Sleep Time Means You Sleep

We put the girls to bed tonight and then came back downstairs like usual. I was doing some work in the kitchen, where the monitor was on. I kept hearing a small tapping noise. Not disruptive or alarming. Just very quiet. I poked my head upstairs to see if they had gotten out of bed and turned the light on, as sometimes happens. Darkness. I went about my work for about a half hour more, with this tapping every so softly in the background. Finally, I decided to investigate further. I went into their room, only to find both of them silhouetted by the nightlight, stacking a pyramid of blocks on the top floor of their doll house. Riley immediately said, "I'm tired," as if to convince me that she was out of bed playing against her will and all she really wanted to do was sleep. I helped them quickly climb back under the covers and gave them their hundredth kiss for the night.

As I walked downstars, I chuckled at the thought of finding them some morning sprawled on the floor next to their blocks, too tired to play any more and too tired to climb into bed.

And then I thought, we're making progress. At least this time they were polite enough to leave the light off, so as not to wake Sammy.