He came to my bed again last night.
Reluctantly, I lifted the blanket and let him in, a little irritated that he was back AGAIN.
It’s the third night this week and he’s nine-years-old for goodness sake.
Then he wrapped his arm across my body and laid his small face on my chest.
And I quickly remembered…. I remembered that very, very soon he will never come to my bed again.
Not just that he will come lay with me less, but that he stop coming to lay with me altogether.
He already needs me far less than he used to. He has already changed so much from my the baby who only wanted mama.
Which is good, because that’s what he’s supposed to do. But my gosh, it happens so fast.
One day he won’t get scared at night. One day he won’t want me laying him. One day he won’t live here.
So I’ve decided I’m going to lay with them until I can’t anymore. I will keep lifting my blanket and keep pulling them into the warm bed next to me until they stop showing up.
Because I know for sure that they will stop showing up.
And I know for sure when that happens I’ll be sad and I will regret not taking every single opportunity to snuggle those little people.
So come on to my bed, little babies. I’ll save you a place as long as you want it.
♥
Baby photo created by freepic.diller – www.freepik.com
Liz is a just a mom trying to keep it real about how little she sleeps, how often she gets puked on and how much she loves them. You can find her here every day writing about real-mom moments.
Love this. People who won’t let their babies in their bed are missing out imo. Time flys and before you know it, they are teens. Agree with everything.
(You May want to rewrite the second sentence in the ninth paragraph.)
that was beautiful……..
This touched every part in my mama heart. We were sleep training our 2 y/o out of our bed and every single night she’d end back cuddled up with me. I always moved her back to her toddler bed after her dad got home for awhile – she passed away April 2018 2 months before her third birthday. Part of me hopes she would of cuddled us until age 9. I often wonder how independent she would be . As laying here I’m sick with the flu now bawling my eyes out, this story really just made me smile & think of my special girl. Thank you for that. I hope you enjoy all the snuggles- fun fact: my brother is 21 and still cuddled with our mom. 🥰 ❤️
I am so sorry for your loss. I can’t evan imagine the pain. She s a little angel in heaven though!
My 11, almost now 12 year old boy snuggles every night. We read together, then I sing a few songs. Sometimes he’s talkative, sometimes go right to sleep. It is precious cuddle time as he gets close to being a teen who won’t want Mom anymore!
The correct verb for is “lie.”
“I will lie with my kids. . . .”
“Lay” is the past tense of “lie.”
“Lay” is the present tense when used with a direct object:
“I lay my baby down.”
Embarrassing to see this English usage mistake brayed in a huge headline!
My daughter slept with me until she was 20. Not because she had to, she had her own bedroom. But as a single working mom bed time was OUR TIME. To talk about our day, her plans and dreams, all that teenage angst.
I got married when she was 20 and OUR TIME ceased.
Now Im 70 and I love knowing that her 16yr old and her 23yr old boys continue to sometimes crawl in bed with not only their mom but with dad too.
It brings about a neverending bond and closeness that I feel is lacking in some of todays families.
Shame on you for not seeming the beauty in this post!
I agree with your post as I have a 22 son and 18 year old daughter and thought I was done having kids. I even forgot how quickly they grew up and fast forward to now I have a 5 year old baby boy who still wants to come into our bed in the wee hours of the morning and you know what “I let him”. Time passes so quickly and he really won’t need or want to snuggle with me as often. Hence I let him snuggle, talk and play with me. I enjoyed my older two and my Nate will always be my baby..
The last time I spent the night in bed with one of my kids she was 18, leaving for university soon and in turmoil. I was so glad that she wanted to talk to me about it and even happier that I was able to comfort her.It wouldn’t have happened if hadn’t established a relationship that said that even in the middle of the night I was available.
Lie not lay
I let my children come into our bed. It’s a safe space. My 11 yr old son, who is now taller than me, takes Dad’s spot sometimes. And we talk about his life and anything he wants. One of our 6 yr old twins still comes in once in a while and crawls between us. He hooks his elbow around my neck and snuggles in. If I move, he tightens his grip. It’s nice to know that underneath the 6 yr old tantrums, he loves me in his sleep.
I always talked to my mom in her bed. I spent the 2 days before she passed in her bed laughing and talking and just being. I cherish those memories of lying there side-by-side laughing.
I want to keep the feeling of my boys costing up to me forever. And I hope that they will cherish it too.
Thank you for writing such a beautiful piece.
This is so true! Mine are twelve and fourteen and opportunities to cuddle are few and far between now. I miss those days and the young boys they once were, when their lives orbited around mine. It goes far too fast, and you never know when the last time will be for so many of those little moments. Now I just absorb every one and write it on my heart to remember when they’re gone with families and lives of their own. Beautiful article. It resonated with me in so many ways!
Being a dad I have different views. Raising or first 5 i was more concerned with making a living considering we were a single income family. My health took me out of the rough working life of an oil worker. A year and a half ago my wife was presented with the opportunity to care for a baby. The mother never made any attempt to rehab. Now, being home i have seen so much stuff that i never saw with the other children and it literally makes me tear up. So, like this article, i too offer mt cuddles anytime.
Thank you for this! I love snuggles and holding onto my boys. In the blink of an eye they are grown…treasure these little moments!
My 4th and last child is almost 3. She comes in around 4am most mornings wanting a snuggle. I’m happy to oblige, but eventually take her back to bed. I love the snuggles and will miss them just as I miss my first 3. They still love hugs though, even the 13 year old boy. You want a teenager who loves you? Give him lots of snuggles as a toddler and speak respectfully to him as he grows. Yes, he gets mad when he gets disciplined for his actions, but we talk it out and always end in a hug.
I love to share articles like this one but when they include so many grammatical errors I just can’t.
Mine are 9 & 11 and I still welcome them to lay with me. 🥰🥰
It’s an amazing blog post, and it is really lovely as well.