2.5 year olds are exhausting...

especially at midnight through to 3am.

I realised today its been awhile since I blogged.  And since I only ever blogged once, that means I am officially a pretty bad blogger.  Turns out its more difficult than even I anticipated to find time to write.  Anyway.  

Todays topic...soul destroying two year olds.

My four year old never did this to me.  I'm certain of it.  Granted my four year old, at two, was in a bedroom with a very high door handle that she could not reach (think 60s style) so she couldnt get out of her room even if she wanted to.  She slept all night.  In her bed.  And happily played in her room until I got her up in the morning, if she woke before I came in.  Sometimes (shock horror) she would even SLEEP IN.

My two year old on the other hand...well.  Husband and I refer to Lucy as the unique child.  It may be a common trait in September 2009 babies, because a few friends certainly seem to be sharing a house with similar entities to my middle child - who spends a large proportion of the day jumping around the house with a bucket on her head, hiding teaspoons.  My eldest did not do this.  My eldest played nicely and quietly for much of the day, by herself.  She didnt hide cutlery.  She didnt put anything onto her head.  

My eldest however, was late to toilet train.  She has only recently moved from being in nappies at night.  Super proud of herself, and I was super happy - one less child in nappies, two to go.  However since the 4 year old and the 2 year old share a room, this has brought a lot of fun and games to the household.  Games which are solely my domain to deal with since the husband would sleep through a train passing through the front bedroom if that was to happen.

Nights now go like this in our household.

6pm - 2 year old in bed.  Asleep.

7pm - 4 year old in bed.  Asleep.

10.30 - parents go to bed.

Midnight - mother wakes up hearing giggling and thumping through the house (we have floorboards).  Mother goes out to find 4 year old charging back into the bedroom to pretend she is asleep, and all is well, while the 2 year old stands in the carnage they have wreaked, giggling maniacally at me.  Put children back to bed.

12.10am - put children back to bed

12.30am - decide to sit in the loungeroom outside the childrens bedroom until they go to sleep.

1am - Put 2 year old back to bed.

1.15am - Put 2 year old back to bed and growl at 4 year old who decided it would be a great idea to jump on her bed.

2am - start to work out whether there is any point going back to bed myself or whether i should just stay up all night and watch tv

2.10am - put children back to bed

3am - children are asleep.  

6am - children are awake.  Grumpy.  Tired.  2 year old doesnt grasp concept of why mummy is angry.  4 year old blames it on 2 year old.  4 year old apparently was asleep the whole time and Lucy made the mess.  4 year old also apparently has memory problems of her Mother being present the night before.

What makes this even more entertaining is there is no rhyme or reason to it.  We had almost a full week where they both slept through.  Prior to that we had a week of wake ups.  

I think the children are trying to take the remnants of what is left of my sanity.

My sole consolation is that my almost 1 year old, bless him, goes to bed at 6pm and sleeps like a rock through til 6am.

Coffee.  I need coffee.