More Insomnia . . .

NOTE:  These are actual (not stock) family photos; you may not get a chance like this again.  Also, I won't be offended if you don't read my play-by-play commentary and instead simply post something like, "Oh, how cute!!" in the comments section.

To be truthful (because I'm usually not), this first picture wasn't taken last night (or this morning), but I remembered it after Stone took the second and thought it looked fitting.

Okay, so I'll try to be brief in my insomnia recap.

Maria sometimes wakes up at night and won't be consoled unless we hold her with us in bed.  We wouldn't do this if our floors and ceiling weren't incredibly susceptible to sound penetration and we didn't have neighbors all around us who work.  Yes, in our next apartment (I'm trying to find a good countdown widget), the floors are CARPETED and underlaid with CEMENT.  The wait, oh mercy, the wait!

Sadly, in bed, she rolled around, tried to climb the head board railing, and toddled around aimlessly as she mumbled politely, "Oh, did I just step on your face?  Sorry 'bout that, nuttin' personal!"

So Christy and I capitulated and busted out a bottle of some whole milk.  This calmed her down until she quickly drained it with the skill of the seeker, and it was back to "roam if you want to, roam around the [bed]."

Next, we cracked out some BVG (Baby Van Gogh) and placed her in her crib, naively imagining this might calm her down and that she'd drift off peacefully off to sleep.  *Raised eyebrow.*

Getting desperate, we next whipped out her high chair, some baby orajel (she loves that stuff, btw), some graham crackers (no chocolate or marshmallows though, Hershey's must be heartbroken) and, later, some PJ (prune juice . . .).  Nothing doing.

By this time, it's like 5 in the morning, so Christy and I reckon it's safe enough to stroll out to the unlighted parking lot, 100 yards from our apartment, and go for a calming drive; why are cars the ultimate passie (insert preferred spelling) and why can't we park one in our bedroom!?!  (She always, well 99.99% of the time, wakes up the second we take her out of her car seat or, unsurprisingly, at the latest, as we're sneaking away from her crib).

So yes, we went on a pleasantly prolonged drive (I'll spare you the details unless you request them - maybe you shouldn't, I'd probably die of shock), and, yes, Maria woke up as I tried to skulk away from her crib.

Yet again, we scooped up the beast and made for car solitude, as Stone mumbled to me from her coveted slumber in the other room.

To be short in writing (too late), Maria's been awake ever since.

You'll be happy to know that, as the piece of Grade A sleepless Father that I am, I sanctioned Christy's barricading of the bedroom door (to prevent intrusion) and supplied her with a pair of my finest law school exam ear plugs.

In case you were wondering, the paint on Maria's hand is from our bedroom door (now does the intrusion bit make sense)?

You've gotta love brief, summarized posts.  

You may now applaud, send commiseration, or feel free to one-up me in the comments.  Heck, I'll probably still be awake by the time you do . . .