Before I join him at bed time, Anthony reads for 15 minutes independently. This is part of his Second Grade weekly homework grade and it works out well to have him do it at bed time.
Once he's done with that, I will go lay with him and talk to him about his day. We usually talk about his favorite and least favorite parts of the day, what made that day special, and what he was most thankful for. Sometimes this doesn't work out - he doesn't always want to talk and I don't push it. I've usually found out all of this information already, but I like to tell him about my day, too, and so this comes together in a last "what are we thankful for" kind of moment.
Then we have story time; this is the newest addition to our evening line-up. It's only been in the past few months that both boys have asked for a night time story made up by me. This isn't too hard; all I have to do is make sure that Star Wars plays a prominent role, and that Anthony is a Jedi Knight who saves the galaxy. Coming up with an original plot is sometimes challenging.
After that, I sing his first song. It's one my mom sang to me, and it's one of Anthony's favorites.
Tell me why the stars do shine,
Tell me why the ivy twines,
Tell me why the sky is blue,
And I will tell you just why I love you.
Because God made the stars to shine,
And God made the ivy twine,
And God made the sky so blue,
And God made you, and that's why I love you.
After that, Anthony says his prayers. Since the day of his birth, we (I) have said,
I pray thee, Lord, my soul to keep.
May angels guide me through the night,
And wake me with the morning light.
May God bless Anthony, Mommy and Daddy, Benjamin,
Maw Maw and Paw Paw,
Mimi, Kri Kri, and Uncle Mike,
Nana and Grandpa,
Parrain and Uncle Matt,
and all of our family and friends, Amen.
Then it's on to another song that my mom sang to me (different name, of course), and that I have sung to Anthony almost every night since he was born.
Anthony, Anthony, Mommy loves you.
Anthony, Anthony, Daddy loves you.
Anthony, Anthony, Benjamin loves you.
Yes, we do. Boo boo.
Anthony, Anthony, Maw Maw loves you.
Anthony, Anthony, Paw Paw loves you.
Anthony, Anthony, they both love you.
Yes, they do. Boo boo.
Anthony, Anthony, Kri Kri loves you.
Anthony, Anthony, Mimi loves you.
Anthony, Anthony, Uncle Mike loves you.
Yes, they do. Boo boo.
Anthony, Anthony, Nana loves you.
Anthony, Anthony, Grandpa loves you.
Anthony, Anthony, they both love you.
Yes, they do. Boo boo.
Anthony, Anthony, Uncle Matt loves you.
Anthony, Anthony, Parrain loves you.
Anthony, Anthony, they both love you.
Yes, they do. Boo boo.
Anthony, Anthony, we all love you.
Anthony, Anthony, we all love you.
Anthony, Anthony, we all love you.
Yes, we do. Boo boo.
And one last song before good night kisses and hugs.
You are my sunshine,
My only sunshine.
You make me happy
When skies are gray.
You'll never know, dear,
How much I love you.
Please don't take
My sunshine away.
This time with Anthony is priceless to me. I don't see an end in sight with this yet, but I'm afraid that day is coming. He will be eight soon. How much longer will it be OK for Mama to snuggle and sing to him? I'll hang on to this as long as I can.
Stay tuned for Benjamin's Bed Time Routine!
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