Rock On Momma

It’s 2:16am and my “mommy ears” have been perked, I’ve been listening to her over the baby monitor rustling in the crib.  Then I hear her sweet, almost cooing “Momma”.  I click the top of the baby monitor that lives on my side of the bed, and see her sitting up in the corner.  Roll out of bed and a short walk across the hall I open her door.  She sees me and instantly stands, arms stretched out reaching for me.

“Hi Momma”

“Hi my baby, it’s still bedtime.  Let’s go night night.”

Her deep brown eyes look at me, I feel her tiny toddler hands embrace my face, then she kisses me, wraps her arms around me and lays her head on my shoulder.  We make our way to the rocker in the corner of the room.

Once rocking, her head is tucked under my chin, ear pressed against my chest listening as I softly sing, “Silent night, holy night, all is calm, all is bright…” The baby blanket draped over us, holding her close, I stroke her still baby soft hair while I continue to rock.

Silent Night

O Holy Night

Jesus Loves Me

I half sing, half hum tonight’s songs and she’s almost asleep again.  We rise from the chair, she’s curled up in my arms and we start our swaying walk back to the crib.  Pausing in front of the crib just for a few more moments of back and forth, I kiss her head and lay her down.  Her heavy toddler eyes look up at me as she’s rubbing her ears and I whisper, “Mommy loves you, sweet dreams”, her eyes close and she’s trying to sleep.

My husband, who had been listening to my whispering lullabies over the monitor, feels me get back into the bed, rolls over, kisses me saying in his deeply soft sleepy voice, “Good job Momma, I love you.” 

“I love you too.”

I snuggle under his arm and try to fall back to sleep.

 When I was pregnant, a woman I knew at work had told me with warning in her voice, “Once you start rocking them, you can’t stop.”  And now, when I see an expectant mother, I smile and with love in my voice say, “Once, you start rocking the baby you’ll never want to stop.”

So I say to all of the Mommas and soon to be Mommas of the world: Rock on Momma, rock on.