There is so much chatter around the topic of families who co-sleep. You can very easily find both negative and positive commentary. For me, back when my oldest was a baby, I was concerned about it. We rarely slept with our newborn unless it was a complete accident. I would wake up feeling guilty and scared that something could have happened to her. My mind would race frantically with all of the what-ifs as I placed her back in her bassinet.
When she got a little older, co-sleeping was the only way we could get her to fully sleep through the night. She must have been a year old the first time she crawled into our bed because of a scary dream or noise. After the initial okay, out of pure exhaustion, it became routine. She was always there. In fact, every time I uttered the word bedtime, without a pause, she would jump into our big comfy bed. My husband squished to one side, me in the middle, and our toddler taking up more than half of the bed.
Honestly, how do such little creatures take up so much space?
Before her second birthday we moved her to a “big girl” bed and with all of the excitement we could bring to the table we made it sound like the best thing ever. Like this milestone was the end all be all of her existence. She took to it and only once in a while would we wake to her curled up next to us. Now that she is ten, she is too independent and too invested in her own room. I’m sure every once in a while it crosses her mind but our bed has since been taken over by another sleeping monster. Her little brother.
When my youngest was born we again swore we would NEVER co-sleep. We started him out in his crib right off the bat and he did so well. Occasionally there was the accidental co-sleeping moments when I would fall asleep with him while he nursed but for the most part, he was an independent little guy.
Then he turned two and a shift happened.
Something inside him said he did not like sleeping alone so there he was. A little guy who slept like a giant bear.
Why we co-sleep..
This time we have not been so eager to remove him from our sides no matter how exhausted my husband and I wake in the mornings. We’ve discussed at length that two is enough for us and with that said comes so many firsts and lasts with our son. This will be the last time I co-sleep with my children. The last time they crawl into bed with mom because of scary noises. Or the thunderstorms that even startle me awake. This is the last time my children will be jabbing me with hands and feet and legs while we try to sleep through the night.
Something inside of me knows I will desperately miss this time with them when they are completely grown. So I am taking it all in. Every jab to the back, every exhausted morning, every chance I get to snuggle with my sleeping cubs.
