldorf-wednesday-20/
Hmm, Maybe we need to work on this. Bedtime has been a little troublesome lately. Thanks!