Story Time: Cooper and the Big Boy Bed

Once upon a time there was a little boy named Cooper.  Cooper liked to give his mom and dad a run for their money.  It all started even before he was born.  He threatened to be born at 34 weeks, and then had decelerations during labour, sending his L&D nurse mother into a panic.  He came out screaming, but soon revealed a deafening (!) heart murmur.  When he was 3 months old he spent a few days in the hospital with RSV and bronchiolitis, and had a cough for a year after.  He had approximately 3 trillion ear infections, and always chose to have them at the most inopportune times (the day before vacation, 10 days before open heart surgery etc.).  He waited to walk until he was 16 months old, just long enough for his mom and dad to think that something was wrong.  Oh, and that funny looking outtie belly button, that's a hernia.  When Cooper's feet hit the floor he was always running, in the opposite direction his parents wanted him to go.  He was busy busy busy, really curious, and extremely stubborn determined.

His Oma said he was spunky, his parents said he was exhausting.

Cooper's parents had issues of their own.  They truly were gluttons for punishment.  They did crazy things like drive to Florida with a 10 month old and 2 year old, and run obscenely long distances for fun.

Well Cooper's crazy parents decided it was time Cooper started sleeping in a big boy bed, the weekend they moved to a new house.  Now most parents would realize how tired they would be just from moving, and running 13 miles the next morning, and assembling furniture, and painting, and unpacking, and would keep that spunky boy in his crib for just a little longer.  But not Cooper's parents.  Cooper's parents would sleep when they were dead, and Cooper would sleep in his big boy bed.

Cooper was delighted with his new bed.  KaChow (Lightening McQueen) sheets, and dinosaur blankets.  But the VERY BEST PART...The ability to get out of bed 30587230975023875691863 times.

And get out of bed he did.  At nap time, and bed time, and at 5am.  Cooper's mom and dad were tired, so tired, as tired as they had ever been.  When they got to sleep they dreamt about sending Cooper to Oma's house for a week.  But then it happened.

That spunky little blonde head, in his one piece footie pajamas, with Elmo hanging from his right hand, came scampering into his parents bedroom at 5:30am, and his mom's heart exploded with adoration of that spunky little exhausting boy, and they decided to keep him after all.

-Lex