A blog-lullaby by The Wife

When The Girl and The Boy were both infants, we had a family bed, with both kids sleeping with us until they were each about 20 months old. Because they are 24 months apart that meant that, while we always had a child sharing our bed and room, The Girl graduated to her own space before The Boy came along. Initially The Girl did quite well on her own, but The Boy didn't adapt as easily. We found rather quickly that he always slept much better with someone else. So while they both have their own rooms, every night they eventually share one. Usually The Girl's because she has a full sized bed. (The Boy has a twin sized bunk bed set that belonged to Uncle Walter when he was a boy.)

Over the years we've established a nighttime routine that mostly works. At 7:30 p.m. the kids go to their respective rooms. Since they each have their own TV, they usually have a movie on (The Girl likes to watch shows off Netflix Streaming). For the next 1 1/2-2 hours they watch TV, read books, color, play with toys, whatever, to keep them occupied yet relaxed. This is supposed to provide me with some badly needed personal space, and Uncle Walter time to relax after work.

At 9:30 the TVs go off, the kids climb into the same bed, and the lights are dimmed. Then I sit on the bed and read a couple of stories and sing songs. Once that's done, I turn a radio on, dim the lights all the way and leave. Theoretically that's night-night time, and on a good night they don't disturb us. Some nights there are many interruptions, but as they get older, those nights are (thankfully) getting fewer and farther between.

Right about now you're probably asking yourself what on EARTH this post could be about. I mean, sure, you now know our bedtime routine.  Um... thanks?  Right? Thing is, I got to thinking about the songs that my kids ask me to sing, and even about the fact that I sing to them at all. Not many parents do. I started it because my own father sung to me and my siblings. I initially followed the trend by singing my now 20 something year old niece to sleep when she was a baby. But I didn't want to just sing lullabies. First of all, they're kind of freaky. Second of all, there just aren't that many pretty ones that are easy to sing along with. So I started singing her contemporary songs, as well as the songs that my father had sung to me. And with my own kids, I have continued that tradition.

So, for your entertainment purposes, here are some of the songs that I sing to my kids each night:

I first heard this song from the movie, and thought it was pretty. I change the melody just slightly, but otherwise it's the same. The Boy in particularl likes it and asks for it every night. This is usually song #1, shortly followed by:

Just after The Girl was born, a friend of mine made a CD of lullabies and this was on it. I played the CD for both kids, and they liked this song, but especially The Boy. It's such a soothing an pleasant song, and it is usually song #2.

Then The Girl gets a chance to choose. For a change of pace, she almost always picks this:

There are many other videos for this song, of course, but the kids prefer this one (can you see why?). I've always assumed that this must be a pretty strange choice of songs to sing to your kids... but it's one my dad sung to me, and it's one I've always liked. So it entered the rotation. And for some reason, over the last couple of months, The Girl has decided that it's one of her very favorites, and it's an every night song now.

Following that, The Girl switches it up. She doesn't always pick the same song, but most frequently it's this one:

It's such a pretty song, another one that my own father sung to me as a child.  Both kids have always liked it, and I enjoy singing it.  It's one of those songs that you just feel good listening to.

Depending on their moods, they sometimes ask for different songs (or, when I'm willing, additional songs).  The ones they choose are varied:

The vocals are a little off on the video, but it's the best copy I've found. This is a song that I've always particularly liked and it makes me happy that the kids like it, too. I like the theme of never giving up, of fighting, even when the odds are against you. On the heels of that, sometimes we have this:

You'll have to turn the volume up a bit for that one. Again, this is a song that my dad used to sing to me. A sad love song, but surprisingly cheerful in tune and rhythm. The kids get a kick out of hearing this in unusual places, like when the musical act played it at kids' night at Chick-Fil-A. But, sometimes their mood is a bit different and we sing something else, like this:

Such a happy and peppy tune, something that makes us all feel good. But not a love song, and sometimes they want one. So we might choose this one:

Such a sweet and fun non-traditional love song.

There are so many more that we sing, too, but I'm beginning to think this post is long enough. Are you even still awake?

Comments

[CSM]

our boy never cared for me to sing to him (with his sensory issues it was always a problem, and once he was able to communicate he spoke up and told us it hurt his ears) but his sister often likes a couple of songs from her favorite moves... "i stand alone" from quest for Camelot, and "River Lullaby" from Prince of Egypt. there are a few others, such as the Trimarian Anthem (yes we are those kinds of geeks) and Belt and Chain that they both like, though only when their mother is in good enough voice to sing to them which is rare.