It's Not Really A Cage

Once upon a time, there was a sweet little Prince. During the day he made his Mommy very happy. But during the night he would turn into a bit of a stinker. He wasn't one for sleeping and loved to climb out of his crib, over and over again. Much to his Mother, the queen's chagrin. This made the queen tired, and very grouchy.

Oh, if only it were a fairy tale. Unfortunately, it was very much a reality. My reality, and I was at the end of my rope. Matthew would climb out of his crib, and I would put him back in. Over and over, and over, all night long.

After trying different methods of breaking this exhausting habit, none of which worked. I remembered something I had seen back when my other children were babies. It's called a Crib Tent. And let's face it. It's basically a cage. I was so appalled when I first saw this thing I couldn't even believe it. I mean really? Who would seriously, in good conscience, use something like that? It's like a cage!! ... And the World's Worst Parenting Award goes to... I mean we are talking about a little human being here, not some kind of an animal.

Well, after a couple of more nights with no sleep. This "Crib Tent" started looking pretty good. Genius, even. And I thought to myself, "I have got to get me one of those!" Yeah, sleep deprivation can do a funny thing to a person. So, I drove over to Walmart ready to fork over whatever they were asking for this kiddie prison. And wouldn't you know it? They didn't have one. So began my mad hunt for a crib tent.

Only one store, miles and miles away carried it. I called my Mom and explained the situation. Sensing my desperation, she went on a wild goose chase for me and picked up this contraption that in the end saved my sanity. I've said it before, and I'll say it again. She's my hero.

At first Matthew thought it was great. The novelty I guess? But that night when he woke up and discovered he couldn't climb out of his crib... he wasn't happy. So, for the first few nights I would go in and lay on the floor by him until he fell back to sleep. I guess you could call it Mommy guilt.

I don't know what it is about this kid but he has like a sixth sense. Even if he was asleep he could sense when I would leave. So one night, as my hips were aching from lying on the hard floor. I came up with a plan. Yeah, another one of those desperate mother devious plans. I got some pillows and blankets and shaped them to make it look like I was laying there next to him. When really I was in my own wonderful, soft bed. Well, it worked. For a little while anyway.

But he's a smart kid and the next morning when I went to get him, he was angry. His little face said it all, "What do you take me for? A fool?" He was crying and pointing at the pile of blankets and pillows. He then shouted at me, "NO!! NOT MOMMY!!" I couldn't help but laugh. "Okay, you got me." Darn. A perfect plan, foiled again.

That day my sister Emily called and asked me how things were going. If any of us were getting any sleep yet? Exasperated, I said, "No. Hey, do you want a two year old? He comes with his own crib tent!" For some reason that hit a funny bone and we both burst out laughing.

I'm relieved to say that after several days, Matthew adjusted to that crib tent. And what I once thought was an atrocity turned out to be one of the greatest inventions of all time. It helped Macky figure out that night time was for staying in his crib and sleeping. We are all sleeping better now and we are much happier. What a difference a good night's sleep makes!