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Emotions at Bedtime

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Oh my goodness. I think I have a little Anne Shirley on my hands.

Lucy has been very happy to skip naps lately. Esther goes down and Lucy continues to play cheerfully (for the most part) with the boys. Today we colored, played with pattern blocks, and read Pippi Longstocking together. But tonight I think she was too tired to know that sleep would solve all her problems. Instead she lay in bed thinking of reasons to cry.

First she was scared. So she trotted into my room, we prayed, and she trotted back. But soon the emotions escalated.

"I don't like this house! I want to be at our old house! I want to be close to Spicer Brothers!"

"I'm really hungry! I want waffles for breakfast!"

"I don't want a baby sister!"

And when I'd try to talk to her and calm her down she would pull the covers over her head.

Finally she was out of control and I had to use the business end of a wooden spoon to get a little sense into her. Then we sat and rocked while she sniffed and hiccuped. When I asked her if she was ready to get back in bed, she whimpered, "Not at all."

She's still and quiet now, dreaming of who knows what. And I am left to wonder about the next fifteen years. I love my girl--I love her flair, I love her spirit. I'm excited to see the woman of valor she will become. But I'm a bit scared of the knowledge that I'm one of the foundational influences that will shape her character. I think I'll go read some Anne of Green Gables and some Sense and Sensibility. And maybe pray a little. Or a lot.

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