Mama's Bed

As I waited for Sophie to come home from China, I read so much information on how important it is to establish "attachment" with your adopted child.  There are books and websites filled with ideas on how to accomplish this.  At the top of the experts list is co-sleeping with your newly adopted baby.  People have very strong opinions on whether or not parents should sleep with their kids.  I personally don't care what others think.  Madison slept with us when he was a baby and I would have been perfectly happy for Sophie to have done the same in fact I was looking forward to it.  The only problem... she was a "thrasher".  I would put her in bed with us and as she began to fall asleep and throughout the night she would flail herself all around the bed and I mean flail.  She would end up upside down, kicking us as she went.  She tossed, she turned, she flung herself all night.  She just couldn't handle the closeness of sleeping with another person.  She was used to being by herself in her crib and that is the only way she could sleep soundly.

Fast forward two plus years........

We are now going through our sleeping in mamas bed phase.  Every night she begs and pleads to sleep with us, "can I sleep in mamas bed..please...please?"  She can lay a pretty good guilt trip on us too saying things like, " but I want someone to sleep with too, I get lonely all by myself.   What if I get cold, have a bad dream or hear a noise?  You don't want me to be scared do you?" 

 The good thing is she has gone from thrasher baby to the cuddliest little toddler ever!  She sleeps perfectly still except when she reaches over, pats my arm and tells me she loves me.  She is a great co-sleeper now but unfortunatly she's bigger.  There isn't enough room for all three of us. On a special occasion (or if it storms, she hates storms) she gets to sleep in mamas bed.  The other day when I was off work she and I snuggled up and took a nice nap together.  I couldn't help but grab my iphone and snap a few photos of that sweet face.  There is just something about the face of a sleeping child.  So beautiful.  So peaceful.  I want to remember this time forever!