I'm just going to say it...

Henry fell asleep without his bi tonight... surprisingly. 

And sleep did not come without peril.  Basically, after he demanded his bi to a point of near hysteria, I was able to calm him down by singing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" over and over while rubbing his back.  (You should try singing that song 20 times in a row. It's hard not to get confused and wonder if you are starting the song over or if you're in the middle of it.  Henry caught me getting off track a few times and whimpered, "That's not how it goes.") Then, when he was almost asleep, I stepped away and said, "You need to try to sleep without your bi, and if it doesn't work, I will check on you.  But I cannot give you your bi unless you are very, very quiet.  OK?"  He very pitifully replied, "Yes, m'am."  Then, he fell asleep.

I shouldn't have said it...

Yep.  Henry woke up crying for his bi last night, and we eventually gave it to him.  I thought he would slip into sleep without it tonight, but he starting crying for it about 10 minutes after he was down for the night, so I gave it to him.  Sure, we're not really doing anything to enforce life without a pacifier, but Henry only used a pacifier for bedtime and naps at home for the last year and a half, so we're not too worried about it.  We'll get there one day in the near future.  Surely.

Dare I say it?

Do I verbalize it?  What if it's too early to know for sure?  Will I jinx it?  Oh, well.  Here goes...

Henry willingly went to sleep without his bi tonight!

Thank you, Anna, for sharing your big kid bed with Henry over the weekend.  No, she didn't manage to actually stay in it with him, but I think that the sheer anticipation of bunking in the same room with his cousins, along with total exhaustion, led to a pacifier free slumber for Friday and Saturday night.

Last night, Henry requested his bi, and we obliged.  Tonight, though, when Henry asked for it, I negotiated an agreement: He would try to sleep without it, and if he didn't fall asleep, I would bring it to him.  Amazingly, he agreed to the odd setup.  Even more amazingly, it worked, and he didn't make a peep!  Woo Hoo!

New 'Do

It's a summer short haircut, people!

Shaggy?  No.

Cute?  Yes!

Henry's liking his short cut, and I think that his eyes are happy to not have bangs in front of them.

I just wish that I knew how to make sure that the camera actually captures his striking blue eyes now that they're totally exposed.

10 Things We Love About You as Daddy

1) Taking your Daddy job seriously but managing to make us laugh.  A lot.  Every day. 
2) Luxurious hair you passed along to your son
3) Your patience with us both in the midst of tantrums
4) Excellent fashion sense throughout the week--ensuring Henry is well dressed for school
5) Being in the moment when it's time to play with the train track
6) Mad cooking skills and adequate kitchen cleaning skills
7) Never a doubt that you love us intensely
8) Your love of our birthdays
9) Noticing and teaching the little things like running your finger across the toothbrush
10) Loving Henry's Father's Day gift to you--a Knicks shirt for himself and chocolate dipped pretzels you shared with both of us

We love you, Daddy!

It's a bird! It's a plane!

It's Super Underwear Man!

 

Splashtastic!

Today's temperature was a stagnant 90 something that felt like a stagnant 100 something, so we were happy to indulge in an invitation to Discovery Island Water Park in Simpsonville.  We didn't take any pictures, but Henry, Daddy, and I joined our friend Darion and his beautiful daughter Alexis for a day full of different splashing mechanisms and a crowded but lazy river.  My eyes are still burning from the chlorine,  but here's the main thing... Henry went down a HUGE water slide with Daddy today.  He actually liked it!  However, his comments centered around the inner-tube's audacity to land in the pool, causing the water to splash him.  "It got me wet and made me so, so sad.  That wasn't nice!"  He almost agreed to go back down again, but funnel cakes were calling.  Next time!