sleeping like a baby

Bedtime was too easy. An hour of tummy time followed by some singing of the Beatles greatest hits. I picked out Sam's jammies and broke out the lavender vanilla lotion for a quick baby massage and then scooped him up and popped in his soother. He was asleep within minutes. I cuddled a little extra because it was a long day and he was in that sweet spot where you really feel that mommyness. I only have a small window of opportunity with Sam though. If I put him down too early, he wakes up. If I hold him too long he gets too hot, and you guessed it, he wakes up. So, I creep upstairs with him and place him in his crib. Seamless.
So now I am on the couch. Listening for his movements on the monitor, waiting for his breathing to settle into a pace indicating a light coma has set in. It's been half an hour and he seems to be in a comfy kind of slumber. So, I let myself relax. I relax too soon, and the bedtime adventure continues.
Do I leave him to "cry it out" or "CIO" as its dubbed in the mommy forums. What did that other book say? Pick him up, balance on one foot, close your left eye and sing Brahms? Nurse him? Don't nurse him? I'll just ask Ben what he thinks I should do. Wait, that won't work. He's in Afghanistan.
I go up the stairs quietly and tip toe into his room. In a swift maneuver, real double-oh-seven style, I put Sam's soother in his mouth and electric slide back out his door. Smooth. He's asleep again.
I'd take real pride in my ability to settle this little man but I know what lies ahead. Awake at 3 o'clock to nurse, awake at 6 o'clock to nurse and then up for the day around 9. Wait! Stop the presses! That's right, he's awake again. Mission Impossible. Can you hear the theme music? I'm going back in...
It's 2216 (10:16pm) and my mission is complete for the time being. Ben, will you take the first watch for the night? Fack! I keep forgetting. This is a solo mission, my own tour of duty.
I'd better close this first blog post. I'm not going to bother editing. I'm tired. Grammatical and spelling errors are just going to have to be viewed as an endearing quirk of a tired mom. I've given up on watching Grey's. I never know when Sam will decide to wake up, so it's better that I get to sleep. I've decided that from now on when people ask me how I've slept I'm going to tell them "like a baby".