I’m trying something new with my kids’ nap-times. We’re
transitioning. They have been in their own cribs since they were 3 months old.
Now they are 17 months, and as our family is beginning to get ready to move, I
have placed their mattresses on the floor. We are trying something new. We
thought we would see how it would work to let them roam free in their room, and
crash on their mattresses when they find themselves sleepy. I don’t think it’s
working.
I heard giggles 5 minutes ago. 10 minutes ago, one of them
was banging on the door trying to get out. Thankfully, they haven’t figured out
door handles. 20 minutes ago, one was crying. 30 minutes ago, I heard one of
them messing round with a cord and realized that I had forgotten to put outlet
covers on. I ran in to fix the problem. So much for nap-time.
And now? Right now, they are knocking on the door. At this
point, I am certain of only one thing pertaining to this experiment.
They are not sleeping. It’s not working.
But some things take time don’t they? Transitions take time
to get used to. So maybe we just need to give it more time.
If we gave up on transitions as soon as things didn’t work
out, we wouldn’t be in a good place. We’d be stuck. Never moving on, only
scared of the future, scared of failing. We’d stay where we are.
But then we don’t grow. We don’t learn how to branch out of
our comfort zone. So maybe we are used to staying in our crib. It’s safe in our
crib. We know our crib and we know the way of life in our crib. We don’t have
to learn anything new here. After a while, we know that it’s time to sleep, and
it’s easy because we know what to expect. Sometimes we need to step out and
transition anyway, even if we are comfortable where we are.
Outside of our crib is more exciting. Mattresses on the
floor? Why would we sleep? So much to play with, so much to see. But now it’s
time to sleep. It’s scary in a new place. We can see our crib, but we can’t
climb inside and snuggle up. We can’t just crawl into our safe place and sleep.
No, we need to find a new way to sleep. A new rhythm. When there is so much to
do and so much to see, this is hard. We want the old safety. But it is gone. We
must move on. We need to grow up. It’s time.
As we are packing up the life we have known for three years,
we are starting a year-long transition. We’re moving, and moving, and moving
again. We’ll find a comfortable way to sleep, a comfortable way to be. Then we’ll
transition again, from toddler beds, then into bigger beds.
Each time we move, each time we transition, we’ll be finding
a new normal. We might be restless. It’s okay. We might be able to sleep the
first time around. It’s okay. We might not be able to sleep the first time. It’s
okay. We might never be fully settled into our new beds, our new place. It’s
okay.
Transitions are hard. Sometimes they may seem fruitless. But
we’ll make it through. We’ll be in our big kid beds soon. We’ll be able to
rest, knowing that the crazy transition years have ended. Then we’ll have a new
normal. When we get to the other side, we’ll be grown. Maybe not in the way we
expect, but we’ll grow even in a small way.
Change is hard. Saying goodbye to what we are used to, the
people we are used to, is hard. But through change, comes growth. A type of
growth that may not happen any other way. Then one day, we can look back and
see how far we’ve come. So, here’s to growing this next year: as we meet more
friends, as we discover new things and new places, as we learn more, as we grow
closer to Jesus who is one of the few constants in our life, as we transition
to our big kid beds.
2 Corinthians 4:16-18: Therefore, we do not lose heart. Though
outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.
For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that
far outweighs them all. So, we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is
unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
