Grandma's Feather Bed?

First of all, let me say that I know that there are many parents out there who will think I am simply awful. There are times that I think I want to make a change, but it is so much easier and more fun to just leave things as they are. It all started innocently enough. When we first got to Ft. Polk, we were in for quite a culture shock. I call it the "husband drought and flood." You see them a lot: home early in the afternoons, 3 day weekends, and even 4 day weekends. They drive you nuts at first, and as soon as you are used to having them around. . . here comes the drought. They are gone for weeks. If they come home at all, it is late at night, and then they leave crazy early. So with NO discernible schedule for David, we sort of decided to roll with it. If we got the kids to bed early, David inevitably would wake them up when he tried to sneak in. Or he would come in as I was trying to get them to bed, and then they were "all riled up" causing us all painful frustration. So we got into the habit of going with David's flow.

What I am getting at is that the kids go to sleep in our bed almost every night. When David is here, I always move them to their beds. They usually stay once I move them, but many times, I fall asleep before I have a chance to move them. When David is gone, I almost always fall asleep before they do. And I cannot blame it all on David's crazy schedule. I always enjoyed them sleeping with us on occasion. What's better than waking up on a Saturday and all watching cartoons in bed together!? In hotels, we all love to pile in together in the king size bed with all the pillows. And with Dunken and Stewart in the mix, we do in fact remind me of the John Denver song Grandma's Feather Bed. ("it'd hold 8 kids and 2 hound dogs and a piggy we stole from the shed/ we didn't get much sleep but we had a lot of fun in Grandma's Feather Bed")

So even though I know that many people would feel that this is a bad idea, it works for us. I also read in my People Magazine that Will and Jada Pinkett Smith's kids fall asleep in their beds every night. Then Will carries them to their beds. This was all the justification that I needed to allow me to keep up this practice without guilt. If it is good enough for Will and Jada, it is good enough for us. Plus, I love snuggling with them and them snuggling with each other! Even David who tries to be tough on the subject melts if one of them wants to lay with him as they fall asleep. Maybe in the new house we will all sleep in our own beds, but for now, we are happy!

From very early on, they have always liked to be warm and cozy together.

They never fight and are always peaceful and precious and sweet when they are all tucked in together.

I could watch them sleep all night long. And it sure is easier if they are both in the same bed. . .

***Not on the same subject, but I wanted to share this as well.

People came to look at the house very early Monday morning. (yay!) So we just stayed in our jommies until they were gone. So before we ran errands, I had to shower. While I was showering, Jessa decided to dress herself and Spencer. For some reason, Jessa always chooses her socks and shoes to really express herself. She chooses things that do not match in color or style. So I always pray that people who see us realize that she is asserting her independence through her feet. Anyway, when I got out of the shower, she was dressed and finishing up dressing her patient and cooperative brother where foot expression was also present. Check out the photo and notice the Mr. GQ pose that Spencer has going on:

And yes, they sported these looks all over town. . . VIVA LA FEET!