Don't Give a Toddler Tea

Sounds like a good name for a book, huh? The full book title could be, "Don't Give a Toddler Tea and Other Lessons I've Learned." (Before I tell the story, these pictures don't have anything to do with the story, I just get in trouble if I blog without Jack pictures.)

Jack loves to "nrink Mommy wa-er" or "nrink Momo Jo dee". Every once in awhile we'll let him have a few sips of our tea or Dr. Pepper or whatever we're drinking. If I recall correctly, I believe there's a certain Aunt out there (Lissa) who let Jack "nrink Witta dabby." None of these random drinks had much effect on Jack except for the short burst of craziness. Well we get to do things we don't normally do at our grandparents, or our great-grandparents so one night for supper I filled Jack's sippy cup with tea.

Things went well and Jack really wasn't any more hyper than normal. After dinner we played outside, took a bath and began the wind down for the night. Now, this was the night that everyone was in the mood to play hand and foot and we were all ready to go. Kelly was getting Abbott down and things were looking good for my team to win yet another game. :) You can ask anyone that has been around Jack at bedtime and they will tell you that he goes to bed with no problems. WELL, this night at 8:00 I say, "Jack it's time to go night night" and he just breaks down. "No night night, no night night." I put him in bed and he proceeds to cry for 30 minutes...

and finally I go get him. He is awake as can be and we try to calm him down by reading books. We all take turns reading a book and calming down. And finally at 9:00 we try again. He again just cries and cries and I'm sure that any minute he will calm down and give in. NOPE. 9:30 rolls around and I again go get him. By this time, everyone else has given up on cards and gone to bed. Jack and I sat quietly in the dark and tried to go to sleep. Finally I convince Jack to come lay in bed with me and I get an enthusiastic, "OK!"

Fast forward 30 minutes to Jack and Mommy in bed... Mommy is pretending to be asleep and Jack is pretending to go to sleep. He lays his head down on the pillow and says, "night night, Mommy." I say, "night night Jack." I tell Jack that I need to potty and he can play with his cars in his bed. I put him in his bed and leave the room and he cries for a minute and then we hear silence. I sit in Poppa's recliner for a good 20 minutes until I finally got to get in my bed. It's 10:30.

Fast foward to 2:00 am, and I hear this crying voice say, "No Jack night night. Eee Momo Jo. Eee Nannie Poppa." He keeps crying so I pick him up and change his diaper and try to lay him back down and leave the room again. No luck. I try to lay him in bed with me. No luck. He says, "it Poppa chair." So, we go sit in Poppa's chair, in the dark and try not to wake up Popo and Momo Jo sleeping on the sofa bed. No luck. Momo Jo wakes up to use the bathroom and Jack cries to sit with her. After a few minutes of this, I ask him if he wants to go lay in Mommy's bed. Again, "OK". We spend the next 30 minutes exchanging different night time dialogue.

Jack: "Jack lay Jack's puyow"
Mommy: "ZZZZZZZ"
Jack (sitting up): "Jack eee nannie poppa."
Mommy: "ZZZZZZZ"
Jack (laying down): "night night Mommy."

Finally, at 3:30 he is asleep in my bed with me laying normal in the bed and Jack laying horizontal. Needless to say, I didn't get much sleep and neither did Popo or Momo Jo. We vowed never again to fill Jack's entire cup with tea. I think Popo said he had to be 17 before he could have tea again. Oh well, I'm sure it's not the last lesson I'll learn about raising kids.