“Let me lie on your tummy, Mummy”
Those were the words uttered at 10 pm the other night by Benjamin. I was full of a cold – my head felt like it was stuffed with cotton wool and my throat was like I had swallowed razor blades. All I wanted to do was curl up and go to sleep, but I turned onto my back and lie on my tummy until he fell asleep.
“Let me lie on your tummy, Mummy”
He might be nearly three years old but Ben still loves to lie on my tummy and chest like a newborn baby. Whether it’s the feeling of skin to skin, or just being close to someone, I don’t know. Whatever the reason, it relaxes him, it calms him down and pretty much always gets him to sleep. It’s not the most comfortable of positions for me to lie in, but I would be telling fibs if I said that I didn’t love the gentle weight of him, the feeling of his little fingers wrapped in my hair or the scent of the baby shampoo that always lingers in his unruly mop of blonde hair.
“Let me lie on your tummy, Mummy”
How many more times will I hear those words? He’s three in a couple of months. I’m not even sure that’s counted as a toddler anymore. This time next year, he will be with his brothers at school, wearing a school uniform, carrying his book bag. Will he want to cuddle like that anymore? One day, he’s going to say those words and it’s going to be the last time he says them. One day, I’ll realise it has been weeks since he asked to lie on my tummy. One day, he won’t want to lie on my tummy.
It’s heartrending isn’t it? As quick as they grow though the grandbabies start coming and they bring just as much joy 🙂
That brought a tear to my eye! I really don’t want my little girl to grow up, I will miss her as a toddler. They grow so quick, you have to cherish every moment!