Moon and Stars...

When Davey first arrived I dragged out a mobile I had gotten years ago.  It was a pretty typical mobile, little stuffed animals that hung down, a few settings for different sounds/music, and it light up both underneath so the child could see the pretty lights, as well as projecting light on the ceiling. This one projected a moon and stars.  They would rotate around the room for whatever the designated time might have been.   It also came with a remote that you could hang on a door knob, allowing you to start up the mobile without having to walk over and potentially disturbing a small child.

When it came to sleeping, his first few weeks with us were a little rough.  Poor guy had some major ear infections, along with sinus and teething issues.  Sleep was not always kind to him, so we worked hard to make it a more pleasant experience.  Eventually we got things settled, and he began to associate sleep with nice things.  Soft blankies, quiet music, and stuffed animals began to quietly sooth his little tired body, so much so that he eventually got to the point where he would indicate to us that he was ready to go to bed. 

And then there were the moon and stars…
It started out simply enough.  One night when he was crying and hurting, I spent about an hour holding him in the dark.  As some point I turned on the mobile, letting the light dance across the ceiling.  “The moon and stars have come out just for you” I would whisper.  He would watch fascinated as I pointed to various stars as they moved about.  Eventually I handed him the remote and taught him how to use it so he could turn the moon and stars on whenever he wanted too.  We would also let him see the real moon and stars at night.  We have the good fortune to live in the country.  It gets dark enough out there that the views are excellent, something that is becoming harder and harder to see when living in a town or city.

At times he noticed the moon during the day.  He would point it out to us and say “Moon” quiet clearly.   He also figured out how to turn off his light so he could see the moon and stars in his room.   They were, after all, coming out just for him. 

As he grew, he went from the crib to a toddler bed and eventually an actual twin bed.  During that time the mobile he used would no longer fit on the newer beds.  Eventually the moon and stars had to be ‘retired’.  He knew they were still out there, and asked for them occasionally.  I explained that they were still around but were ‘sleeping’.  He accepted this answer as small children will do, but it bothered me that he had too.

Then for Christmas his sister received one of those pillow pets that light up.  He was enthralled with it.  The moon and stars came out for her, but his were still gone.  It took some time as the stores were all out, but eventually we came across them one afternoon while grocery shopping.  He carefully picked out the blue puppy and we took it home.  Patiently he waited for ‘batt-rees’ to be installed, then he ran off gleefully to play with his puppy.  That evening, I tucked him into his bed and turned on the puppy. 
“Moon and stars, Mommy…Moon and stars” he whispered.
“Yes Bug, the moon and stars came back out…and they came out just for you.”