I realized something the other day as a 'light-bulb going off in your head' sort of revelation, which by the way is totally weird because if my head started to glow like a light-bulb had litterally turned on I would be freaking out. Seriously, who came up with that phrase because I'm pretty certain it wouldn't be a "Viola" moment as much as an "oh my God what is WRONG with me, am I going to blow up" sort of moment.

Jack has always has a hard time waking up after naptime. Unlike his sister Sophia who (when she takes a nap) will dance out of her room like a fairy and proclaim to anyone who cares that she had a great nap. Then, she usually asks for a drink of water and tells me either of her lollypop dreams or about how her babies were good for their nap. Within minutes, she is outside playing with a spring to her step. Jack wakes up grumpy and has been known to break 30 minutes with crying and grumbling.

Usually when he wakes up, I am in the midst of dinner preparations, going to pick up Cecelia, or finishing up a final chore before the busiest time of the day. Consequently, I'm often not necessarily available to him.

Then, in the midst of my sickness, I realized that he just needed one moment. I know, I should have seen this sooner, but I didn't... and I'm just happy that I finally figured it out. When I was sick, I was not rushing around the house, cooking or doing any of the normally busy activities in this time-frame. For the most part, the comfy Ikea chair was placed next to the fireplace and a book was in my hands with a warm blanket to warm my propped up legs. Jack would come up the stairs with his signiture frown and he would come over to me and crawl onto my lap. Then, to my delight grumpkins left and my happy little boy returned.

So, I've been trying this technique over the last month. When he wakes up, I immedately sit down and hold him. Yesterday, I was in the midst of dishing up chili for the family (he had fallen asleep for his nap fairly late). I heard him coming up the stairs and I finished handing out the bowls. Of course, the chorus of requests continued, but I told them all that I needed just a moment. I grabbed the now crying Jack who was holding onto my legs and we sat on the couch. As I kissed his head, he stopped crying immediately. Then, he said: "mom, I'm hungry" and jumped off my lap. It was only about one minute that I held him, but it was sufficient to ensure that he was happy. Soon, he was happily eating his chili at the table with the rest of the kids.

Each child is different and has different needs, Jack most-certainly needs one moment of my attention right after naptime.