Baby-palooza

Tonight we had a family movie party. All of us in jammies watching a movie, eating pumpkin muffins, and staying up past(the kids') bedtime. Hey, don't judge me, it's Friday! Daughter was being such a sweet sister, and Son was being so patient. She insisted on sitting on his lap again and again...but then again, she was sharing her Carebears, so he didn't mind.

Then Daughter decided that she wouldn't rest until the entire couch was filled up with dolls. Believe it or not, she still has some left in her room at this point!
She has been struggling with going to bed peacefully in the last couple weeks. Before that, we'd tuck her in and not hear a peep. But she started really fighting it lately. It has been torture for my mommy ears to hear her yelling things like "Mom...Mom...Ow, Ow" and "Water...Water." So tough. But I eventually figured out that she was just saying anything she thought would get me to come into the room and pick her up. Once I figured that out, I had to steel myself not to get up, no matter what she said. If I picked her up, eventually I'd have to put her down again, and you cannot imagine the terrible screams I would hear then. I shudder to even remember.
So tonight, I told her it was time to go to sleep and she immediately began shaking her head no. I told her she could pick out one of her babies to go to bed with her. She had been holding onto the two in the picture above for a while and could not decide between them. So I told her she could bring them both, but only if she did not cry and went to bed happy. I then gave each doll a mini-lecture about how they had to go to bed quietly with no crying, too. Daddy and I kissed the three of them goodnight and tucked them in. And I didn't hear a peep.