a difficult phase.

We put Silas in a toddler bed so early that it never dawned on him he could actually get out of bed. I mean, he did get out very occasionally, but most of the time he was happy not to. When he woke up he would just yell until we came and got him.

I didn't realize how good we had it.

About three weeks ago we began the bedtime (and naptime) battles. Putting him back in bed over and over again was a pain, but it was nothing compared to what started happening a few days later...MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT BATTLES.

I have to admit...up until this point, we have been spoiled with good sleep as parents. I could count on one hand the number of times we had been up with each of our kids after they were 4 or 5 weeks old. So you may say we were due for some rough nights.

Nevertheless, the middle of the night battles were brutal. (Especially for my pregnant self.) I was up with him for 3 hours one night (putting him back in bed over and over) and then one night he was up for 4 hours (N took 2, I took 2). I cannot comprehend how anyone in their right mind could be wide awake for that long in the middle of the night.

Consistency is finally paying off, and now we only have to put him back in bed once or twice during the night. (Going to bed is still pretty rough, though I think we're making progress.)

Even aside from these bedtime battles, Silas has certainly entered into his version of the Terrible Twos. He has become very defiant, throwing himself on the floor and making this little yell that would be quite funny if not so sinful. My prayer is that the Lord would teach my heart to be grateful for these opportunities to expose his sin and point him to the truth of the gospel. And that Silas would see his inability to obey on his own, but rather fully lean on Jesus's work on the cross.