The way it goes

Thanks to a rough cold season (and on-going allergy issues that I could write a book about) the boys have been sick on and off for a few weeks.  They are also gradually giving up their nap, so it is never clear whether they'll stay up all afternoon and go gratefully to bed at 6:30, or if they'll crash for two hours in the afternoon, then party crankily until after 9 pm. 

Today it looked like we were going to sail through a napless afternoon, despite runny noses and flushed cheeks.  Then at 3 o'clock Tristan insisted that he needed to visit my dad.  I didn't get his shoes on fast enough, so he broke down crying.  The shoes were too tight, so he cried harder and took them off.  Duncan understood what was happening before I did and made a bee-line for the kitchen, where he started cramming popcorn into his mouth with both fists.  In his haste, Duncan knocked over a glass of milk, forcing me to leave Tristan hiccuping shakily in the hallway.  By the time I had cleaned up the milk, Tristan had carried his blankets to the kitchen and fallen asleep on the floor beside me. 

Meanwhile, Duncan was still shoving popcorn into his mouth and chewing determinedly. He was also swaying slightly in his chair and blinking heavily.  When he reached across the table for a second bowl of popcorn, I suggested that he should eat it in the couch.  He nodded, staggered to the living room, and fell asleep sitting up with both hands in the bowl.

I'd forgotten what simultaneous naps are like.  Bedtime is going to be a train wreck, but the silence right now is lovely.