My Enemies

Some of you are all too familiar with my desire for Jansen to have the perfect sleeping environment. Hanging blankets over his window so it's really dark, the "soothing" sound machine, checking the overnight low so I know which pajamas to put him in, a fairly rigid bedtime and pre-bedtime routine, etc. I think this all stems from his major sleep issues as an infant...I am still haunted by it all. But the thing that I really go overboard on is wanting it to be quiet while he is sleeping. I insist on everyone using whispers if there is an absolute need to communicate, give dirty looks to the missionaries if they laugh too loud, no flushing the toilet, etc. Nate knows he is not allowed to tap his razor on the sink in the morning when he is shaving because I am just positive that Jansen can hear it and is in a light sleep phase so he will surely wake up. And there are a couple of perpetrators who should thank their lucky stars they are still alive. The leaf blower man and the garbage man. The noises created by these outlaws is unbelievable. The leaf blower man walks right by Jansen's window and revs his little leaf blower machine SO loud. And the thing is, there isn't even anything to blow away. And if there was, what's he gonna do...blow it down the sidewalk a few feet so that he can walk over to it and blow it again? Sometimes I stand at the door and try to get the courage to go out and ask him to skip our section of the complex. And you wouldn't believe the way the garbage man bangs the dumpsters against his truck. BOOM, BOOM, BOOM. Oh, and one more racketeer came out this evening. The-boy-who-drags-his-metal-wagon-upside-down-along-the-sidewalk. He and I had a little talk together. Well this blog has gone on long enough...I have to include one more detail though...I don't even know for sure if any of these things have ever actually woken Jansen up. But they could. So I will continue my vigilant effort to protect my child's sleep environment.