Since the beginning of the new year a few of Kamalani’s classmates have had birthdays. Now, she can’t wait until it’s her birthday. She’s already planning who she’ll be inviting to her party which somewhat puts pressure on me to plan a party for her. She tells everyone that she’ll soon be 6 years old, then I chime in with, “so when are you going to start sleeping in your own room?” She said she’d start when she turns 6. She said she’d start sleeping in her own bed last year too. She lied.
When it was our night to have her again, she woke us up the next morning and told us that we were squishing her. Then she complained that we were trying to kill her and that she almost died. I told her she should start sleeping on her own bed. She said no way.
Later that day, I took my brother shopping at Ace Hardware because they had a dollar sale going on. We were in the lightbulb section and Kamalani spotted some really pretty nightlights. She asked if I’d buy one for her but then I replied that she didn’t need one since she still slept in our bed between us. Then she said, “Grams, if you buy me that shell nightlight, I promise I’ll sleep in my own room.” Part of me warned myself that she lies but $10.00 later, we were the new owners of a shell nightlight.
After her bath and dinner, we read a few books then I told her to go brush her teeth and give us kisses goodnight because she has to go to bed in her own room on her own bed. She was excited to use her nightlight so she did as she was told (shocking!). She went to her room and switched on her nightlight, then she got under her blanket and a few minutes later, she was snoring. I thought for sure she’d wake up in a few hours when she feels for a body in her sleep then realize she’s on her own. Well, she eventually did wake up two hours later and came to my bedroom, but I told her she needed to go back to her room and she did without a fuss. The next morning she woke up bright and early and climbed into our bed to “wake us up”.
She slept in her room again the next night. If I had known all it was going to take was a shell nightlight to get her to sleep in her own bed, I’d have bought it ages ago. I guess when you’re turning 6 it means that you’re grown up.