Not Afraid of the Dark

Well, here’s the good news- Hayden is not afraid of the dark.  Actually, I’m wondering if she’s part vampire lately.  It’s common to hear a child cry because its nighttime and they can’t see.  I even have a friend whose daughter is afraid of shadows at night.  To me, that makes sense.  It’s easy to be afraid of what you can’t see.  Not my Hayden. 

We have one of those night vision video monitors in her room.  Yes, we are the insane parents who still watch their child sleep at the age of almost three.  Please keep in mind that her room is exactly eight feet from our bedroom.  We can hear her perfectly well if she coughs, yet as nervous, inexperienced first time parents, we were sure to purchase the most expensive video monitor Buy Buy Baby had.  (For the record, we did have our 20% off coupon when we bought it… and here is your Parent Tip of the Day… Buy Buy Baby which is part of the Bed Bath and Beyond family will take anything back… Seriously, anything.  My mother has returned pasta makers after using it for three years, no receipt, she’s not even sure if she bought it there… So after a full year with our video monitor, we brought it back in a Ziploc bag, claimed it didn’t work ((which it didn’t)) and they immediately replaced it with a brand new updated version.  Kick ass.  I cannot say the same for Toys R Us/Babies R Us which would rather you die from Leprosy than accept a return).

Anyway, I’ve spent hours watching Hayden in the night vision monitor.  I’ve watched her sit up in her bed and individually talk to each of her stuffed animals.  Sometimes it’s hilarious, “Orange, you’re my best friend, I love you so much… even more than Daddy”… Sometimes it’s alarming “Jingle, I hope a monster doesn’t come and eat you tonight.”  Regardless of what she says, I can’t get over the fact that she has no fear of the dark. 

The one thing we have been lucky with is that she rarely will get up out of bed on her own.  Somehow, she hasn’t figured out yet that she actually has the option to get up out of bed and no one can stop her.  Even if she has to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night, she’ll call for me to come get her.  Of course, whenever this happens, I jump out of a dead sleep because I have the monitor six inches from my head on full blast. 

A funny thing happened the other night though.  I was passed out after working the late shift at the radio station- and despite the glaring lights and sounds from the monitor; I failed to hear Hayden embarking on a little adventure.  I rolled over to hear Paul mumble “What the hell is she doing?...” and watched him stumble off to her room.  The clock said 3:23 am.  I heard giggling, then Paul say calmly “Hayden what are you doing in the closet?”.  The child had filled her potty with pee, then decided that instead of getting back into bed, she would simply go lock herself in the closet.  She did all this is pitch black darkness.  How she managed not to pee on the floor and get it all in the toilet, I will never know.  Again, she may be a vampire.  And her response as to why she was in the closet, “I wanted to go downstairs but I couldn’t”.  Logical.  I’m just thankful it was Paul who went in to investigate the small noises, because if I would have walked in to an empty bed and an empty bathroom, I would have screamed Jon Benet, freaked out and called the police immediately. 

I think this would be a good time to point out that my brother has rigged his kids vido camera’s so he can watch them on both his television and computer while they sleep.  I use that as justification that he is crazy and I am not.  Feel free to judge.