LATE NIGHT DATE NIGHT...................

3/24/2010
My husband and I have tried so very hard to do a regular date night, but it just doesn't seem to happen. Our Anniversary has pretty much been our "date" night for the past 5 years. It was never a problem before kids...there seemed to be plenty of time....and money. Now it seems that we either can't get a babysitter when we need one, or when we can schedule a babysitter then we can't afford it. Since when did babysitters start charging minimum wage? I made $1/hour in high school for babysitting, and truly it wasn't that long ago no matter what my brothers say! Jason and I have tried to do a date night swap with about 10 different couples, and after 5 years of trying to get this idea to work, and actually having it pan out a whopping 1 time....we've finally given up. So we have decided to do a late night weekend Date Night. We put the kids in bed at 7pm and start our night at home. Thanks to Redbox and a dark basement we have our own theater. Last Saturday after getting the boys ready for bed, reading them a book and tucking them in, we went to the movie room in the basement. I must admit that I have a history for not being much of a date after 9 pm. Once I'm all snuggled into the couch with warm blankets and a dark room, I'm out for the count. I'm sure this is the reason that theater seats are so blasted uncomfortable. I was a bit surprised that 15 minutes later I was still awake to hear the faint pitter-patter of little feet running around upstairs, then softly making their way down the stairs toward the basement. Jason of course comments on how I must have been a “bat” in another life because no normal human being could possibly have heard the footsteps over the surround sound! Sure enough, within a minute or so, I see golden curls peeking up from behind the couch, followed by big blues eyes and little white teeth. He had the biggest smile and was so proud of himself that he had found us! . “Hi dada, hi mamma.” He giggles and squeals and comes barreling around the couch. My first thought was how amazing is was that after he had spent the entire day with us, he still just wanted to be with mom and dad. He starts wiggling and kicking to climb up on the couch, smiling the whole time. Jason softly says to him, “Silas buddy, it’s bedtime. It's late. You know you're not supposed to crawl out of your crib. Come on, let's go back to bed. Say goodnight to mom.” Out comes the lip, then the quivering chin, then the tears, followed by a heartbreak sob. He’s hanging over dad’s shoulder with both arms outstretched for me crying “Mama, mama, me stay peas, me stay”. My heart was breaking for him. Here he was just trying to hang out with mom and dad and it seemed to him that they didn't want to hang out with him. I sit quietly because I can understand where Jason is coming from. It was Mom and Dad time, it was nearly 10 o'clock. So I said goodnight once again to my red-rimmed blue eyed boy. Ten minutes later, as Jason was comfortably seated next to me again, I asked him if Silas was still crying when he put him in his crib. He shook his head and told me that he rocked with him until he had stopped crying. I made the comment that all Silas wanted was to be with mom and dad. Jason agreed then pointed out how incredible it was that Silas made it all the way to the basement by himself, since the entire house was completely black. I thought about it for a minute, and he was right! We have plantation shutters on every window in the house. Each and every night before bed we close every shutter as well as the curtains. We don't have night lights anywhere in the house because I never wanted my children to learn to be afraid of the dark. Somehow, in the pitch black, this two year old climbed out of his crib, made it to his door and opened it, managed to find his way to the 2^nd story staircase, then walked down the 2 flights of stairs to the main level, then found his way to the entry door to the basement, opened it and again made his way down two more flights of stairs. The more I thought about this, the more I was truly amazed. What was remarkable to me was how he wasn't afraid during this walk into the darkness because he never cried out for help. He knew we were there somewhere. He knew he would find us. No matter how dark and scary it might have been, the end was all that mattered to him. I sat there for a minute contemplating the great lesson in this experience about the true, deep and meaningful relationship between parents and their children. I also freaked out a little over the thought that he could have been seriously hurt had he fallen down the stairs! Jason turned the movie back on but turned the volume down quite a bit. A few minutes later I again heard the familiar sound of tiny feet coming down the stairs but I didn't say anything to Jason. This time around I noticed how Silas was stepping more cautiously and slow, apparently trying to be as quiet as possible. Once he reached the bottom of the stairs he stood back and carefully peered around the corner instead of just running in to greet us. I sat watching him from the corner of my eye as he slowly snuck up behind the couch and hid behind the tree. I waited to see what he was going to do. Several minutes passed by and he just stood there, patiently. I finally nudged Jason and moved my head toward Silas. He turned and the moment he saw him standing there, his face softened. Jason said he just didn't have the heart to send him back to bed again, so he beckoned Silas to come and sit with us. The look on that sweet little boys face melted my heart! At that moment I was so thankful to have such a wonderful man as my husband! What a kind and understanding father he is. Silas ran over to us, climbed up on the couch and came to sit directly between us. He put one arm around me and the other around Jason. He sat there content and quiet for about 45 minutes until he fell asleep.We let him sleep peacefully between the two of us until the movie was over and Jason carried him to his bed. I'm so glad that he still loves us so much. I don't take this time with him for granted because I fear that the day will come when he will no longer want to sit on my lap, or spend time with me. Deep in my heart I pray that day will never come. I pray deep within my soul that we will always be best buddies. I hope he will always know how much we love him. I hope that he will always know that he will find peace, comfort and safety in our arms. I hope he will always know that no matter how dark, and difficult and hard his life may be, we will always be there for him, just as his Father in heaven will be.