I am trying to be less negative...

It is sometimes hard for me to be positive. Being negative is a character trait I learned early and I am trying really hard these days to reverse it. It’s not easy, but I know the payoff will be enormous, not only for myself but for everyone around me. I practiced last night and the rewards were plenty.

Abby went to sleep at her usual 7:00 pm. A schedule and routine work great for her. We start with walking the dog, a few more minutes of playtime, a bath, some milk, teeth brushing and then down at 7:00pm. She had a cough before she went to sleep and I was hoping she wouldn’t wake up. I know as soon as I have those thoughts, I am tempting fate.

During the week, I don’t get to spend as much time with her as I’d like. I work full time and my job is pretty demanding. I enjoy what I do almost as much as I enjoy being a mom. Most days I feel the balance is there, but some days I’m really torn with spending more time with her. There are also days where it is really hard to leave her in the morning because we are having so much fun. She’s a pistol; she’s social, energetic, demanding, compassionate, emotional, sensitive and funny.

I went to bed at 10:00 pm and as soon I as got under the covers, Abby started stirring. She usually makes some noise around this time and easily goes back to sleep. Not last night. She started coughing yesterday, a very rough, scratchy cough and that’s what woke her up. She is also getting her first molars in, poor thing.

I let her cry for about 5 minutes hoping she would fall back asleep, no luck. I went in, armed with water and Tylenol. I picked her up, took her over to the chair and gave her some water and Tylenol and rocked her. Her head was heavy on my shoulder, her arms wrapped around me (as much as her little arms could), she was very relaxed and trusting. We rocked for just 10 minutes, that’s all it took. It was peaceful, she fell asleep on my shoulder, her breathing was heavy, and she was twitching. Instead of my typical response of being annoyed I wasn’t going to get as much sleep as I had hoped for, I was thankful for those 10 minutes, the best 10 minutes I had all day!