The Invisible Umbilical Cord

Sometimes I think that someone forgot to cut the umbilical cord that connected Jaxon to me. Jason assures me that he did, indeed, cut it. However, even he has to admit that there is still something that connects Jaxon to me. It's almost like some sort of sixth sense that Jaxon has. It allows him to know when I'm about to eat or go to sleep so he can react appropriately. 


Jaxon has a rather erratic sleeping schedule, so knowing when he is going to wake up is always a guess anyway. I can usually count on a morning nap around 10:30-11. That morning nap may be 40 minutes or 2 1/2 hours. It typically ends when I sit down to lunch. Before I can even take a bite, I hear him cry out. He also takes an afternoon nap. The length of the afternoon nap depends on how long the morning nap was and what time he lays down for the afternoon nap. The afternoon nap will usually end if I try to take a nap. Or if I say anything like "I'm going to try to do <insert activity here> while Jaxon is asleep." It doesn't matter if I'm going to clean toilets or eat ice cream - he'll wake up for it.

I'm awake!

At night, he goes to sleep anywhere between 8:30-10. Here again, the length of time he sleeps is very much determined by what I do. If I haven't had supper, and lay him down at 8:30, then start to eat at 8:45, it doesn't matter how exhausted he is, he will wake up and want to share my food. 


He also wakes up when I go to bed. He will take 3 hour naps in his crib during the day. He will sleep for 4-5 hours in the crib in the evenings. But as soon as I go to bed, whether that's at 9:30 or 1:30, he wakes up. He cries out, wanting to come in the bed with me. I'm not making noise as I get ready for bed that tips him off- his room is on the opposite side of the house, down a long hallway away from our bedroom. So there's something else that alerts him. 


He can actually sleep through a lot - he has three older and louder siblings. He often sleeps in his pack and play in our bedroom while we watch movies, do laundry, shower, etc...all without stirring. I'll come to bed after a shower and he's still sound asleep. I read a few chapters in my book. Still asleep. Awesome. I think to myself, "I better go to sleep so I can get a couple of hours of sleep without him sucking on me." So I turn over and pull the covers up around me and start trying to go to sleep. If I'm really sleepy (most of the time) this happens quickly and right as sleep overtakes me, Jaxon wakes up. If I'm not as tired or my mind is racing and I'm having trouble calming down, sleep takes longer to come. It doesn't matter if it takes me 5 minutes or 55 minutes to fall asleep, right as sleep comes, Jaxon wakes. 


That boy really loves me. Isn't it so sweet how he doesn't want me to have to do anything without him?